Where Spring is Eternal

By Linda Tancs

Medellín is Colombia’s second city. Set in the Aburrá Valley, it’s surrounded by green mountains and enjoys springlike weather year round, earning it the moniker “City of Eternal Spring.” The city has come a long way since its darker days as the center of Pablo Escobar’s drug operation and related violence. In fact, in 2013, it was named the most innovative city in the world in The Wall Street Journal’s City of the Year Contest. Call it a model of industrial chic, with sleek new buildings housing cultural centers as well as an airborne gondola system and escalators hugging the hillside, both leading to inspiring views. The view is equally inspiring on the ground this time of year, when the flower festival ends with a parade of flower farmers. They transport beautiful floral arrangements, many weighing up to 150 pounds and measuring 15 feet in diameter.