Reflections— Exploring Medellin with a Baby
Matt, Miya, and I spent a quiet Christmas and New Year’s holiday in Medellin. It wasn’t a conventional Christmas. There was no snow, elaborate decorations, large group gatherings, or endless eating. But we cherished the time. It was our first Christmas as a new little family and a chance to build our own traditions.
Matt and I decided to continue a tradition we had started as a couple a few years ago – to visit a new place every Christmas. One year, it was El Salvador. Last year, it was supposed to be Syria. This year, it would be Colombia.
When Matt and I started dating as nomads, I used to ask for us to slow down all the time. We used to travel from place to place without living in a home. When we were somewhere for a journalism assignment – except for Mexico - we were in and out after a few weeks.
Truthfully, I always felt conflicted. I wanted to explore the world – and all its nooks and crannies - as much as he wanted to explore. But I missed the feeling of getting used to a neighbourhood and entering the same front door of a ‘home’ -- even the feeling of falling asleep on the same pillow.
With Miya now, we have no choice but to move slowly, and it’s been a blessing. Time still goes by quickly as we move through the motions of watching and experiencing her grow.
Even though it has only been a few weeks, at times, it feels like it’s been months since we touched down in Medellin and looked out at its verdant, green hills for the first time. We are still seeing the world, but now we do it at a pace that makes sense for our baby and her needs.
As usual, we worried that Miya would need adjustment, but she quickly adapted to the move. Our baby squealed and babbled at her new bedroom and play areas. She would stare out of her carrier or stroller with wide-eyed curiosity every day. She would look further intensely into the sky as the humid breeze stroked through her little hairs and brushed along her rosy, red cheeks.
A part of me wondered if she was registering, perhaps even internalizing her different moments in Colombia. I knew she couldn’t create memories, but the intensity of her eyes always made me wonder what she was thinking, listening to, smelling, and especially -- what she was feeling.
Each day, she ‘spoke’ more at different points and smiled at us brightly. We saw inquisitive exploration as part of her behaviours, which thrilled us because, at the core of it all, that’s us and who we are. I believed in her happiness and the idea that she was embracing her time with us -- her parents.
Adjusting to a New City
I have always wanted to visit Medellin, and the experience has undoubtedly surpassed my expectations of what it would be like. Because of our short time here this time, Matt and I feel inclined to return to Colombia. Stigma exists in the country because of its dark past (and current challenges). But stigma and bias have never driven us away from places – either for journalism or pure exploration.
Colombia has many layers – history, culture, language, diversity, narrative, and complexity. We learn daily – through conversation and activities - or even walking alone. But aside, the people are kind, warm and open.
The locals or paisas speak Spanish with a sing-songy flare. Misconceptions about it being dangerous are limited to who you are as a traveller and the activities you choose to engage in. As with anywhere, if you’re smart with your behaviour, aware of your surroundings and belongings, and open to embracing a different culture, you will be fine.
As a family, we experienced no issues, and there’s undoubtedly cultural appreciation for having a family here. We have found that most people – men and women, young and old - look and interact with Miya lovingly. A kind stranger will ask how old she is or what her name is at least once every day.
On the subway, people will get up immediately to give us a seat. Restaurants are accommodating for strollers, and waiters will go out of their way to create ‘little corners’ for us to change diapers because there isn’t a culture of washroom change tables. Nobody bats an eye at a woman breastfeeding, and because it is safe to drink tap water here, it’s equally easy to make bottles.
We have received looks for our baby carrier, especially when Matt is wearing Miya. It’s not so common here since mothers swaddle their young babies in a blanket. But we found it necessary because some hilly streets are difficult to navigate with a stroller. There are also stairs everywhere – in metro stations, in the barrios.
We bought a travel capsule to make flights easier, but the adaptive car seat stroller is meant for flat sidewalks and is not great for navigating a city with inclined paths.
As nomads, we cannot buy a stroller for every situation, so we have had to adjust. Luckily for us, Miya loves her carrier. She kicks her little legs, grabs the side straps and stares into the sky.
Finding a Neighbourhood to Base in
When planning our trip initially, Matt and I debated between two neighbourhoods – Poblado and Laureles for their proximity to the downtown, the metro, cafes, and restaurants. We have stayed in one area and visited the other over our month. We know other beautiful, further neighbourhoods like Envigado and Sabaneta, but we intentionally wanted to be closer to the touristic areas.
Navigating a stroller up and down Poblado’s hilly, at times, dirtier streets has been a feat. We have managed, but with longer trips out to different barrios, we have found the baby carrier much easier to use. Matt usually wears her on his chest with a sunhat, and I will carry the diaper bag full of everything we need – bottles, sunscreen, wipes, diapers, cloths, extra clothes, and hand sanitizer. Our diaper bag – a hand-me-down from my brother – is big enough to fit Matt’s camera.
While Poblado has better cafes and restaurants, Laureles is much more suited for families with its tree-lined avenues and quieter, more local atmosphere. While I didn’t see many families in Poblado aside from brunch on Saturday, I saw lots of parents with their children walking around in Laureles.
I can’t pass judgment on Laureles because we visited for a few hours. Most of the time, I feel like bloggers name every restaurant “or best place to go” they have visited over just a few weeks as their “top 20.” So, it’s essentially wherever they ate and went. That’s why I hate travel listicles.
But everyone has a different opinion, tastes, and reason for going. We might love a restaurant and think it’s perfect for bringing a baby, but another family might think it’s horrible. Most often when travelling, we would pop into a place that looked full, and with a decent amount of locals.
We did have a few places we liked – primarily for coffee – in El Poblado, and these places worked for us as parents:
Hija Mia – Big indoor and outdoor space with friendly staff. Perfect for brunch and coffee. The women’s bathroom had a big enough counter for me to change Miya using our portable pad. Otherwise, Matt and I would covertly change Miya using our change pad, supporting her with the carrier.
Urbania – Laid-back hipster coffee house with a relaxed ambience. There’s a small unisex washroom. I changed Miya off the back of the lid using our portable pad.
Café 11:11 El Despertar – Big rooftop patio on the third story of a co-working space. I liked this place, but it was close to empty every time we went. I’m not sure why because the coffee is excellent. There’s a clean washroom one floor below where I could change Miya using our pad.
Locals and tourists seem to also like Pergamino, but I thought it was only okay. The average cost of a latte is 7,000 pesos ($1.40 at time of writing). Dishes at restaurants on average cost 25,000 to 35,000 pesos ($5-7).
Otherwise, we mostly bought groceries (lots of exotic fruit) from the big grocery chain - Exito. We missed Costco diapers, but we found a cheap version called Ekono instead. A pack of 30 diapers only costs 17,000 pesos ($3.50).
We could not know what neighbourhood we would like if we had never visited the city. I think, one day, if we return, we’ll stay in Laureles if we can find housing. This time around, we couldn’t find a place that met all our requirements, but we did negotiate a beautiful fully-stocked place in a quiet neighbourhood just a few minutes away from the centre of Poblado.
Poblado would have been perfect for us pre-Miya, but these days, Matt and I are not really drinking or going out at night. If he drinks more than two beers, Matt gets sick, and I prefer not to drink with breastfeeding.
Discovering and Navigating Medellin
It is relatively easy to move between neighbourhoods in Medellin using the metro. The metro system is one of the best transportation systems I have experienced outside Asia. It covers many areas, pivots into six different cable car lines, as well as two electric trams, and is easy to navigate. It is also clean and cheap, costing around 3,000 pesos per trip (about $0.75).
Uber is also inexpensive. A ride between neighbourhoods costs just over 14,000 pesos (around $3 at the time of writing).
The three of us explored using the metro and cable car system. For the most part, we would explore in the mornings. Midday, the sun would come out full force and become very hot. Then, later in the day, there would be rain showers.
For the most part, we felt like the only ‘tourists’ deep into the metro system. Everyone else used cable cars to go to and from their neighbourhoods. Each metrocable line departs from a metro or tram interchange station and ventures out to a different neighbourhood to explore. The barrios were full of character, street art and local foods to sample.
We would have to stop between stations sometimes because the cable cars would get too hot from the sun's reflection. Miya would become hot, and that’s when we knew we needed to get some fresh air.
I didn’t mind this so much because it allowed us to explore some of the barrios on the cable car line. The barrios stretched far into the valley. It was extraordinary to see stacks on stacks of colourful houses on the steep hills.
As much as Matt and I like to take it easy – i.e. hang out in cafes and casually explore without commitment -- we did want to take the chance to be ‘tourists.’ Matt found some fun walking tours with a local company – Real City Tours. Their tours are easygoing and packed with knowledge – and in most cases, we were allocated into manageable groups of 8 to 10 people.
Matt and I went at our own pace with Miya. We would step aside to feed and change her when we needed to and leave if we felt like she was at her limits. In most cases, she would just fall asleep in her carrier. With this group, we ended up taking a free walking tour of the downtown and then a paid ‘transformation’ tour of a barrio located just outside a Metro station – Moravia.
I found the barrio tour to be quite interesting. We could walk through the neighbourhood and learn about projects, change and activism from community leaders – notably women.
What was especially beautiful was the existence of several vividly colourful street art murals commemorating the work of community leaders. While I am sure each barrio across the city has its own story, it was hopeful to see how this community rose from its challenges.
Decades of armed conflict across the country brought many displaced families from rural communities to Medellin. Moravia was one of the informal neighbourhoods where these refugees settled. For years, the neighbourhood faced ongoing challenges.
It was once designated as the site of a landfill. The area essentially became a slum, where many survived by selling recyclables. When the landfill closed, families began to build their houses on top of the trash, and there was no basic infrastructure.
To add to their adversity, during the Pablo Escobar period and the height of cartel gang warfare, Moravia was considered one of the city's most dangerous areas.
But over the years, community leaders campaigned for improvement. Garbage heaps were converted into a park and greenhouse. In the greenhouse, a collective of women will grow flowers to sell across the city.
We visited a women-run project that focuses on using freshly grown ingredients to introduce healthier diets to children in the community. The tour ended in the community’s cultural centre – a large, open space to promote art, culture and dialogue.
The community leader leading our group was a kind, older woman named Heroina. She was playful and affectionate with Miya. I loved how she would sing little songs to her in Spanish or clutch Miya’s little fingers lovingly.
We assumed she had children because of how great she was with Miya. But the older woman told us, “I never wanted to have children because of how horrible my childhood was.” She told us there was never a child who didn’t like or respect her. She said she would manage to build a rapport with even the most hardened child and has acted as a mentor to many children.
This kind of human experience is something I want Miya to appreciate one day. I hope in the process of seeing the world that, she will be able to hear these kinds of narratives and be open-minded about the world.
And now, our month in Medellin ends soon as we head off to Buenos Aires. I am curious about Colombia, so I hope we can all return one day and continue our exploration here soon.
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