Medellin has him.

Day 71 and 72
Medellin, Colombia
Day's Ride: 0 Miles

Well, it's official. Medellin has me. It feels like those lines from the second Hangover flick. There's nothing you can do, Bangkok has him. Except it's Medellin. Every time I get ready to leave something comes up and I end up staying here just one more day.

This was my second Christmas in a row spent far away from home with a stomach bug. Last year it was in the giant sandbox. All in all, Christmas was pretty low key. I slept in till about 10:00 AM then walked down to the coffee shop (which was probably the only business open in Medellin) and got a traditional deep fried Colombian breakfast:



I can literally feel my arteries starting to clog when I eat this stuff; but it's so good I just can't stop! While I was eating I met a couple of fellow overlanders who had driven their Toyota Fourrunner down here from Austin, Texas.



They've been on the road for 11 months! They ended up getting married in Guatemala. What a honeymoon! They have a pretty sweet setup in the Toyota. They usually just park in front of a Hostel, pirate the wifi, pay for a shower, and sleep in the back of their rig. For the life of me I can't remember their names; they're probably going to be angry with me when they read this as I gave them the address for the ride report.....

After I left the Texans, I found this hilarious sign above a nearby drive way:



I suppose these kinds of signs are necessary when you live next to a bunch of Hostels and bars.

I spent the rest of the day lazing around and napping. Bubbletron, Dilan, the two Texans, and I all went out later that evening for a traditional Christmas meal of Colombian Tex-Mex. It tasted nothing like tex-mex. I wanted a refund but was too tired to care. Fortunately I got to see this awesome Vespa hack which totally made up for the mediocre meal:



This morning I was actually somewhat productive. Yesterday I had become acquainted with James, a New Hampshire native who lives in Colombia six months out of the year and works for Motolombia. He took bubbletron, Dilan, and myself downtown to moto centro: an entire street of wall to wall moto shops:



Bubbletron, Dilan, and James all went off looking for parts while I stepped into a custom sticker shop to see about getting a Colombian flag sticker for my panniers. I told the kid behind the counter what I wanted and he got right to work making a custom Colombian flag sticker for me, out of reflective material. As he was working, I perused his merch and found the sticker that everyone who visits Medellin should have:



Pablito! I'm really regretting not buying this sticker now. As the kid was finishing up the Colombian flag, I had the bright idea to get a larger North/South America silhouette sticker for my panniers. I already have a small one that I picked up at the HU meeting that I put on my left pannier. I trace my route on it in red sharpie and use it as an aid to explain to people what I'm doing, where I'm coming from, and where I'm going. Unfortunately, it's a little small for my taste and I wanted something a little larger, a little more in-your-face, a little more, well.....more American!

The kid told me that it couldn't be done. So I hoped on his computer, fired up Goggle Images, downloaded a North/South America school map, and showed him what I wanted. After that the lights kicked on and he went to work with Adobe. A few minutes later I had a 30 x 20 cm white silhouette sticker.



Here's a better shot of what it looks like on my pannier:



It turned out really well. So well that Dylan and bubbletron decided to buy one as well. After sticker time, James and I went hunting for some other parts for one of the Motolombia BMW's. I saw this machine shop with computer controlled plasma cutting:



I'm really impressed by Medellin. I feel like you can get anything here. It's got tons of bike shops, legit mechanics, and some real top notch welders! If anyone that is reading this blog is planning a trip down south or currently engaged in one, Medellin is the place to go to get parts, service, and help.

Just after passing the machine shop, I found another Unicorn:



I love this place! This is actually the third XRL out of four that I've seen in Medellin now. Surprisingly, I hadn't seen any until I reached here.

This afternoon I went for a little workout in the local free outdoor gym just down the block (another reason to love Medellin). As I was walking back into the Shamrock, Blanca, the cleaning lady told me that some random guy Juan David had stopped by and was looking for me. I was a little confused as I didn't know any Juan Davids. All of a sudden some guy behind me starts yelling, "Hey Ulyses, is that you?".

I turned around and was a little dumbfounded to find a Colombian guy approaching me and telling me that he had been reading my post on ADV rider and knew Federico at Moto Shop who had told him that I was staying at the Shamrock. His name was Juan David and he rode an XR650R and was a member of a group of Honda XR riders who met every Thursday in Medellin. He invited me to come to the meeting and ride with them tomorrow night.

I had been planning on leaving tomorrow, but after hearing that, I knew that I had to stay just one more night! Medellin has me. I talked with Juan David for a minute before he had to split and was about to head up to my room for a shower and some water when I was stopped yet again by a Dutch guy named Mike who had overheard my conversation and a little about my trip and wanted to buy me a drink. Here's mike:



I couldn't turn down a free drink. A whiskey on the rocks is the perfect recovery drink after a nice hard workout.

Just as I was finishing up talking to Mike, another guy rolls into the bar, takes a look at me, and asks me if I'm Ulyses from advrider.

And that's how I met the other Mike:



Mike is from the states but has been living down here with his dad for a few months. He was a contractor in Afghanistan for the last few years. He had been reading my ride report as well apparently. Awesome guy! It was a little trippy being tracked down by two total strangers; I'm going to have to be careful that I don't start attracting paparazzi.

This evening Dylan, bubbletron, James, and I got some groceries and cooked up a nice traditional Italian meal for Boxing Day. It's good to be around fellow riders again.



That's all for today. I thought I was going to leave tomorrow and give you all something better to read about than my new life in Medellin. However, I can't turn down a ride with the "Honda XR Antioquia" MC. I may also try and get on one of the Pablo Escobar tours tomorrow. Salud!

Hey it's Guatape!

Day 70
Medellin, Colombia to Guatape, Colombia and back
Day's Ride: 115 Miles



I feel like crap. I think I'm coming down with something bad. I've got a fever and I'm feeling nauseous; it's almost as bad as being on the independence. I'll try and crank this out before I lose my lunch...

Met up this morning with Byron and Isabel for breakfast. Al and his savage beast of an attack dog Missy came along too. It was one big ADV rider happy family gathered at the local coffee shop.





After breakfast we all headed over to Frederico's shop so that the Brits could get some parts and Al could pick up his 990 Super Moto. Afterwords we all decided to ride out to a place called Guatape to see a really famous rock. Al and I went back to the Shamrock; while we were waiting for Byron and Isabel, Al let me ride his 990 Supermoto.



Up until this point, I haven't realized how terrible the motorcycles I've been riding are. Getting on this thing was like switching from a Model T to a Corvette. Holy cow! Hot damn! The throttle is super responsive and snappy, the brembo brakes stop on a dime, and the whole bike turns so fast it's unbelievable! Jumping on a modern liquid cooled, twin cylinder, fuel injected bike was a huge difference from my poor thumper. Wow. I want one!

Byron and Isabel showed up and we were off! Seeing them fully loaded up on their bike is a sight.



Somewhere beneath all of that gear is a R100RS that's still faithfully chugging along.



They hit a nasty pot hole back in Honduras which pretty much destroyed their suspension and cracked both of their wheels. They managed to limp into Nicaragua and send out an SOS. ADV riders came out of the woodwork to help them get back on the road. Various people from around the country shipped parts to total stranger who happened to be flying to Nicaragua. This guy collected everything and took it to them!

They call their bike "The Flying Aga". I had to have them explain to me what an Äga" is. Apparently, back in the UK, an Aga is a combination wood stove/oven. Everything makes sense now. Byron showed me where they had to re-weld their wheel:



On the way to Guatape, my XR650L crossed a major milestone: the odometer broached 10,000 miles!



We arrived at Guatape and finally beheld the rock:



This thing is massive! It's over 200 meters tall and was first climbed in 1954. It's rather conspicuous as it is perched just above a massive man made reservoir and is nowhere near to any other rocks or mountains.



Definitely worth the trip. We huffed and puffed our way to the top while Al stayed at the little café at the bottom and watched.

The view from the top was fantastic:



After the rock we headed into the town of Guatape for lunch.





Byron decided to follow my lead from last night and go American on an entire pizza!



After lunch we started heading back. Byron and Isabel can't quite go as fast on their flying stove as most motos, so Al and I pulled over at major turns to wait for them.



We dropped Byron and Isabel off in Llano Grande where they were supposed to meet up with Isabel's sister in-law (who's Colombian) and go to her house for Christmas.

We then made the ride back into Medellin. Al's way faster than me on his rocket ship. I had constantly strain my eyes to catch sight of the orange blur hundreds of meters in front of me.



Coming down the hill back into Medellin at night was pretty awesome. The lights of the city were spectacular. Unfortunately, my camera doesn't do it justice.



Right as we pulled into the Shamrock, advrider bubbletron came around the corner and surprised us! She and another rider had just gotten in from Venezuela a few hours ago. Time for an advrider Christmas eve feast! Or maybe a festivus.

Thanks again to everyone who is reading along and to everyone who is giving me encouragement, tips, and advice! I wish all of you a merry christmas!

God bless,

Bryce

P.S. I'm going to go be sick now.

Medellin Again....

Day 69
Medellin, Colombia
Day's Ride: 0 Miles

There isn't really much to write about today. Just a lazy day in Medellin. Byron and Isabel made it into Medellin last night and then showed up at the Shamrock today at noon, and we spent the afternoon hanging out. We walked to the mall to hunt for Christmas presents; Isabel's sister in law is from just outside of Medellin and they are going to the family Christmas party. Walking through Medellin, at least in the Poblado Neighborhood, feels like being back in the States or possibly Europe. Everything is very clean and modern.





We arrived in the mall and started shopping (ewww!). I did see something kind of funny:



This store, called "Americanino" was founded in Italy....huh?

Oh well. After a few minutes of walking around the mall, Byron and I couldn't stand it anymore and left Isabel to her own devices while we went to the food court and did man stuff.....like order ice cream cones.

After the mall we went to their Hostel to check out the BMW that they are riding. They bottomed out yesterday coming into Medellin and smashed their oil pan pretty good; now they've got a slight leak going. They just aren't having great luck with their bike. Luckily Byron is an ace mechanic and can pretty much fix anything!





We eventually made our way back to the Shamrock where Byron and Isabel met Al and Al's ferocious guard dog Missy:



As we were hanging out in the Shamrock, I looked around and found that Al had an Oregon license plate on his wall! Oh sweet Oregon, how I miss you!



Al's also got a lot of funny stuff up on his walls. Case in point:



For Dinner tonight we strolled on over to the popular Colombian chain (not sure if it's really a Colombian chain) "Crepes and Waffles".



When I ordered two entrées, the waitress wasn't sure that I knew what I was asking for and had to get her manager who spoke a little English to make sure the big bald gringo really wanted all of that food. Of course I do, I'm a real American, and real American's eat lot's and lot's of food!



I swear, wherever I go in the world outside of the USA, I can never get enough to eat. It's a constant struggle to make sure I'm getting my 3,000-5,000 calories a day.

Sorry for not really posting anything motorcycle related. Today was totally an off day. Tomorrow Al and I (and possibly Byron and Isabel) are going to ride out to Guatape and see the sights. That's all for now.

Willingly Stuck in Medellin

Day 68
Medellin, Colombia
Day's Ride: 34 Miles



Another day in Medellin. I'm beginning to understand why crashmaster got stuck here.

Woke up early to get to the shop and do some more work on the bike, but ended up going to breakfast with Al and his awesome German Shepherd, Missy. We discussed the finer points of the Colombian Civil War, American Politics, and Gun Control. Apparently the FARC are in peace talks with the Colombian government right now; I guess they're getting tired of living in the jungle. But seriously, the Colombian Government has been putting the hurt on the leftist guerrillas for the past ten years and they know that their days are numbered, hence their willingness to call for a cease fire and attend peace talks. Ironically, the Colombian Government agreed to the peace talks, but not the cease fire. So they're still out in the jungle hunting guerrillas. This is all according to Al, so don't quote me on that.

After breakfast, Al fired up his Norton 850 Commando and we rode over to Frederico's Shop so I could adjust my chain with weight on the bike and attach my bottle cages to the Pelican cases.

Frederico is awesome! He gave me total run of his shop and let me use his tools. I drilled some holes in the Pelican Cases that Justin sold me, and attached my bottle cages.





Gas goes in the red one, oil in the brown.

Next up I had Frederico's guys wash my bike. Frederico's shop has it's own little detailing station and they do a hell of a job; all for $6!





The old XRL hasn't been this clean since.....well, since me and my brother bought it!

I also needed some more tools, a new ratchet strap, and a feeler gage. I told Frederico and he told me that he would send his runner out to get them for me and I could go take a ride and then pick them up when I got back. It just keeps getting better and better.

I headed back to the Shamrock and asked Al if he wanted to go for a quick ride. Unfortunately, he had just gotten back from rallying his Norton through the hills above Medellin. However, he insisted that I take the Norton out for a spin. So I obliged!





Al's a pretty brave dude to let a total stranger go ride his Norton around the city, especially considering that are probably only about three of these things in all of Colombia. Don't tell him, but I did a couple of wheelies....just kidding Al.

After bringing the Norton back to Al (in once piece of course), I put on my new armor and took the XRL out for a spin.



I feel like a lost storm-trooper wearing that white pressure suit. There's a great road running out of Medellin that climbs a few thousand feet up into the hills on the outskirts of town. Great curves, solid pavement, and an amazing view of the city!



I eventually topped out at an amazing overlook for the city:









After riding back down, I got hopelessly lost in the city. Medellin is a pretty big city. I eventually asked a couple of kids on 125cc Pulsars for directions. They pointed it out for me, then started trying to impress me by pulling some pretty big wheelies in traffic.



I was pretty well impressed.

I finally made it back to the Shamrock where it was time for pictures with the staff. Zach, the manager, is from South Carolina. He's a stand up dude and will definitely take care of you if you stay here.



Last order of business for the day was a little air filter maintenance. Spud Rider pointed me in the right direction with the no-toil filter oil and cleaner. It comes our real fast without having to use a solvent or gas. This is the before picture:



And then I forgot to take an "after" picture.

After I had cleaned it up and rinsed out the soap, I walked over to the local KFC and spent about ten minutes getting to know the hand dryer:



If you are every in a hurry to dry something out and can't find a hair dryer, just go find an American fast food chain and step into the W.C.!