Yes, we all love retail giants and find it very hard to survive in our travels if we don’t find them wherever we go.
But let’s face it: nothing makes our shopper hearts beat harder than those small charming boutiques that make us feel we discovered a whole new universe when we walk into them for the first time.
Avenida Jardín gives us just that: a whole street with plenty of fashion boutiques, mostly addressed to women, but nevertheless, useful for both genres — there’s nothing like a new purse as a…New Year’s gift? (Seee what I did there, guys?)
As for prices, they vary from each shop. It depends if there are designer pieces on the shelves or not.
In general, the clothes and accessories are unique pieces, some of them signed by designers, some not. You can easily spend half a day around here…and half of your wallet, if you’re a not-on-a-budget compulsive buyer.
Boutiques
La Tienda Imaginario (Carrera 73 #C3-18) literally offers pequeñas cosas de la vida real (small things from real life), as their slogan says.
Footwear, clothing, designer bags, jewelry, house accessories, small paintings, nail polishes, wallets, this shop offers quite a journey.
My personal favorites were some adorable notebooks (the inner writer couldn’t help but fall in love with) and fridge magnets that you can use to hang photos. I find these as a great souvenir for friends and family members.
Zapaticos and Ropita (Carrera 73 #C2-19) are brother and sister shops, the first one with shoes and the second with dresses.
Zapaticos is like a mini shoe universe, with a large selection of footwear dedicated to the ladies. Ropita offers nice dresses and accessories at prices ranging from 20,000 pesos ($8.50) and up.
Another personal favorite is Origen (Carrera 73 #C2-18), a multi-brand fashion boutique with clothing and accessories.
Designers who have partnered up with Origen personally come over and arrange their products on the shelves, as I had the chance to notice while shopping there.
All brands in the shop are Colombian, so it’s a pretty cool place to notice the local touch on fashion. Make sure you have your credit card with you, you’ll spend quite a bit of money. We’re talking designer pieces here.
Make a Wish (Carrera 73 #C1-37) and literally step into it, because this shop turns it into reality. A fancy looking boutique from outside, Make a Wish is quite a cozy place that doesn’t empty your wallet just by looking at items.
Actually the price range is somewhere between 35,000 pesos and 90,000 ($15 to $38) and the articles are nicely designed and high quality. Back to making wishes come true, I was referring to those of us who crave a size 5.
Right next to Make a Wish, there’s Angeles del Oceano (Carrera 73 #C1-35), which is sort of the opposite of the first. Looking a bit poorly from the outside, find yourself among expensive designer pieces inside, starting from 200,000 pesos ($84) for a necklace.
Angeles del Oceano is the last boutique on Avenida Jardín, but definitely among my first choices.
Going further to wellness, Biocorp (Circular 4 No. 73-09) offers a very wide range of natural oils and lotions for aromatherapy or treatments, both for hair and skin. You’ll recognize it easily, for the name is written in capital green letters and more than that, for the delicious smell around the shop.
These are just a few of the boutiques you can find on Avenida Jardín. I stated my personal favorites, but there are some more shops that you’ll probably inevitably bump into. That’s why we call it a shopping session, right?
Cafés and Restaurants
If you tire of carrying those bags, you might want to take a break in a quiet and refreshing oasis that preferably serves coffee.
I spotted four that caught my eye, relatively distant from one another. The first one is Gran Sibaris (Carrera 73 #C1-39), a restaurant that serves Mediterranean food with an exquisite wine and music selection.
The second is Fenicia (Carrera 73 #C2-41), an Arab restaurant with a lovely kind of hidden terrace. Don’t worry about passers-by staring at you having lunch, the terrace is surrounded by trees, not only offering you intimacy but keeping you away from the exhaust from traffic. Smart, huh?
If you’re into organic food, Flora (Circular 4, Carrera 73-04) serves a wide range of foods and drinks. Right near it, there’s La Pampa (Circular 4, Carrera 73-13), a great Argentinian grill restaurant that also has a location in Las Palmas.
As I said earlier in the article, you can easily spend half a day around here. My suggestion would be to also explore the little connected streets going up and down Avenida Jardín.
They’re also full of nice shops with unique pieces, and some of them would actually tailor the item you want to buy if it doesn’t fit you.
How to Get There
Avenida Jardín connects with Carrera 73 and, before turning west at Primer Parque Laureles, is parallel to Avenida Nutibara, which it eventually crosses.
If you’re heading there from the Estadio metro station, just take the Carrera 70 (La 70), turn right before Mondongo restaurant and walk three blocks up. If you see a gas station, you’re in the right place. Avenida Jardín starts from there (Circular 4).
We’ve dined at the Gran Sibaris restaurant ever since we discovered it on our first visit to Medellin (three times so far). We LOVE it. The food selections are always interesting, tasty and artfully but simply presented. Service is superb.The owners (he’s the front of the house person, she’s the creative chef) remember us and we’re treated like royalty whenever we’re there. Be sure to try their jugo de coco-limon too. Mmmm.
Entering BioCorp is a must-do if you’re interested in essential oils. The selection is almost overwhelming in their number of options! I’ve purchased the Limoncillo-Lavanda-Cedro scented balls as subtle room fresheners and enjoy the natural fragrance very much. They sell the Limoncillo pump spray bottles in varying sizes so you can refresh the balls fragrance. Staff is helpful. Can’t wait to go back and spend more time investigating all their options, I always seem to have time constraints when I make my purchases (and limited luggage space).
In the general area on another side street, be sure to dine at Salud Pan. Their food is tasty, freshly prepared and reasonably priced. They offer freshly baked healthy breads, vegetarian and/or vegan foods, and plenty of natural/organic food, cleaning or beauty products as well.