The white walls are everywhere and you might need sun glasses if your eyes are sensitive to light like mines are (or suffer… Your choice and pleasures).

The first day, I did something seemingly normal, but more and more unusual for people relying on Internet to define what to do and where: I went to the office tourism. Eh… What better than locals to talk about what to see? I met a super foody guy who recommended me a very nice place to eat carantantas con hogao, empañadas de pipián and the amazingly deliciously sweet salpicón.

I spent the rest of the day going to the Morro del Tulcán, getting lost in the woods while trying to go to Capilla de Belén (not the best experience after people told me it was dangerous to head another way), and visiting the Natural History Museum, among other things.

After scanning for vegetarian restaurants on arrival, I decided to head for Comida sana to have dinner, just to discover they only served lunch. Never mind, I tried their hojaldra with hot chocolate. I didn’t crave another round afterwards, but their daily menu ended up to be savoury! For COP7000, you get a drink, a soup, a complete meal and a small dessert. You might end up sharing a table because it’s always full at lunch time. This lead to one funny encounter where the woman in front of me removed the salty sauce I dropped in my dessert, with her finger. It was both funny and revealing another sense of limits in Colombia.

I went to Silvia with B. whom I met in the hostel, which was being driven by P. and P. since San Agustin. The Tuesday market was worth visiting as it shows both the Misak indigenous and part of their culture. We then went for a small hike around the city and its surroundings with G. and T., met in the same hostel.

We also found a potatoes market! The seller told me there was about 30 different types of potatoes in Colombia. Frenchie’s dreamland.

I then took the bus on Wednesday evening to climb the Puracé volcano. I met S. and F. there with whom I shared a guide on the next day, but most importantly, a conversation and a beer in the hot springs belonging to the base camp. Taking a hot bath at 3000 meters is not something I was thinking of and, oh boy, was it good.

The next day was both beautiful and really tough. Climbing to 4000 meters, although tiring, was OK. Passed 4300, I started feeling like I wanted to vomit a bit and had to stop every 20 meters in order to reach the summit. The whole experience was interesting for testing my limits and knowing what I should do for next time.

My plan was to go to the immigration office in Popayán to see if it would be easier to renew my visa without having to buy an exit ticket, but the overly lovely person went through all the steps to use the website, mentioning all the foreigners had to use it to renew their visa. Considering I heard stories from people for whom it hasn’t been the case, I doubt it, but confronting her would not have brought anything good. So I sailed for San Agustín.