A Medellin Chronicle

El Palazzetto D’ Italia Real Italian Food Downtown

pbunch — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 19:36:02 +0000

I want to share another of our long time favorite restaurants in the downtown area, El Palazzetto D’ Italia. They serve a broad range of delicious Italian dishes with a genuine old country flavor. The second story location raises you above the hustle and bustle of the busy downtown streets and the carefully designed space is tasteful, warm, and welcoming. I always feel relaxed and at home when we dine there. In addition to the regular dinner service their Tea Room (Salon de Te) is open from 3 PM to 7 PM.

Rather than spend a lot of words on the details of their menu and pricing I refer you to their online menu. The last time we were there I had the fettuccine with pesto. Nubia enjoyed the Cottoleta Parmigiana. Both were very well prepared and the servings were generous to say the least. I normally eat a lot but my fettuccine plate was the junior size and I was quite satisfied. Nubia’s cottoleta was HUGE! It came with the salad bar which had a very good selection of items. Nubia chose potato salad, hard-boiled eggs, red bell peppers and pickles. With juice and a glass of the house wine we got out of there for $COP 49,700. At today’s exchange rate (1909 COPs per dollar) that come out to about $US26.00. That is a great price for the atmosphere, good service and tasty meal

El Palazzetto D’ Italia is located at Calle 54# 43 – 102. (Caracas). The restaurant is on the second floor and the entrance to the stairs is just a few steps to the east of el Palo. There are parking lots near by if you drive and several bus routes pass along el Palo. They may be reached by phone at 239 65 72 and via their excellent website.

Be sure to check out their recipe of the month. It is details like this that speak to the quality of the establishment!

I love this place!

Clarification of Immigration Services

pbunch — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 20:10:10 +0000

The Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores will assume responsibility for visas, cedulas de extranjeria and other paper work directly affecting non-Colombians.During the transition you can process you documents at he DAS offices in Medellin at calle 19A # 30 A – 40 Barrio Belén la Nubia.

This is what the ministry’s web site says:

2. Durante este proceso de transición, el DAS en supresión, en coordinación con Migración Colombia, prestará con normalidad los servicios de extranjería (expedición de documentos: cédulas de extranjería, prórrogas, certificados judiciales, salvoconductos, certificaciones y registro de visas) en los mismos horarios y lugares donde se venían adelantando estos trámites por parte del DAS. http://www.cancilleria.gov.co/news/publiques/node/1535

Breaking News: Santos Liquidates DAS

pbunch — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 23:25:25 +0000

The President signed an order this afternoon liquidating DAS. The main effect on tourists and non-Colombian residents will be a change of agencies handling visas. This was announced about 1/2 hour ago so I don’t know where these will be issued yet. Will report when I know.

To Catch a Theif

pbunch — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 16:45:40 +0000

I took my wife to a doctors appointment this morning at the downtown Clinica de Medellin. Just prior to entering the building we heard a lot of shouting coming from the Avianida Oriental about half a block up the street. People we saying, “Catch him.” “Stop him.” “Thief!”

For a short space of time the calls became louder and more frequent. Then they dropped off and changed to”That’s it.” “Way to go!” They caught him.

This was a petty street crime and not uncommon in any city. I have only seen a few similar situations here in Medellin in the nearly 4 years I have been living here. All of them were resolved by direct citizen intervention. All of the resulted in the police being called to handle the matter once the criminal was apprehended. This is a matter of civic pride.

It is good to live in a city where people care about street crime and are willing to get involved to stop it. I am very proud of Medellin and its crime stopping citizens.

The Barranquero: A frequent companion at Finca el Arroyuelo

pbunch — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 21:54:25 +0000

Great Fish in Downtown Medellin

pbunch — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 14:01:08 +0000

We went to the Resturante Nuqui for an early dinner the other day. As we had been there before we were expecting a great fish dinner and were not disappointed.

The atmosphere is cheery and comfortable with a rustic feel and pleasing aquatic color scheme of blues and greens. A nicely done frieze of tropical reef fish brings the high ceiling down to sea level. Nuqui is a small Choco town on the Pacific Coast and the restaurant reflects the culture and cooking style of that area.

Nubia had a grilled sierra plate. The fish was done to perfection and very tasty. I had their famous Tumbacatre fish sancocho. This is a stew made with coconut, yuca (cassava root), name (yam) and fish. The flavor rich and not “fishy.” The serving of catfish was generous and the accompaniment of coconut rice and a salad also was delicious. Nubia’s sierra plate also included a small bowl of sanchcho, coconut rice and salad. I had two beers and Nubia drank coconut water. This came to just $COP 43,000 or about $US $22.60 at today’s exchange rate of about 1901 to 1.

Each time we have been there the service has been friendly, helpful and reasonably fast. It’s the kind of place I actually feel like leaving a tip.

The resturant is located downtown at Calle 55 Number 45-83, less than a block east of Oriental, the main drag. Calle 55 is also known a Peru. When traveling north on Oriental it makes a sharp curve to the west. If you make the curve you have gone about blocks too far.

They also have a resturant in el Poblado at Carrera 42 Number 10-49. This is a couple of blocks off of Parque Lleras. We have not eaten at this location so I can’t really comment on it.

A Downtown Walk

pbunch — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 20:02:16 +0000

Medellin’s downtown has two streets dedicated to pedestrian use.

Carabobo

Carabobo between San Juan and La Playa provides a nice corridor sheltered from the diesel exhaust of the the buses. Lots of shops, eateries and something interesting at both ends. The portion of Carabobo south of San Juan is characterized by shops selling automotive parts. At the intersection with San Juan you will find the Parque de la Luz and the goverenment complex called la alpujarra.

The architecture of the alpujarra is interesting in its self. I am partial to the the sculptures of Rodrigo Arenas Betancur in any case and the work that graces the main plaza there is representative of his odes to human aspiration.

The north end of the pedestrian section of Carabobo includes both the Veracruz Church and the Museo de Antioquia. The La Inglesia de la Veracruz is, I believe the oldest church in the Medellin area and was started in 1682 by el Capitán Juan Céspedes de Hinestroza. The Museo de Antioquia houses a collection of art reflecting the cultural environment of Antioquia. They have an excellent permanent collection and host rotating shows of cultural and artistic significance. I love the place!

I also love the museums patio restaurant that overlooks the Botero Plaza. Nubia and I often enjoy a snack or meal, just sitting watching the people in the plaza. There are lots of tourists both from other parts of Colombia and of international origin in the plaza and enjoying the restaurant. If you want to meet others visiting Medellin this is a good spot.

This entire walking route has the advantage of never being more than a few blocks from the Metro. Stations nearby include, from south to north, Alpujarra, San Antonio, and Parque Berrio.

Junín

The second pedestrian corridor is Junín. It can be accessed from the end of Carabobo by walking just two blocks to the east on La Playa. A turn to the left will take you on to Junin where you will find the original location of El Astor. This is a a great place for a snack on excellent pastries and confections. A bit further to the north on the left you will find the Versalles restaurant. Versalles has a great atmosphere typical of its heritage as a gathering place for intellectuals and artists. You never know who you may see here. The food also is good and the pastries sold at the entrance are excellent. I really like the Palitos de Guayaba (Guava Sticks). To date these are just $COP 1000 ( US$ 0.53 at today’s exchange rate) and IMHO the best treat buy in Medellin.

Just a few steps further you will find the Parque de Bolivar and Metropolitan Cathedral. The park is a bit seedy but the cathedral is beautiful both outside and within. They have a pipe organ well worth hearing if you get the chance.

Please take advantage of these pedestrian thoroughfares. They will give you an insight into the vitality and commercial spirit of Medellin and introduce you to many of the pleasures of the Center City.

Big Food Event October 20 through 23

pbunch — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 21:40:03 +0000

The MARIDAJE 2011 Foods Festival (EL FESTIVAL GASTRONÓMICO) will take place at the Plaza Mayor between October 20th and 23rd. They will be featuring 5o local resturants and a wide variety of food and drink related displays. This could be a great way to find out about tasty opportunites here in Medellin. There should be several of the better coffee growers represented.

I did not attend their first event but will be at this one for sure. There are some really great resturaunts in town but which one to try next?

Pleasures of the Countryside

pbunch — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 17:10:37 +0000

I headed down the trail to buy some corn fritters (torticas de chocolo) earlier this morning. A couple of days ago we bought some very good empanandas from a lady who has a small stand near the El Arroyuelo trail head about 0.5 kilometer from the house. I found out yesterday that she makes torticas and Nubia said go, you have a mission. So I went.

Mission accomplished. The walk was beautiful. The trail leads along a singing stream. It rained a lot yesterday afternoon and last night but the creek was clear and bright. Our forests are mossy and this morning the moss was bright green and gave the woods a rich carpeted look.

The torticas turned out to be among the best we have found. They are made of ground or blended whole, fresh field corn. The batter is given a consistency that allows it to be spooned into deep fat for frying. If you like corn you will be hard put to find a simpler, tastier way of eating it.

In addition to a nice walk, and some treats was an opportunity to greet and get to know a neighbor better. People here are very friendly and they always are glad to see you and pass a few chatting. Good way to start the day. Hummm… later today I just might have to go down and get some empanadas…

Humming Birds at Finca El Arroyuelo (Piedras Blancas)

pbunch — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 13:40:02 +0000

The humming birds have taken to our feeders in a big way. Sometimes it looks like La Guardia on a busy afternoon.

For years we had just one small feeder hung on the front porch. During a recent trip to the States we got a larger one and set it up in May. Although there was always action, neither attracted a lot of attention until about a month ago. Suddenly the rate at which the birds are taking the sugar water jumped. Now I am refilling both once a week. It may be that the larger one is hanging next to a sietecueros shrub adjacent to the porch. This gives them a staging area where they can wait for an opening. Some of them are very aggressive towards others wanting to use the feeders.

We have four species visiting our feeders. They are:

White-bellied WoodStars,

Bronzy Incas (?)

Greenish Pufflegs.

Green Violetear.