Coffee Zone , Colombia : PEOPLE

The people in the region have a unique laid back charm, the hustle and bustle of the big cities is readily forgotten, hospitality and friendship take on a new meaning, there is always time for a coffee, or a beer and a chat.

All of this came from the modest, hard-working and thrusting mule –drivers from Antioquia, challenged and protected by the mountains, the creators of the coffee culture which now reigns in all three Departments.

As you walk round a plantation, your way will be filled with the songs of the harvesters, which sounds like the voice of the surrounding mountains. The songs evoke all the hard work and dedication that goes into a cup of coffee, the tireless efforts of the hands that pick the best fruit and turn it into one of the world´s most popular drinks.

TRADITIONS

The Aguadeño Hat is a craft which over the years has become a representative symbol of Colombia. It is woven into Aguadas, Caldas - hence its name - and its development is a knowledge of rural women,passed from mother to daughter has inherited over 150 years.

The arrival of the Ecuadorian Crisóstomo Flórez to Aguadas town, Caldas, in 1860, led to the aguadeño hat industry. History tells us that the stranger from Cuenca, brought a woven hat extracted iraca palm fiber, and smote by some humble ladies taught the secret of its tissue.