Once all 8 of us were ready it was time to clamber into a jeep in a very crampt manner and start to get to know each other. There were 3 French people, Lionel, Stouph and Maria, Carl (German), Ruth (English), Arjen (Dutch), Luke and I. Unfortunately, the hangovers Luke and I were suffering from meant that conversation was a little difficult and limited so perhaps we did not come across as friendly as we had intended.

I think this is certainly safe to say when I simply just fell asleep in the most awkward position in the corner of the jeep. Still, we arrived feeling slightly better and hopefully made up for our initial lack of enthusiasm by actually starting some conversations.

We had arrived at a small village on the end of the jungle called Machate (I think). We stopped here for a lunch before the trekking and sweating commenced. The first part of the trek was clearling through a military checkpoint as the military had a heavy presence in the area. It was previously home to cocaine factories in the jungle and as recently as 2003 the FARC had kidnapped tourists - I am pleased to say it has been safe since the military was placed in the area with no incidents since.

Once through we trekked into the jungle for an hour or so and certainly felt the heat. It was so hot, and the sweatiness was impressive to say the least. After an hour we were glad to see a river that you could swim in and despite only having a 15m break Luke and I were keen to take advantage of the water, even if no one else was.

After we continued for another 2 hours trekking up over a big ridge. At the top there was a cool view of the jungle scenery around. At the bottom of the ridge the other side was base camp for the night. Again there was a river nearby and this time everyone took the opportunity to jump in - quite literally as there was a 4m rock to jump from!

Unfortunatly, my large camera also broke at this point. I have no idea how or what is wrong with it but it doesn´t turn on properly and has been out of action since.

After our dip we had dinner at camp and after Morron (our guide) told us (in Spanish) about the history of Colombia since 1948. Back then the first liberal President was/about to be elected and was assassinated by a Colombian, paid for by Germany - this has led to a conspiracy theory about German intervention etc... but more importantly it led to a power struggle after and left politics in Colmbia a mess. As a result there was groups such as the FARC formed and guerilla groups who initially started with political ideologies.

Over time a lot of these groups have lost their political past and many got involved with the growing drugs trade to fund their activities. By the time the 80´s had come the drug money was possibly more influential than the Government with the rise of Cocaine and Pablo Escobar. Only in 1984 after his death did drugs take a downward turn, but still to this day their our paramilitaries and guerilla groups operating in the jungles of the country.

We also learnt about Morron´s 2 hour journey in a Renault 4 with Pablo Escobar and about how he was emplyed by the military to locate 400 FARC fighters who were in the surrounding jungle. Using Morron´s knowledge of the area and infra red cameras they took surveillance footage to locate the fighters and the next day missiles were fired at the camp!

After a very interesting evening we retired to our hammocks for the night to get a good sleep in.

Next day we were up early and after a big breakfast trekked up and over the second ridge. In total we trekked for around 5 hours until we reached camp around lunch time. On the way we passed local indigenous people from one of the 4 tribes in the area and saw the huts that they build to live in. They were all tiny, and really looked like indigenous people as you would imagine, it was very interesting.

It was worth getting up early to hike because the midday heat is almost unbearable! At camp once more the river was nearby and we were able to go for a swim. However, after lunch the heavens opened and it did not stop. It rained the entire afternoon and all night, so instead we had to pass time talking and playing cards and games etc...

Fortunately, we were sleeping in beds tonight though with mosquito nets so at least that was a plus. The evening was also spent with Morron teaching us about the indigenous populations in the area and about their cultures and practices. However, I only caught half of what was said because after a long day trekking their is only so much Spanish you can concentrate on before bouts of tiredness hit.

Next morning the rain had finally stopped and it was time to trek to the third camp, the one deepest into the jungle. We trekked for around 3 hours in total and had a quick swim before lunch. We considered going straight after lunch to the Ciudad Perdida or Lost City for the afternoon. However, the clouds looked a little menacing thus play was suspended until the next day. Instead, I had a siesta in my hammock and we again swam, chatted and played dice and cards all night.

On day 4 of the trek we were up early and trekked for the 40 minutes up the valley until we reached the Lost City itself. We had to cross another river on the way and the steps up to the city were very steep, and not built for Europeans with their large feet!

At the top we had a tour of the Lost City from Morron and learnt about the history and practices of the people that used the city. It was built in around 1100AD and used until around 1450AD by nomadic people who occupied all of the land nearby but stopped off at the city for a while. They were killed out by disease from the Spanish invasion, but the city was never found by the Spanish. In fact, the city was not re-discovered until 1975 when treasure hunters and grave diggers found the city deep in the jungle. The ruins were taken apart and left in a mess, probably with all the artefacts stolen so the city was put back together by archaeologists and explored before being opened to the public in 1984.

There were circles around 1 ft high dotted around the city, which were the bases to the homes that were built there. There was also a couple of square shaped bases that were the location of the Temple and ceramic producing sites. Between each circle there were stone steps and paths that zig zagged their way through the jungle linking up all the different parts. You could see why it was called the Lost City as it was buried in the jungle and perched on top of a ridge. The scenery around was very cool, and very green!

There is also another military outpost based at the ruins, which is a bit surreal and sad, but at the same time I guess you would rather they are there than the alternatives. Once we had explored the city we descended down the same path back to camp. We packed our gear up and had lunch before returning back through the jungle to the second camp. All day Luke and I had been taking embarrasing photos for our "Mucho Sexo" calendar to please all the ladies around the world...

We trekked for the 2 hours or so back to the camp and again chilled out for the evening playing cards and the dice game.

The next day was day 5, the final day and we were up at 4.45am and after some fruit and a coffee started the final day trekking. We were up so early because we had a lot of trekking ahead of us and it was best to avoid the midday sun. Carl, Luke and I were in high spirits though and ran most of the first leg, completing the journey in just 2 hours. We even managed to keep up with a local indigenous man who was also running the route.

Our reward was an ice cold watermelon and enough time to take our wet, sweaty clothes off with enough time to dry them before the others caught up. Once the gang was re-united we had breakfast before setting off on the final leg of the journey. This time we took it a bit more chilled and decided not to run. We stopped once more at the river in the final place for one last swim before we returned to town. Here we had a final lunch together and then bundled back into the jeep for the journey back to civilsation.

That evening back in Santa Marta we went out for dinner with Star, who was an American lady we played cards with at one of the camps before Luke and I returned to the hostel for a beer and much needed sleep.