In Colombia, the coffee lands start at about 4000 feet and go all the way up.

Our Master Technician, Tomas Reyer (wearing big smile), rides out of one of the many coffee farms he visited in the Medellín region.

Coffee expert Cristina Garces hosted the trip. Garces is an experienced cupper with the Coffee Quality Institute, and her family has been farming coffee in this region for over 50 years.

Matching a farm with the right varietal is crucial for coffee quality, so farmers consult with coffee agronomists to make the best use of their land.

This plant is Variedad Colombia, a high-yield but low-quality tree that ravages the soil and stops producing fruit after only 5 years.

The Caturra varietal yields better coffee, but less of it.

In a day's harvest, only a small percentage of the beans are fully ripe.

Centrifuge cages separate the dense ripe beans from the lighter unripes.

This energy-efficient drying rig is powered by burning the parchment hulls removed from coffee beans during processing.

After processing, beans are ready to take to market.

There's an art to packing a mule: it takes two bags of coffee, well-balanced and tightly tied. The expert arriero (mule-handler) holds the lead.

The city of Concordia holds an annual coffee festival.

During a break from cupping in Concordia.

Nice phone.

It's a leisurely hike to the top of the closest peak — giving plenty of time to hang with the locals.

At 6500 feet, there's a spectacular view.

There's always a soccer exhibition going on in the courtyard of the school.

The Villa Luz coffee farm overlooks the river valley.

In the inner courtyard at Villa Luz. Tomas says they served "some of the most delicious food I've ever had."

"Smell the flowers, taste the cherries, eat the fruit, and take in the beauty."

The 14,000 foot peak in the distance hides the Pacific Ocean.

Public transportation often comes in the form of a tricked-out bus.

It takes six months and an army of workers to build the holiday light show in Medellín.

These decorations celebrate the beauty and diversity of the Colombian landscape — mountain, desert, rainforest, prairie, and the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.