Eco Tour

Day 8 (Day 4 of the Gate 1 tour). Behind our hotel in Manizales was a forest. We took a ski lift over the forest to the top of a hill for an eco tour.

View from the Top of the Hill

A pretty view from up on top.

At the Top

At the top of the hill were hummingbird feeders, bonsai trees, a small lake, and a butterfly garden. Photo: One of the butterflies in the garden.

Walking in the Forest

We walked down through the forest from the top.

Wild Orchids

This forest was unique in that wild orchids grew on its trees.

Hacienda Venecia

After eating lunch in Manizales, we visited the Hacienda Venecia, a coffee plantation.

Hacienda Venecia

This woman at the coffee plantation told much as to how coffee is grown, coffee plant types, how it is gotten ready for roasting, etc. She said that the quality of a cup of coffee has to do with the type of coffee, the quality of the beans, and the quality of the roasting.

A good article to read to learn all about coffee is entitled “10 Steps from Seed to Cup” and is at

http://www.ncausa.org/About–Coffee/10–Steps–from–Seed–to–Cup

Hacienda Venecia

Coffee being grown on the plantation. All the picking here is done by hand and the pickers have to navigate the slopes.

Hacienda Venecia

Coffee berries. They are picked when they are red. After visiting the coffee plantation, we went back to our hotel.