IPIALES, POPAYAN & THE BORDER, COLOMBIA

From coastal Ecuador we undertook the marathon bus journey to the border with Colombia. An overnight bus from Canoa accompanied all night long by loud regatone music brought us into Quito at 3:30 AM, not a pleasant time to wander this unsafe city. Waiting until daylight in the tiny Reina del Camino bus terminal we walked half a block to the Flota Imbabura terminal and hopped on the next bus to Tulcan, the only recommended border crossing between the two countries.

A chaotic three hour wait to get our Ecuadorian exit stamp was the last thing we needed after all those hours of traveling. We openly argued with officials that kept on changing the location of entry and exit desks and hypocritical locals that attempted to cut the lines, one of the best displays of absurdity and disorganisation encountered so far. Once on the Colombian side, there were thankfully no lineups and officials were polite and professional.

By that time it was late afternoon and it is not recommended to travel by night in Southern Colombia where armed bandits have been known to highjack buses. Therefore we had to spend the night in cold and quiet Ipiales. Worn and sad looking Hotel Belmonte near the center was fine for a night but not a minute longer. We took shelter from the bitter cold under a giant pile of blankets and waited for morning to head to a better place.

Our wishes came true when we entered Popayan, an old typical colonial town with whitewashed buildings. Again the bus ride to to get there was a journey in itself. The bus was stopped four times by police and military checks, each time picking up, verifying, and giving back the citizenship card of each passenger on the bus while also giving our passports a quick glance. Once a FARC stronghold, the rural southern part of the country remains under strong security. To make things more interesting, a mechanical break turned an eight hour bus journey into a twelve hour one. After a few days in quiet Popayan listening to old vinyls in El Sotareño bar while mingling with locals and getting accustomed to Colombian hospitality, cuisine, and expressions (Que Chevere!) we were rested and ready to hop on the bus, once again.