We decided to spend our anniversary weekend away, and Sandra had heard of a town to the west surrounded by waterfalls. We arrived at our B&B late on Friday night, lucky to have found a tuktuk when we got off the bus, because they normally stop running at 10pm. The driver, as everyone we met, was very friendly and helpful, making sure we reached our home despite poor directions from the host and despite our road being closed. Ernesto, the host’s husband, was waiting for us and delighted in recommending which waterfalls to spend our time on. Top of the list was El Chispero, which is the fall you can see me swimming under. The water was cold, but we needed the refreshing dunk as a respite from the tropical heat.

Surprisingly, the weather wasn’t much hotter than Medellin and the nights significantly cooler. One of the locals told us that this was because of the four hydro-electric systems constantly spraying water into the atmosphere, which evaporates after dark. The company running these dams, which produce 20% of Colombia’s power needs, created a path along the river, facilitating access to another beautiful waterfall, but unfortunately, that makes it very crowded, so we chose to swim in a waterhole further downstream.

We also spent some time at a restaurant just below our B&B, which ran a roaring trade for people who came to swim in the river or just lie on the grass bank. The meat fell off the bone and the flavours pleased even Sandra’s discerning pallet. We spent our last afternoon trying unsuccessfully to get a hummingbird out of the house, eventually giving up and lying on the grass outside reading together.