What's the must-see thing in Medellin?

Comuna 13 sits on the steep western hillside above San Javier Metro station. In the early 2000s, it was the most dangerous neighborhood in Medellín. The city installed 384 metres of outdoor escalators in 2011, replacing a climb equivalent to a 28-story building. More than 200 murals line the escalator route now, repainted by local artists every few months. Arepas fry at 2,000 COP stands along the path, and the smell mixes with fresh spray paint from artists still at work. You'll hear reggaeton from open doorways and the mechanical hum of the 6 escalator sections carrying residents uphill. Go before 10am on a weekday to avoid the tour groups that pack the route by noon. The escalators run from 6am to 10pm with no entry fee.

Plaza Botero holds 23 bronze sculptures by Fernando Botero, who was born 6 blocks away in 1932. The figures weigh between 800 kg and 3 tonnes each, and they're warm to the touch by mid-morning in Medellín's steady 22°C. Kids from La Candelaria climb on them between school runs. Vendors sell mango slices with lime and salt for 3,000 COP at the plaza's north edge. The Museum of Antioquia, founded in 1881, occupies the south side of the plaza and holds Botero's donated paintings on the third floor. Admission runs 18,000 COP for foreigners. The surrounding neighborhood, La Candelaria, is still rough after dark. Visit the plaza and museum in a single morning, then take the Metro from Parque Berrío station one stop north for lunch.

Metrocable Line K leaves from Acevedo station at the north end of Metro Line A and rises about 400 metres to Santo Domingo Savio in 9 minutes. The cabins hold 10 people, and the windows fog with condensation as you climb through cooler air above the Aburrá Valley. Below, barrios like Popular and Santa Cruz stack up the hillside in red brick and corrugated tin. From Santo Domingo, the Arví cable continues 4.6 km into the Parque Arví nature reserve, where the temperature drops 3 to 4 degrees and the air smells like wet eucalyptus. A single Metro fare covers the Metrocable at around 2,950 COP on the Cívica card. Parque Arví is closed on Mondays.

That said, Comuna 13 now draws an estimated 3,000 visitors on a typical weekend day. By 11am on Saturdays, the escalator route feels more like a theme park than a neighborhood. Graffiti tour operators charge 50,000 to 80,000 COP for a 2-hour walk, and quality varies. Look for guides who grew up in Comuna 13. The Museum of Antioquia closes at 5:30pm Monday through Saturday and 4:30pm on Sundays. Mind you, Medellín sits at 1,495 metres elevation, so the UV hits harder than the mild air temperature suggests. This morning's reading is 20°C with 86% humidity, typical of the wet season that runs April through November.