Perhaps this magical place was one of the origins of our desire to build bridges to improve the experience of cultural and adventure tourism in Colombia. Ambalema is a small town on the banks of the Magdalena River, in the department of Tolima. Its tapia houses, clay tile and wooden columns make us feel back in the 18th century, when the tobacco boom made this place one of the most important in the region.
In Ambalema, we joined a process with Ambaviva Foundation and the Association of Fishermen of Ambalema, Asopesamba, who have been working for several years for the identification, assessment and dissemination of cultural heritage in the town, and the implementation of tourism-associated projects that contribute to its cultural appropriation. Since one of our business lines is focused on creating content to facilitate the flow of information between tourists and destinations, in 2019 we started the project Ambalema And The River, to strengthen the efforts of these two organizations to implement their cultural tourism project.
We currently include Ambalema in the itineraries we design for cyclists, in their way from Bogotá and Medellín, and Bogotá and Manizales. We are working with local actors to generate a narrative that involves traditional fishing practices, myths and legends associated with the Magdalena River, and the history of the tobacco boom, and that contextualize the visitor with the town, the Magdalena River and the region.
Soon we will have more information about this project. If you want to join in any way, do not hesitate to contact us!
Write us at info@hiddenjourneys.co