Why do we think playing Tejo is a must-do in Medellin?
As Colombians we have to admit that even though we have heard of Tejo all our lives most of us have never been in a Tejo court and or played it either.
Tejo is the Colombian national sport, but much more than that, it is a fun activity that can be played with relative ease by adults and kids alike.
About a week ago a group of guests who heard that Tejo was an activity worth trying wanted us to take them to a Tejo court.
So we used our connections to find out about Tejo courts in Medellin.
We arranged everything for our clients and headed there after going on our own half-day coffee tour with them (another must do in Medellin).
This place is a paradise embedded in the mountains, just 40 minutes away from the city with easy public transportation this is the best place to play Tejo in a magical environment.
After paying only 10.000 pesos (about $3USD) you get 4 mechas and 1 Tejo (the rock to throw).
How Should the Game Be Played?
The setup is pretty simple: there’s a wooden box (called a “pitch”) that’s 35” x 40” and filled with clay. In the middle of the pitch is a metal circle.
Here, four packets of gunpowder (called “mechas”) are arranged at the North, South, East and West points of the metal circle.
There’s also a backstop, but if you hit it when you throw any points that you receive are voided.
The goal is to throw your metal puck (called a Tejo) either onto one of the mechas so that it explodes against the metal ring. You score even more points if you land your tejo in the center of the ring.
You step up to the line, which is 60’ away from the pitch, and hope to nail a mecha. Here’s how the scoring works:
- If you’re the closest to the center circle, you get 1 point (called a “hand”)
- If you hit a mecha and it explodes, you get 3 points (“hit”)
- If you land your tejo in the center of the ring without exploding any mechas, you get 6 points (this is called a “bullseye”)
- If you land your tejo in the center of the ring and also hit a mecha that explodes, you get 9 points (this is called a “strike”)
Still not sure how it works? Watch Anthony Bourdain explaining it for CNN:
There are many reasons why this is a must-do in Medellin:
- It’s fun
- It’s authentic
- The atmosphere is great
- You work out your arms as you need to be tossing a 1-2 kg stone from 10-18 meters.
So if you are reading our What To Do In Medelling blog is because you are looking for activities and this is one you definitely want to do.
If you want to Play Tejo we offer an amazing combination of Tejo and Graffiti private tour that includes drinks or food, pick up & drop off at your place of stay.
In case you want us to drop you there after any tour please let us know and we´ll be happy to make it happen, and if you want us to play with you to see us fail at every throw (because we really suck at this) we can always cheer you up with our lack of skills.
Find below the contact details:
Restaurante El Gran Cacao
To set an appointment to play any day in the week please contact them through WhatsApp.
If you want to go there on a weekend then just show up there, they open from 10 am to 8 pm on Saturdays and from 9 am to 7 pm on Sundays,
If you want to know more about them check out their Instagram.
