On the final full day in Medellin we were loaded into four yellow taxis for the short trip up to Medellin's castle.
The French style castle is situated in the hills of El Pablado and is surrounded by beautifully manicured gardens overlooking the city. Its serene beauty hides a very tragic history.
The castle was built in 1930 for Jose Tobon Uribe and then in 1943 it was sold to Diego Ricardo Echavarria Misa, who, it is said, made his fortune in the textile industry.
Echavarria lived in the castle with his German wife and their daughter. For a while they lived happily surrounded by art and music, but that would all change in 1967 when the daughter developed a paralysing disease that took her life at the age of 19. This loss was devastating to the Couple. In a cruel twist of fate Echavarria was kidnapped and held hostage in 1971, allegedly by Pablo Escobar. The wealthy man refused to have the money paid for his ransome and was killed. Soon after his widow donated the castle and it was transformed into a museum.
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| What are they planning? |
After touring the museum we went back down the hill to the hotel. Some of our fellow travelers took the cable car up the mountain but we decided to relax and take a walk and say our goodbyes to this vibrant city.
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| Had a great time with good people |
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