villavicencia absent in the travel guide?

Robert Jorge says on Apr 21, 2008, 23:04:

I would love to contribute - but nobody ever asked nor seemed interested ... until you slguy. What do you need to know?

--"I believe in making the world safe for our children. But not for our children's children, because I don't think that children should be having sex." - Jack Handy

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slguy says on Apr 21, 2008, 23:13:

impressions? "don't miss" stuff? "do miss" stuff?

i'm going on business, umm, prolly mostly monkee business. ;)

seriously, i have a rola amiga who's lived there about a year, but i'd love to have your perpective. sounds like i'll bus down from bogota...beyond that, i have no clue (but she does have a car, so mobility is easy).

anything you'd suggest, i'd love to hear - we have similar tastes, apparently. :)

Before you throw me out, make sure I pay my bar tab

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Robert Jorge says on Apr 22, 2008, 00:15:

Well first, you will have to go to a carne de llano restaraunt. Just ask your amiga about them - she'll know where to take you. Most are very close to the 7th Brigade army base and are open air type places. The beef is extremely fresh and slow roasted over open wood fires.

You have to go to Aguapinelas on a Wednesday night. That is the disco's ladies night, and it is packed. It is loud, hot, and lots of fun. Kat1 said Wednesday's attract the mafia type crowd and the obligatory prepagos. I am sure that is true, but I never knew that, and never had a problem. Of course, I wasn't looking for prepagos and generally went there with family.

There are lots of pools outside of town. Our favorite is piscina azul. You pay a nominal fee, can lounge around, get served drinks and even full course meals if you desire.

One of my favorite things to do is play tejo. There is a huge tejo pavilion off of calle 15, near the stadium. Playing is free, but purchasing beer or aguardiente or rum is expected. There are lots of other small tejo clubs. My favorite is Lucho's club 13. I can't tell you how to get there - sorry. If you play tejo, I advise NEVER claim a mecha triangle is not good (doesn't explode because of bad manufacturing). The owners take great pride in their mechas. I saw a guy really piss off Lucho by claiming the mecha didn't explode when struck. Lucho came over, picked up a homemade spade shovel, and slammed it down on the mecha causing a pretty loud explosion. The guy didn't say a word about bad mechas again.

There is a really nice hike that you can take up the mountain overlooking town. Calle 15 north towards the mountain. When the road turns to gravel, you get out of the car and walk up the road. The road turns into a trail that goes through pretty much jungle. There are rope bridges, places to stop and buy snacks and drinks, etc. When you get to the top, the sight is beautiful. At the top, you will get to a road. Go right, and the road will go for about 5 km until you get to a main road. You can get a cab or bus there, and it is a 10 minute drive back into Villavo.

I am jealous - when are you going back to Colombia slguy?

--"I believe in making the world safe for our children. But not for our children's children, because I don't think that children should be having sex." - Jack Handy

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kat1 (Moderator) says on Apr 22, 2008, 01:23:

well there is also another place where they sell the best carne a la llanera but it is not in Villavo is in Guamal about 37km from Villavo, the place is by the side of the main road Villavo Guamal, San Martin.

In Villavo there are'nt many beautiful churches or museum, but we have a beautiful ecological park call Los Ocarros you must go and see it.As RJ mentioned before plenty of Balnearios (swimming pools) outside town, the best ones are on the way to Pto Lopez. Lost of hoseriding places if you enjoy that kind of activity.

You can also visit El Obelisco in El Alto de menegua, near Pto Lopes, this is the center of Colombia or el ombligo de Colombia as we call it.


In villavicencio you can go and see El parque las Malocas, where they do the festival del Coleo and if you want to taste one of the best juices go to a place call La ñapa, there are two one in el Centro and another one in El Parque Principal.

dancing? well RJ told you about aguapanelas, we Also have Capachos, and you must go and see Kuarzo, i think is the biggest Discoteque in Latinoamerica. I went there and it is big!!

if you want to go for a walk you can go to el El Parque los fundadores, if you go at night you can have a paseo en la Chiva llanera

how long are you going to stay?

engage brain before opening mouth

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Robert Jorge says on Apr 22, 2008, 02:11:

Kuarzo is huge - and it attracts big name acts occasionally. I thought that Capachos was bigger than Kuarzo though. I never went to Capachos, but everybody I talked to gave me the impression it was the biggest. But anyway, club Kuarzo is first class all the way. It is the nicest club I have ever been in anywhere.

--"I believe in making the world safe for our children. But not for our children's children, because I don't think that children should be having sex." - Jack Handy

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kat1 (Moderator) says on Apr 22, 2008, 02:19:

RJ Capachos is tiny in Compare to kuarzo, it does need lots of p[people to fill that place, the best time to go is around 11pm, i went at 10 and was empty, one of the guys at the door told me usually it gets busy at 11 and he was right...


you can stay rumbeando at kuarzo until early hours of the morning, and they will provide breakfast if you want...

like the beam light they send from the disco, you can see it everywhere in Villavo

what they need is to put the letter K it will look similar to the one in batman

www.discoteca-kuarzo.com

the website it's not great, you have to click in t the kuarzos to get the next page

engage brain before opening mouth

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Robert Jorge says on Apr 22, 2008, 02:48:

They kicked us out (of Kuarzos) at 4am. I would have loved to have had a breakfast!

--"I believe in making the world safe for our children. But not for our children's children, because I don't think that children should be having sex." - Jack Handy

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kat1 (Moderator) says on Apr 22, 2008, 02:53:

Centro Comercila LLanocentro, i don't know if it will be finished by the time you go there, but if so it is going to have a Rotate bar at the top.




Centro Comercial Villacentro, my favourite, very campestre you can have also a drink at night there with some live music



Villacentro




carrefour



Aguapanelas disco

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kat1 (Moderator) says on Apr 22, 2008, 03:17:

AEROPUERTO LAVANGUARDIA VILLAVICENCIO




kUARZO




OBELISCO (THE CENTER OF COLOMBIA)




ROAD TO VILLAVO



CAPACHOS



COLEO




Amanecer Llanero, there is a tour but you have to leave about 3.30 in the morning, the tour takes you to the Alto de menegua where is the Obelisco, there you can see the Amanecer llanero everybody says it is a beautiful thing to see, I've never been i am not a morning person :((

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kat1 (Moderator) says on Apr 22, 2008, 03:21:

Robert in Kuarzo there is a bar call La rokola, that is the amanecedero, you have to be in there to have breakfast.

engage brain before opening mouth

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Cerealkiller says on Apr 22, 2008, 04:21:

The best night ive had in villavicencio was at capachos, i did see plenty of prepagos. In addition, I have never been to any club where bikini tops were acceptable as part of the clubbing outfit for women, but long shorts for men are totally not accepted, go figure. I did get calentado for breakfast and we were dancing on tables until 8 am.

Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives -John Stuart Mill

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morphus says on Apr 22, 2008, 04:58:

There are plenty of clubs in Miami where bikini tops with jeans are acceptable.

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kalder says on Apr 22, 2008, 05:03:

I'm just imagining it in London- heaving tides of goosepimpled, chalk white flesh :(

"kalder- have you ever had a woman?"--Sam Salmon

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Cerealkiller says on Apr 22, 2008, 05:20:

I don't mind clubs where bikini tops are ok, as long as they're close to the beach...other than that is plain tacky and chances are only hookers or VERY clueless tourists will wear that... That said, if bikinis are allowed then explain to me why shorts aren't, because that is just beyond my comprehension.

Oh Kalder, it happens in London clubs, thats how you can tell eastern europeans from the rest :P Just go clubbing to Maya, I am starting to believe these girls only wear coats when leaving their flats.

Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives -John Stuart Mill

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kat1 (Moderator) says on Apr 22, 2008, 05:25:

because who wants to see men hairy legs yuakkkkkkkk

I think because it's hot then they wear kind of summery clothes, not only just in nightclubs but daylight too, many wears jeans and a bikini tops

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jorgegdiaz says on Apr 22, 2008, 05:57:

The only thing I liked about Villabo was Capachos (that was in ´98)... Que rumba tan berraca!!

Man with hole in pocket feel cocky all day.

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slguy says on Apr 22, 2008, 07:21:

i'm thinking to head down in about a month, RJ. there's a new girl in my life here who's undergoing some reconstructive surgery at the moment, but she should be buttoned up within a few weeks. ;) i need to be here until then to write WAY too many checks...

sounds like there's lots of outdoor stuff to do in Villavo - perfect. hiking, horseback riding, eco parks all sound like what the doctor ordered.

great fotos, kat! thanks! i'm not sure how long i'll stay...minimum of a couple weeks, i'm thinking. my friend claims that she won't let me go until she turns me into a competent dancer - so being a no-dancing-gringo, i may be there months! jajaja

what types of industry is there? i read about agriculture...anything else? i'd like to take a swing at making some contacts for my equipment export biz while i'm there. mi amiga is a contador publica ( did i use that term correctly?), but has only been there a year, so i'm not sure how extensive her network is...

from what i gather, Villavo gets an occasional rain shower. ;) do i need to take my sailing foulies? jaja

i'm an inveterate real estate shopper...got any friends in that business? i'd love to have a finca somewhere in the colombian interior one day...plus i can't help but learn the market anywhere i go...leftover addiction from a former life. i know where to drop off any uninvited snakes, right, kat? ;)

i knew i could count on ya'll - i'm grateful!

Before you throw me out, make sure I pay my bar tab

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vicshere says on Apr 22, 2008, 07:31:

kat how did you get the pic from google earth... i need to know how to do that

listo

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kat1 (Moderator) says on Apr 22, 2008, 07:47:

slguy, you might hit the rainy season, but it won't rain all they long you will have some very nice sunny spells or might not rain at all.

Industry, apart from cattle, they also have "cultivos de cachamas" a type of fish.
another thing Villavicencio is growing very rapidly so if you want to invest this a good time

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kat1 (Moderator) says on Apr 22, 2008, 07:48:

oh vichere, i right click in google earth picture on the bottom window and save it on my desktop. :(

don't do it on the top window because it won't save from there.

engage brain before opening mouth

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slguy says on Apr 22, 2008, 07:52:

but...aren't there plenty of snakes, too, kat? i seem to recall you mentioning this after you got home? ;)

Before you throw me out, make sure I pay my bar tab

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slguy says on Apr 22, 2008, 07:54:

"another thing Villavicencio is growing very rapidly so if you want to invest this a good time"

some construction activity then, kat? just buildings, or roads, too?

Before you throw me out, make sure I pay my bar tab

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gorgonabob says on Apr 22, 2008, 08:20:

ive spent many a night in Villavicencio and Restrepo/ Cumural.. great fun... my friend has a finca just before the peaje on the road to Restrepo. great place.. natural pool next door... once i took the boat from Puerto Gaitan to Orocue and then looped back on the road to Yopal... Ill never forget the sight in Puerto Gaitan when we were sitting in a bar and a couple of cattle trucks pulled up at 9 pm in the evening and out of the nearby building walked 40 or so young women who proceeded to walk up the cattle ramp into the back of the cattle trucks with there overnight bags, all the while fixing up there makeup... a few were not good looking enough apparently and kicked off the trucks.. anyway off they went into the sunset to god knows where. that was odd. went to the fesitval mundial de coleo once and met the presidents son, nice fella. and a good time to visit if you happen to be around for the festival. also some great music and dancing festivals in smaller neigbouring towns... its a nice life down there...won't be long before someone opens a hostel and it gets on the tourist trail. Capachos is indeed a great place to spend the night.

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slguy says on Apr 22, 2008, 09:48:

ggb, i LOVE stories like the cattle truck...makes me wish i had talent like hemingway's...there's a great short story in there somewhere.

thanks!

Before you throw me out, make sure I pay my bar tab

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gorgonabob says on Apr 22, 2008, 10:14:

i plan to buy a canoe or two next year and paddle down the meta from gaitan to orocue, la primavera and puerto carreno.. should be a nice wee adventure. yup

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kat1 (Moderator) says on Apr 22, 2008, 10:35:

Everyone knows when a car have been in Pto Gaitan because comes back covered of this redish dust, the road to Pto gaitan it is not in a very good state and some sections have big potholes.
its about 3 hours from Pto Lopez. and they celebrate de festival del verano which is very popular.

The best disco in Villavo at the moment is Kuarzo beat capachos anytime.

slguy lots of residential complex and yes we have lots of snakes there too.

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slguy says on Apr 22, 2008, 11:27:

i know, i know - too general a question, but what do you reckon a finca of 20-30 hectares, maybe near a river, may cost? no house - i'd prefer to build my own. don't really even need electricity readily available...any idea?

Before you throw me out, make sure I pay my bar tab

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webmanco says on Apr 22, 2008, 19:00:

Villavicencia or Villavaina ?

(I really hate it when women get their panties all bunched up their butt, they can get so cranky!) Poor butt happy

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vicshere says on Apr 22, 2008, 19:33:

oh vichere, i right click in google earth picture on the bottom window and save it on my desktop. :(

don't do it on the top window because it won't save from there.


tried it not working...top window??? maybe thats my problem whats a top window

listo

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Robert Jorge says on Apr 22, 2008, 20:21:

I went to Kuarzo many times. I liked it. It is impressive. But personally, I had a much more exciting time at Aguapinelas.

The industry in Villavo is: lots of agriculture. There are huge rice grain silos around town. Several are next door to Exito. Cattle of course. I am pretty sure there is a distillery in town that bottles Aguardiente Llanero. There is a huge Coca Cola bottler, and a block away on the same road is a huge Postabon bottler. I have heard there is oil stuff going on, but I don't know anything about it.

--"I believe in making the world safe for our children. But not for our children's children, because I don't think that children should be having sex." - Jack Handy

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kat1 (Moderator) says on Apr 23, 2008, 00:29:

the main ecopetrol sede in on the way to Puerto Lopez, there are lots of oil wells around the region

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durito says on Jun 28, 2008, 18:48:

Anyone have any recommendations for hotels in Villavicencio, say 50,000 - 120,000 a night?

Also, how hot is it this time of year? I will be there sometime this week.

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