We spent most of yesterday traveling from San Augustin to Popayan.
Where the attraction at San Augustin is ancient civilization relics, the attraction in Popayan is Spanish Colonial.
The 'crow flies' distance from San Augustin to Popayan is only 45 miles, according to our GPS. The road mileage according to the road signs we saw, is 77 miles, because of the winding roads. However, due to the mountainous terrain and really bad roads, the trip usually takes from 5-7 hours.
We took a taxi from El Maco to the crossroads, and from there caught a nice bus headed for Popayan and Cali. The road was TERRIBLE. Unpaved, and very pot-holed. A few times we bounced hard enough that Dave was worried about hitting his head on the ceiling. But the scenery was fantastic. Dave took some pics through the window of the bus, but we're not sure if they've turned out or not.
Fortunately, the bus we caught was in good shape, with good shocks and soft seats. So it wasn't too bad. And our driver thought he was Mario Andretti, so we made the trip in 4 hrs and 45 minutes!! (This is not a good thing, on rough winding mountain roads!). But we lived.
We are staying at the Hostel Trail hostal in Popayan. It is a fairly new and very nice hostal, and run by a very nice couple. Prices are good, they have hot water showers (the instant kind), good beds, and good internet. It's only a few blocks from the old center of town. The only downside is the rather noisy street outside.
We've decided to stay here in Popayan another night, and skip Cali. Our next stop (tomorrow night) will be the small town of Salento, in the 'coffee district'. We'll stay there a few nights, and then do one night in Medellin before we head back to Cartagena.
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