Colombia 2011: If you´re looking for paradise - look no further and get on a flight to Nuquí at the pacific coast and stay at Ecolodge El Cantil (August, 17th-21st)

The day starts early again. Can´t help it, there´s a flight to catch. So I arrive at the national airport shortly before 7 am, check in and pass the security check in order to get on the flight to Quibdó, where I get on another short flight to Nuquí. So far so good. My luck changes soon when the cancellation of my flight is announced. Now what? This airline has no more flights to Nuquí before Friday and I´ve got a reservation for a package there... the not very helpful ladies at the counter advise me to check with ADA, another airlines for they might have a place left in one of their non-stop flights to Nuquí. I race to their sales office, buy a ticket for the next available flight (which costs me €100 on top of what I´ve already paid). Well, if I want to go there, there´s no other way but to have the credit card ready... The flight is expected to leave with a 2-hour delay due to the temporary closure of Medellín´s city airport (for whatever reason). After buying the ticket I de-board the original flight, receive my baggage and try to get my money back, which in theory is no problem, but unfortunately they haven`t got any cash left when I get there. Will have to try once I´m back in Medellín. Unexpectedly I can board the tiny De Havilland Twin Otter plane at the scheduled time and we leave on time. After a spectacular flight over Medellín and the dense jungles of the almost untouched Chocó region we land at Nuquí "airport", a short runway and a few scattered buildings in the center of the village.

It´s hot, sunny and humid. There´s still some time before the transfer boat to the Ecolodge leaves the jetty and so I wander around exploring Nuquí. It feels like another country - far away from the busy cities, purely tropical. I get to know two ladies, Blanca and Amparo, who are also going to stay at El Cantil. We have a first chat (many more will follow) and then get on board the boat to El Cantil.

On the 45-minute boat ride I get a first glimpse of the beautiful and widely unspoilt nature of the area - emerald green hills, lonely beaches - and my first sighting of a humpback whale. The waters around Nuquí are where the humpback whales come every year to give birth to their babies and so this is THE place to meet the giant mammals.

The welcome at the lodge is very warm and it´s difficult (if not to say impossible) to not fall in love with the place immediately. The few bungalows dot a little hill directly at the beach. The beach is the front yard and dense jungle the backyard. Everyone, administration as well as all the staff are truly wonderful and the view from the simple, yet very cosy bungalow towards the ocean is beyond words. It is quiet and you can hear the waves pondering the beach and the sounds of the jungle - and nothing else. It is so peaceful - a kind of luxury money can´t buy. After refreshing it´s time for lunch - and the food is delicious! Every meal is a treat... I´ve never eaten better fish before. Everyone speaks with everyone - and if it´s only by sign language.

The administration team: Adriana, Memo and Blanca

The restaurant tower

My view

Delicious food is always served with a huge smile

Then after lunch it´s time to get back to the boat - time to go look for whales! And so we leave but don´t see anything for quite a while and I give up hopes to see whales today. Just as everyone is ready to return to the lodge we see them - many of them, see their tails and get very close. Exhilerating! We´re all still very excited when we arrive at the lodge, soaked but happy.

After another delicious meal we all stay together talking until the electricity - which is only at the restaurant - is switched off at 10 pm. I return to my bungalow. The oil lamps are already lit and the mosquito net neatly put over my spacious and comfortable bed. From my bed I can hear the waves of the ocean and the cicadas in the jungle...what a way to fall asleep!

The next morning I get up early, and the first noises I hear are like the last ones I heard last night. On the veranda one of the friendly empleadas serves a bowl of fresh fruit with a radiant smile in her face. A few minutes happily munching away in the hammock and then it`s breakfast time. As the meals the day before it is delicious and very communicative. Now it´s time for a walk. A guide and I leave for a pleasant stroll along the empty beach to the nearest village some 3 kilometers away. The villagers, like everyone in the area, Afro-Colombians, are very friendly and open and very generous with big smiles. From the village it is only a few more minutes to the jungle and a nice little thermal hot pod next to a crystal-clear river. We soak in the luke-warm sulphurous waters and refresh in the cool stream. Then it´s time to return to the lodge, just in time for lunch and shelter from the beginning downpour.

This plant is called Maraca

The magnificent kitchen staff

Relaxing...

I won´t say more about the food - no changes to what I´ve written before - and in the afternoon Blanca, Amparo and I start playing a card game called Ligretto. We have loads of fun but when the sun comes out again it´s time to do a little more exploring. So we decide to walk to the nearby waterfall in the jungle. Nothing huge but a nice place to soak in clear water and have the cascade massage one´s back. What a life. The sunset is nice and the restaurant the perfect place to see it. Back to Ligretto until 10pm and then another tranquil night listening to the sounds of nature.

The day starts with the same soothing routine and fresh fruit in the hammock. After all the good food it`s time for some exercise, so I have decided to book a long walk through the jungle to a waterfall with natural swimming pool. Teyo, my guide shows me the way, 1 hour up a steel hill on muddy trails. En route we stop several times and he explains me different plants and their uses. Finally we reach a crystal-clear stream and follow it until we reach another hill. Once more I need to do some serious climbing but when we reach the top I realize it was worth the effort. The cascade fills a big basin between huge rocks and we jump in to wash off the mud and the sweat. It is only when we hear the thunder coming closer that we decide to go back to the lodge. The walk along the river is pleasant and easy and we even manage to reach the lodge before the heavens open. Lunch as usual...mmmhhhh...yummy, but I´ll say no more!

Me Tarzan, you hopefully strong vine...

After lunch it´s time to try my luck again and do some mor whale watching. We get close to a mother and her baby and they are both curious, not trying to swim away. But they are also very calm and we were hoping for some action, so we decide to move on and look for more whales. We speed across the sea for a long time but don´t see another whale. When we are ready to return we hear a splash and witness the most incredible thing: a 60-ton humpback whale shoots out of the water, spins and lands with a loud, impressive splash. And the whale does it over and over again. We are excited, we are thrilled and moved to tears. It´s an absolutely unforgettable experience. Finally the time has come to leave the playful whale and return to the hotel before nightfall. On our way back we see a whale jump far away in the distance. What a nice way to say good-bye!

Back ashore the whales, after enjoying a spectacular blazing tropical sunset, remain topic #1 for a long time and we compare photos. I´m really happy with mine... Then it´s dinner and Ligretto time once more and, as always, turning off the light is the signal for us to go to our rooms and retire under our mosquito nets.

The last day starts rainy with dark heavy skies. The rain gets stronger and doesn´t stop before noon. I don´t mind the bad weather, though, as I had planned to relax at the beach or in the hammock anyway. Blanca, Amparo and I go back to our usual routine until the dull clouds give way to the strong sun again. I pack my book and my camera and walk a few steps along the beach until I find a spot that looks particularly inviting. There´s nobody near and far, except for the occasional soldier patroling the beach. This is one place on earth where the single traveler needn´t worry about his belongings while going for a dip in the (beautifully warm) ocean. I spend the remains of the afternoon reading, braving the waves and watching the gazzillion red crabs that speed across the warm sand. Later on Blanca appears and we talk and take pictures and just have a good time.

After sunset it´s time for a shower, a bite to eat (in fact way too many bites to eat...) and, of course, Ligretto! Before I go to bed I go down to the beach to gaze at the many stars in the pitch black sky.

I get up early in the morning and listen to the surrounding noises one last time. It´s time to pack my bag and get ready for leaving paradise. I can somehow understand just how Adam and Eve must have felt... Breakfast is nice and Blanca and Amparo join me. Then we have a last photo session, exchange email addresses and it´s time to say good-bye. In a way it feels like saying good-bye to friends. On the boat back I see another whale and her baby close to the boat - what a nice last impression. The flight back is problemfree, if a bit bumpy on that tiny Twin Otter. Upon arriving in Medellin I get the money back for the cancelled flight and a few minutes later I find myself in the Guest House, updating my blog. I also help a lovely old couple from Texas sorting out some things and later we have dinner together. Tomorrow I`ll explore what is supposedly Colombia´s most beautiful metropolis. We´ll see!