MedellÃn
"The city of eternal spring"
The Spanish founded MedellÃn in 1616, and in 1826 became the capital of Antioquia. At the beginning of the 20th century, the city’s growth was boosted with the arrival of the railroad and coffee production; however, in the 1980s, MedellÃn became the capital of cocaine trafficking, and the violence did not stop until 1993 along with the death of Pablo Escobar.
To understand the violence and difficulties the city went through, it is essential to visit La Comuna 13, previously considered one of the city's most dangerous neighborhoods. The Casa de la Memoria Museum also exposes the city’s urban conflict through harrowing testimonies of the inhabitants. Other places of interest include the Museum of Modern Art of MedellÃn, the Rafael Uribe Uribe Palace of Culture, and the Museum of Antioquia, the second oldest in the country. Finally, in the city’s center, you can see the characteristic sculptures of Fernando Botero, a "paisa" artist.
