I’m not one to lose their shit. But I was mildly annoyed after 2 taxis turned us down, 3 bus drivers pied us off, and 3 Ubers canceled on us when trying to get to mirador San Felíx.
It’s kinda near Bello…
Famous last as we left the flat. Of course, I searched how to get to mirador San Felíx, but there were no easy-to-follow hits on the first page of Google.
My mate, Michael, told me he went paragliding in San Felíx next to this mirador (viewpoint). And, I vaguely remembered him telling me he got off at Bello. Google maps confirmed it, so we jumped on the metro.
(Every journey on the metro is straightforward — you just need to go to San Antonio and change to the blue line towards Niquía — it’s the penultimate stop)
I don’t fancy getting my mobile out here
Bello has a rep for being a dodgy area. In fact, there’s a prison not far away known for cellmates escaping on the regs. This, and I’ve seen sicario murders on the guardian’s de Medellín Instagram page happen there. So, I didn’t fancy getting my mobile out. Not until I’d assessed the vibe for myself anyway.
As you leave the station, you walk into the sounds of Medellín: busses pulling away sounding like tanks from World War 2, street vendors selling juices, empanadas, and all kinds of exotic fruits. This is Medellín. Real and In the heart of the action.
I asked the first taxi driver if he could take us to the Mirador in San Felíx. Not interested. None of the yellow cab drivers were.
Fine. Maybe the bus drivers will save the day. My friend asked 1…2…3 drivers. Each one sending us further up the bus rank. At this rate, we’d be halfway to San Felix.
The time had come. Me tocó use Uber. Even the first 3 of those canceled the viaje (not uncommon in Medellín with Uber.
But then…
Our knight in worn-out silver Renault Clio-shaped armour… Anderson. Of course he’d pull through. The lad had a 5-star Uber rating. I don’t know what I did to deserve 4.74…
Okay if we go via the barrio?
*Silence*
Ermm, estás seguro?
Sii, y más rápido!
….
Dale Anderson, hágale
I trust in the good nature of people. Especially those with a good vibe like Anderson. Besides, the extra adrenaline was welcome.
I knew it would be fine, but I’m more careful in areas I don’t know well. Plus, the windows were down putting me further on edge. I’d heard enough stories of people’s mobiles getting nicked while in traffic.
The sounds of the city intensified as we entered the barrio. I love seeing the real Medellin. Normal people doing normal things. But, for me, normal in Colombia is so interesting.
Kids riding shotgun on motorbikes without helmets.
Local clothes shops advertising counterfeit Nike and Adidas merch on mannequins.
Fruit vendors pushing carts made out of scrap metal welded to homemade axels fixed to car wheels.
Pure action.
We weaved and spluttered up the steep winding roads of the barrio. The density of houses became less and less. I wasn’t surprised, It’s so steep you couldn’t make it 10m on foot without stopping for air.
Steep AF this, no?
I had the feeling Andersons Clio was at its limit. Anderson, however, knew every nook and crevice of his trusted Renault. Like an old pair of trainers, to the outsider, better off in the trash. But, to the wearer, a comfortable journey guaranteed.
We revved higher up the mountain.
Here, the houses had their own gardens. 5 minutes before, it looked like you’d have neighbors above, below, and around you.
11 minutes later, we arrived at the mirador. I say mirador, from the outside it looked like one of those markets with food from all over Latin America you find in London. There were arepa stands and different bars serving cocktails and shots.
Anderson, the legend, said he’d wait for us.
The view from San Felíx
We walked through the restaurant to the garden area.
It revealed a whopper of a view.
Gun-barrel straight down the valley.
I’d never seen Medellín from this perspective before.
These photos don’t do it justice.
San Felix is a popular spot for paragliding. The launchpad is a little further up the mountain so you could see them flying across the skyline. One day, I’d like to give it ago. The view + experience must be magical.
The gliders take off from the hill on the left in the background.
Food
We ordered 2 rancheras. One in arepa and the other on a patacon. They didn’t hold back on cramming them with bacon, sausage, and chicharrón. Estaba delicisoso.
After an hour or so, I started thinking about our chofor freezing in his car. There was a real nip in the air. Anderson gave me the all-good sign while tucking into an arepa con queso. My sign there was time to try their famous hot chocolate. Despite the waiter’s best efforts to plonk some cheese in mine, I’d avoided another cheese fiasco. Why the Colombians think it’s okay to eat sweet stuff with cheese I’ll never know!
Give Anders a buzz + tidy tip
We’d got off to a rocky start, but what a top lad. Not only did he get us to the mirador, wait for us, and take me back to my apartment, we got a tour. Little nuggets of info as we drove through the barrio; stories from his life in Medellín, how Bello isn’t that bad anymore (apart from the escaping prisoners), and interesting stories about different buildings. I recommend my boy Anderson if you want the full mirador de San Felíx experience.
Drop me a message and I’ll send you his details.
Nick
