Colombia

Pre-Departure:
I had been unsure of what to do for Fall Break. NYC, Canada, or both were the leading candidates. Aldrich and David expressed interest in going but when we met at Lafortune on Friday, October 17 to buy bus tickets, the plan started to fizzle out. Around 1am, I looked at a map of the world and randomly proposed Colombia. There wasn't too much interest at first but when we compared ticket prices to other random spots (Peru, Mexico, Germany, Canada), Colombia won out in the end as being both cheap and obscure/interesting. The State Department has a travel warning issued for Colombia, urging all Americans to avoid traveling in the country but that didn't really bother us too much. Well, it may have bothered some of us (or one) but we ended up going anyway so it didn't matter. It may have helped that I've been to 7 countries with travel warnings in the last 7 months and I ended up still alive. So after proposing the idea at 1am, we had our tickets purchased by 3am. We were going to fly out of Chicago on Saturday, October 18 at 5pm.

Day 1: We had a 5 hour layover in Houston on Saturday night but our plan to visit the city failed. I've been to Texas 5 times since January and with probably somewhere over 24 hours of layovers total, I've still never left the airport. Oh well. We got into Bogota, the capital of Colombia, at 5am and after arriving at the hostel in central Bogota, we passed out on the hard beds for 5 hours. We only wanted to sleep 2 hours but the flight and lack of sleep on the plane left us exhausted. Around 11am, we got up and had breakfast in the kitchen (pieces of toast and eggs) and then proceeded to exploring Bogota. Located 8500 feet in the Andes mountains and with a population of 8 million, Bogota is probably one of the most interesting capitals of Latin America. The old city is mostly comprised of colonial-style architecture, with one-lane streets, soldiers armed with assault rifles on every block, a main square, and many old Spanish churches. It reminds me a lot of Quito in Ecuador. The Andes mountains surround the city and make it all the more beautiful. Conquistadors really know how to pick good places to found cities. So we just walked around the old colonial city all day, visiting museums, old churches, and doing some people-watching in the main square, the Plaza de Bolivar. Lunch cost us $4 and included a full meal of chicken, rice, salad, and beer.

We're back at the hostel now. Aldrich and David are passed out. We're going to go out and check out the Colombian nightlife later. Beer's about 50 cents a bottle and is your basic Latin American light, watered down beer. Still better than Natty though. Adios.

From Colombia: Bogota

Spot the gringos

From Colombia: Bogota

Bogota

From Colombia: Bogota

Plaza de Bolivar

Day 2:
Last night we probably did the most gringo thing we could. We took a taxi to the neighborhood around the local university and had 11pm dinner at Bogota Beer Company. We had cheeseburgers, fries, and beer for dinner. And we watched the Red Sox-Rays game on Latin American ESPN.

Woke up this morning around 9am and went to all the places we didn't go to yesterday. Except all the museums we wanted to go to are all randomly closed on Mondays. All the buildings in the colonial district (La Candaleria) are painted in bright colors... red, blue, yellow, green etc. And there's a lot of graffiti everywhere. Some of them are anti-government and support the revolution (Viva Revolucion!) and I've seen a few FARC ones. Hmmm... Also, apparently on Sundays the roads are closed to traffic so we had to deal with crazy Colombian drivers who regard stop signs (Pare) and red lights as suggestions and not rules. David hasn't been hit by a car. Yet. Our cab driver last night just ignored the red lights and sped through. Another observation: locals are not bilingual. They speak Spanish. Just Spanish. Not even a little bit of English to have a small conversation. I haven't used English with a local yet so I've been relying on my Spanish. But then again, after 7 years of Spanish classes my Spanish is still pretty bad. It's true. If you don't use it, you lose it.

Today, went up Monserrate which is the local mountain overlooking the entire city of Bogota. 9300 ft. There was a church at the top and we went to 1pm Mass. It was all in Spanish of course. Colombia is 90% Roman Catholic. And very devout. The main cathedral in Bogota had Opus Dei posters up. The 80th anniversary of OD was just a few weeks ago. Also we walked around the Presidential House, the Colombian White House I guess. Security was tight with dozens of soldiers and police armed with assault rifles every block. Yeah, a lot like Beirut. But at least they don't hate cameras as much as Lebanese soldiers do. We took as many pictures as we wanted. Anyway, we've had enough of the city so we're heading into the Amazon jungle and over to the Caribbean coast for the rest of the week. There's some small towns/villages a few hours north of Bogota, called Tunja and Villa de Leyva. We're taking a $6 dollar bus at 2am so we'll be there in the morning in time for the sunrise. Hasta luego.

From Colombia: Bogota

Bogota, 9300 ft.

From Colombia: Bogota

From Colombia: Bogota

From Colombia: Bogota

Viva la revolucion!

Dia Tres:
Last night, checked out of the hostel and after a bit of a delay (David) we made it to Zona Rosa for dinner, an upscale neighborhood in Bogota. Most of it reminded me of Georgetown back home in DC. Expensive restaurants, outdoor bars, brick mansions, malls, etc. Except the houses had barbed wire on the fences. And every block had several fully armed Colombian soldiers in full gear. Hmm...After another late night dinner (Latin American style) at 11pm, we just sat around at a bar (Beer Station) enjoying the nightlife atmosphere and Colombian cerveza. Our last bit of civilization before heading into the countryside.

Left Bogota at 1am on a bus to Tunja. Nicest bus I´ve ever been on. Missed our stop because we fell asleep (the bus was that comfortable). The conductor was actually more worried than we were. Went an hour in the wrong direction. Turned around and got into Tunja around 5am. Took the 6am van to Villa De Leyva. Aldrich and David passed out in the back of the van and missed out on some picturesque scenery through the Andean Mountains and Colombian countryside. Small crosses litter the roadside, marking the spot where someone was killed. They´re everywhere just like in Ecuador. Latin American drivers speed around the winding mountainside roads, just a few feet from the cliffside and a few thousand feet drop. Anyway, got into Villa De Leyva at around 715am.

Villa De Leyva is a small town a few hours north of Bogota in the Andes Mountains, which surround the town. Time literally stands still here. There is no modern architecture at all in town. All the colonial-era buildings have been preserved and the town remains mostly unchanged since the early 1600s. The streets are still made of cobble-stones. The church was built in 1608 and hasn´t changed since. The main square is the largest in Colombia. The locals still live mostly simple lives compared to their fellow citizens in the bustling metropolis of Bogota. They´re a lot more friendly too. While Aldrich and David were asleep again after checking into our hotel, that morning I just sat in the main square. Everyone from small children to teenage students to elder couples to stray dogs stopped by to say hello and converse. Didn´t get to far with my Spanish, though.

Strolled through the narrow, cobble-stoned streets for most of the day, just taking in the small colonial town atmosphere. We´ve been doing our best to simulate Latin American culture. We eat small simple breakfasts. Then eat a huge lunch in the afternoon (cheap too, like $5). Then eat dinner around 10 or 11pm. It actually works well. After 2 weeks of doing it in Ecuador, going about 11 or 12 hours without a meal isn´t that bad.

Tonight will probably be a bit quieter than our nights in Bogota. Tomorrow, we´ll try renting out some horses and exploring the countryside outside town ($2 an hour) and then we´ll take the 20 hour bus to Cartagena on the Caribbean coast. Esta de juevos.

From Colombia: Villa De Leyva

Plaza Mayor

From Colombia: Villa De Leyva

Colombia

From Colombia: Villa De Leyva

Andes

From Colombia: Villa De Leyva

VDL

From Colombia: Villa De Leyva

From Colombia: Villa De Leyva

From Colombia: Villa De Leyva

locals

From Colombia: Villa De Leyva

.50 cent beer and the sunset

Dia Cuatro:
Woke up. Left the hotel. Detained by the Colombian police who thought we were carrying drugs. They asked Aldrich if David was about to cry. I don´t know. Maybe we look like stoners? Or the police are that bored with looking after tourists all day, everyday. If we get stopped again, we´ll just tell them we´re seminarians. Bus back to Tunja. Bus from Tunja to Cartagena. $50. 20 hours. Left at 1230pm. Nicest bus I´ve ever been on. And in South America of all places. Yeah, that´s what I thought at first. Before the bus driver cranked the A/C to full blast the whole time and turned the bus into an icebox. With my jacket and keffiyeh both on, my teeth were still tattering. Movies playing included (in Spanish of course) National Treasure 2, Rush Hour 3, and Zohan (Israeli propaganda...wow). 20 hours on a bus doesn´t sound that bad. If it were on an American highway. But this isn´t America. It´s not even the Middle East. The roads are terrible... full of potholes, bumps, winding turns, only two lanes, with random villagers on the side of the road. I literally counted. The bus could not go more than 10 seconds without hitting a bump. Just like Ecuador. Worst ride of my life. Impossible to sleep or read a book. We´re definitely flying back to Bogota.

At least the scenery was nice, even with the motion sickness. From 9000 ft in the Andean Highlands, we descended all the way to sea level on the Caribbean coast. Very picturesque stuff. The road passes through small villages and towns. It kept reminding me of Ecuador and the Philippines. People just lounging in a plastic chair in front of their concrete house, just watching the traffic go by all day.

Dia Cinco:
Got into Cartagena at 8am. The hostel is in the middle of the old colonial town. $3 a night. The room wasn´t ready until 11am so I just passed out in the tv lounge while the Europeans watched Fox News and debated the US elections. They like Obama. Hmm...

Got lunch around the corner at Restaurante Coronado. $4 for a plate of delicious arroz con pollo y papas fritas con cerveza Colombian. Muy excelente. I can describe the weather here on the Caribbean coast in one word: hot. In two words: hot and sticky. I sweat more sitting down eating at a restaurant here than I do running 6 miles at Notre Dame.

But the 20 hour bus ride and the mucho calor weather make this old colonial town on the Caribbean coast the highlight of any trip to Colombia, or maybe even to South America. Founded in the 16th century, Cartagena was the jewel of the global Spanish empire as it was the gateway to South America and the main port in the New World. It was here that the conquistadors shipped all their plundered Indian gold back to Europe. It was here that pirates such as Sir Francis Drake sacked the port for booty. Located on the coast, there are a lot more blacks here than in the Andes mountains. The descendents of African slaves brought here in the colonial period, they´ve created a distinct Creole culture distinctive from the culture of the mountainous regions. Today the town is famous for perfectly preserving its colonial architecture in the old town. We walked around the old town all day, just admiring the simple but inspiring colonial buildings, with bright colors and balconies overlooking the narrow streets. It reminds me of Jerusalem. People can just walk freely in the streets without the noise and disruption that traffic brings. Street vendors sell delicious local snacks (empanadas) and fake Cuban cigars. Streetlife is what makes Cartagena special. Musicans play vallenato on the corners. Horse-drawn carriages and mules walk through the streets, a reminder of the old colonial days.

At night when the sun goes down is when the place really comes alive. Local dancers perform in the square. Outdoor cafes and restaurants in open plazas reminisce of old Europe. But this isn´t Europe. It´s Colombia. The best difference is that you won´t go broke paying for everything here.

We did meet a Jesuit priest here at Iglesia San Pedro Clover, the first to be canonized in the New World. Aldrich had a long conversation with him in Spanish while I tried to follow along. He did mention Opus Dei, at which point I told him in Spanish that I lived in an Opus Dei Center in the US. Apparently he considers Opus Dei an "enemy" of the Jesuits, whatever that means. Maybe something got lost in translation.

Anyway, we had dinner at this outdoor restaurant in one of the open squares. There was a group of Creoles dancing to their tribal-like music. But they were dressed in Spanish clothing. And they speak Spanish too of course. Blending of cultures. We went into this supermarket afterwards and David managed to get separated from us. We lost him. In a sketch part of town. In the middle of a foreign city. In Colombia. We found him later though.

From Colombia: Cartagena, Caribbean Coast

Cartagena

From Colombia: Cartagena, Caribbean Coast

From Colombia: Cartagena, Caribbean Coast

From Colombia: Cartagena, Caribbean Coast

From Colombia: Cartagena, Caribbean Coast

Dia Seis:
Woke up to a loud Colombian man yelling "Newspapers!" every few seconds at 7am. David punched me in the back while sleeping. He snores so loud. Bought airline tickets at a travel agency. $150 one way Cartagena to Bogota. Expensive but definitely better than 20 hours on the bus ride from hell. Took a cab to the Castillo de San Felipe, built in the early 1600s. The strongest and most formidable fortress ever built by the Spanish Empire. Cartagena was that important to Spain and her empire. If they lost Cartagena, they could´ve lost the entire continent or the whole Caribbean. The fortress was the first of its kind, implementing innovating military engineering. Maybe that´s why the fortress was never captured despite numerous attempts to storm it, by pirates, the English, and local Indian tribes. This is also why Cartagena was the last South American city to receive independence from Spain.

Ran into some old guy named Raymundo who offered to take us around Bogota for 30,000 pesos. After some deliberation, we accepted and he drove us the the highest hill in the city. At the top was the Conventa de la Popa, or Convent of the Stern. Apparently the hill looks like the back end of a ship. Founded in 1607 by the Augustine Padres, the hill overlooks the entire city. Buena Vista. After driving around the city a bit more, he dropped us off at the beach. My first time in the Caribbean. The water was warm. It was a bit cloudy but it was sunset so it was muy bueno. Too bad there were more vendors at the beach than actual tourists. For the first 20 minutes we literally had at least 2 to 4 vendors surrounding our tent trying to sell us stuff. I didn´t buy anything. Just a beer for 50 cents. Aldrich got a massage and some fresh crabs. He paid them in American dollars. It´s a wonder what a few dollar bills can do for the locals. They were amazed. Maybe it made them feel American. A bit.

So, our last night in Colombia. Walked around the old city some more and stumbled upon a fiesta in the streets. A live band and salsa music were playing. Women in local costumes danced on stage. Alcohol everywhere. Everywhere. It was drizzling. No one cared. Soldiers and police looked on. Everyone was dancing in the streets. Even the vendors. No one cared. Alcohol everywhere. Friday night in the Caribbean. Everyone just wanted to have a good time. Too bad David got pickpocketed. What a gringo.

Had the usual late night dinner (10pm) at an outdoor restaurant in Plaza de Santo Domingo. Great place for people-watching. We ordered lobster. We were on the Caribbean. Aldrich and I got wine. I got a plate of pasta with some lobster for $14.50. Aldrich and David weren´t too pleased with their dish of lobster. It looked more like art than food. They literally stared at it for a few minutes before finally eating. We sat there past midnight just taking in the aura of the local atmosphere. It felt like a typical outdoor restaurant in an open square in Italy or France. Except mariachi bands played around us. Vendors stopped at our table. I messed with them a bit, as usual. Fun stuff.

Dia Siete:
Our last day in Colombia. Flew back to Bogota this morning at 1039am. Got in before noon. Yeah, that was a lot better than the bus. It only took an hour. The seats were leather. Most of the people on the plane were upper-class. Maybe that´s why the receptionist at the hostel was so surprised when we told her we were flying back. Here we are paying $7 a night and eating $1 fried chicken with potato meals next door but then we shell out $150 for a one hour plane flight. Hmm...

Walked around the same places as before when we got back in the old town. I drank a beer earlier in the main plaza. I love South America. Running out of money, I bought a cowboy hat. The only thing I bought in Colombia this week.

We managed to watch the Notre Dame game here in Bogota too. Just went to the most American place we could find, TGIF's. We didn't want to play the obnoxious Americanos and do the cheers but we were probably the only ones in the place watching the game. The game was on every TV in the restaurant.

Flight at 1220am. Barely made it. Like Ecuador, Colombia slams you with a random departure tax of $25, only payable in cash. Like all my other trips, it's good to be back at school after living as much a spartan lifestyle as I could. From brutal 20 hour bus rides through the jungle to staying in the cheapest hostels we could find to $1 dollar meals, the real value of traveling with a backpacker's mentality is that when you do return to civilization you're not in as much withdrawal as you would if you went 5-star all the way. As usual the first thing I did when I got home was sleep in my bed, the only real mattress I've slept on all week. It's strange. The week went by pretty fast. One week I'm stressed with college. The next week I'm totally free from any burdens and can do whatever I want in Colombia. Then the next week it's back to college. Only one more month until Thanksgiving at least.

I'll miss Colombia. I'm sure I'll return one day, since we did not see as much of the country we could have if we had more time. Like all the countries I visited in the Middle East, the only perception I had coming into Colombia was the caricature painted by the media and State Department. All I ever heard of Colombia was about kidnappings, assassinations, drug lords, political violence, drugs, murder, extortion, crime, war, shootings, etc. The State Dept. says that Americans definitely should not travel on buses and should not travel at night. We did anyway. According to the State Dept. Colombia is the "most dangerous country in the Western Hemisphere." And like all my previous visits to "dangerous" countries, I was able to see the country for what it really was. Not through the eyes of the media or government. And what I saw was a charming South American country and a must-see for travelers. Like Lebanon, the place is heavily militarized but all the perceptions of danger and instablity actually make it even more attractive to travelers because there's less hordes of other tourists to deal with. As long as you know how to travel and use common sense, you're fine. DC and NYC have worse crime rates than Bogota and Cartagena. Don't believe the stereotypes. You're just missing out. Go to Colombia.

Viva Colombia!

Colombia Fun Facts:
The only South American country with coasts on both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
Produces 90% of the world's cocaine.
90% Roman Catholic.
#1 Exporter of flowers.
#2 Exporter of coffee.
Named after Christopher Colombus, though he never set foot there.
Most dangerous country in the Western Hemisphere, according to the US State Dept.
President Uribe is the most pro-US leader in Latin America.