When most people hear about Medellín, Colombia, they immediately think about Pablo Escobar and the infamously violent drug cartels that have shaped the country’s history. But when the California based company Richer-Poorer said they were gathering a bunch of “honest hustlers” (I’ll explain that term in a bit) to go down to Colombia with a travel company called El Camino Travel – of course, I was thrilled to be a part of it.

What set out to be a group of like-minded strangers coming together to meet their Colombian counterparts turned into a trip that left the 13 of us inspired, changed, and forever captivated by the city of Medellín. The following were three lasting impressions this amazing adventure gave me: