Why hello there,
welcome back to yet another Observations blogpost. This one, as you will know from the title, is about my time in Colombia and what I learnt while I was there. Unlike my Belgium Observations post, I have achieved my goal and learnt something every day I was in Bogotá so here's my 30 Observations for my month in the country's capital. Providing extra insight into the place as well as my experience while there. Hope you like it.
1. Bogotá, the city that doesn't sleep
It is often said about New York City but perhaps those who say it haven't been to Bogotá. The Colombian capital is home to more than 7 and a half million people and is constantly noisy and alive with activity (and 24 hour traffic).
2. Weather
Bogotá is in the northern reaches of the Andes providing it with a different climate to much of the country. The sun may shine most days but due to its altitude, the air is much cooler making the weather more manageable. There is also quite a bit of rain during April and May, the closest it really gets to 'winter' as the country's proximity to the equator means that seasons are muddled and don't really exist.
3. Colombian Spanish
As a Spanish student, what I was very keen on discovering when I came to Colombia was how the local dialect of Spanish compares with the Castillian variety (Spanish from Spain). My initial fears that I would find Colombian Spanish almost impossible to understand were put at ease as I found it to be not too different from the Spanish used in Spain however I did notice a few subtle differences. As expected, most of these differences are in pronunciation. Examples include double l's being pronounced as j's and q's as k's. There are also differences words used in situations such as when they say 'Ciao' instead of 'Adios' or 'Hasta Luego'.
4. Time difference/Not moving the clocks back/forward
The time difference between Bogota and the UK is 6 hours. I was fooled early on in my stay when the clocks changed however in Colombia the time stayed the same meaning I was a whole hour early meeting with Maritza! Silly me.
5. Tea/Coffee
I came to Colombia expecting to be dominated by coffee once more, just like every country I've been to in my gap year. This is a pretty reasonable assumption as Colombia is renowned for its coffee however it wasn't quite what I expected. Much of Colombia's best coffee is exported to countries across the world meaning that finding the really good quality Colombian coffee in the country itself is difficult. Although I did try a Tinto (coffee mixed chocolate), the majority of the time tea was the beverage of choice both to help with the heat and cos you can't be certain of clean running water from all of the taps so it is better to brew up than risk it.
6. Colourful Houses
Colombians like their colours and what was particularly nice to see was the amount of brightly coloured houses in Bogotá. Many of the best ones are found in La Candelaria and here's a short collection of my favourites.
7. Fruit
Besides Coffee, Colombia is well known for its tropical fruit production. On the streets around La Candelaria there are loads of people selling a large variety of fruits and fruit juices of which I liked freshly squeezed Orange juice and Passion fruit the most
8. Beggars
As a whole, Colombia is considered a developing nations but the issues of poverty and starvation still exist fairly prominently. Many homeless people can be found sleeping in the strangest of places out in the streets and at many points due to being a westerner, I was approached by people asking for money. The police make a big effort to discourage begging however many that you encounter are happy one or two hundred pesos which is a small price to pay. Think of it as your good deed for the day.
9. Traffic
Bogota is an incredibly busy city and is therefore filled with an extortionate amount of traffic. Many vehicles drive way over the speed limit while motorbikes weave in and out and for pedestrians it is almost impossible to cross any of the main roads. Better keep your whits about you!
10. Doormen at housing complex-correcting you on time of day
While I was staying in the studio, it was customary to greet the doormen to the housing complex on the way in and out. I'm not always aware of the current time so I found it rather amusing whenever I said the wrong greeting to them (e.g. saying Buenos dias in the afternoon, typically a morning greeting), they would correct me without apology or a smug grin at my fault. Call me weird but I used to think it was quite funny!
11. Colombia and the national football team #Unidosporunpais
Football is Colombia's national sport and for the first time since France 1998, the national side has qualified for the World Cup finals in Brazil. As cliches go, World Cup fever has already swept the nation so much so that you'd think the tournament was in Colombia itself. Walking through the centre of Bogotá, you'll see just about every man, woman, child and even pet wearing a Colombia jersey (not surprising when you can buy one for about a fiver on the street), shops are selling all kinds of merchandise to get fans in the mood, stars such as Monaco players Radamel Falcao and James Rodriguez are all over the advertisements and all the eyes of the sports media are trained onto how Los Cafeteros* (currently 5th in the FIFA World rankings) fair at the main event in a few weeks time. The whole country is most definitely behind the team and excited to be involved with football's greatest showpiece once more. It reminds of how excited England used to get before world cups up until 2010, the less said about that-the better.
*= 'Los Cafeteros', or the coffee growers in English, is the nickname for the Colombia national football team. Typical!
12. Street vendors
Just about anywhere you walk in the city centre of Bogotá, the Carrera Septima in particular, you'll find lots of people trying to sell you things. There is a real variety of products on display including food, drinks, football shirts, hats, sunglasses, pirate DVDs, electronics and textiles so you may pick up a bargain or two, especially if you fancy a bit of bartering in Spanish. I got my Colombia football shirt for 15,000 CP which is roughly a fiver whereas I'd have to pay over 10 times that amount to buy one in an official sports shop.
13. Altitude Sickness
Bogotá is the 4th highest capital city in the world (2 of the top 4 are also in the Andes, I'll let you name those yourself) standing at a height of 2640m above sea level. It may not be the same as climbing Everest but the altitude does have certain effects on people-including me. Altitude sickness can be quite a horrible thing to go through but you can take medication or drink Coca Tea- a traditional south american drink made from Coca leaves (the source of Cocaine but don't worry, there's not actual cocaine in it) which can both help counter its effects.
14. Cycling
After Football, Cycling is the second sport in Colombia and Bogotá is filled with thousands of cyclists everyday. The government accomodates its nation's love of life on 2 wheels by making cycle ways, offering bike hire services and during Sundays and Bank Holidays some main streets in Bogotá are closed off exclusively for Cycling. Also just before I arrived the World Track Cycling Championships were held in the southern city of Cali. Power to the pedal!
15. Confusing Transmilenio
The Transmilenio is the BRT Bus system in Bogotá designed for quick, affordable transport in and around the city. Once you get over how overcrowded many of the services are and work out the confusing route maps at each station, you then can really appreciate how efficient and safe the system is. A real credit to Bogotá.
16. Museums
Bogotá is famous for its many museums. There many different kinds of them across the city showing off exhibitions of Art, Political History, War and many other subjects which can make for a really interesting afternoon. Many people are drawn in by cheap or sometimes no entry charge so it's a relatively inexpensive tourist activity however be aware that many of them close on Mondays or Tuesdays for maintenance so unfortunately I fell victim to this on more than once occasion. My top picks? I'd definitely make sure you check out the Museo Del Oro, Museo Botero, Museo Nacional and Quinta de Bolívar.
17. Colombian Food
Colombian cuisine is either very salty or very sweet. Many every day dishes consist of chicken and rice with a stew-type sauce which is quite nice. The best dish I tried is called Tamal. It's a dish served for sunday breakfast in a banana leaf that contains chicken, rice and chickpeas and is supposedly a great hangover cure! Colombians are also big on their meat and sweets.
18. Zona Rosa
Where's the party at in Bogotá? The Zona Rosa is your answer. This is an area 30 minutes cab ride from La Candelaria renowned for its vast array of designer shops, restaurants and nightlife. Literally within one square mile you will find over 100 different bars and clubs, each with their own different personality and taste in music meaning that there is something for everyone. Be careful though, many of the places charge 'tourist prices' for entry and drinks that are comparable to those in the US or UK. Don't expect a cheap night out but expect an enjoyable one.
19. Money
At first, it took me quite a while to get my head around the currency situation in Colombia. It may be a developing nation but Colombia is still quite poor which means that the Colombian peso is a highly inflated currency. It's common to see 10 and 20 thousand peso notes in use and the smallest coin you can find is 100 so you can imagine how boggled mind was trying to work out the value of things compared to the British pound. Turns out that according to Google, £1 is the equivalent to 3211.47 CP meaning that the general cost of living in Colombia is quite cheap for a Brit like myself.
20. Bear Grills
Whilst staying in the studio, there a few nights where I had to fend for myself in the kitchen which presented quite a challenge. Generally, my cooking abilities are average at best and there weren't a great deal of facilities or utensils I could use to make truly desirable meals but I got by making Pasta/Rice based meals which were actually pretty darn tasty if I do say so myself. My previous fears about cooking at Uni have been somewhat alleviated since.
21. Dangerous roads
If I had to give a description of it, the traffic on the roads of Bogotá is a bit like watching endless Mario Kart races. Nearly everyone drives over the speed limit, motorbikes are constantly weaving in and out, no one stops for pedestrians crossing the street, everyone is trying to overtake each other and to make matters worse, there are often cars that aren't even fully equipped with seatbelts. On the basis of my personal driving experience to date, I don't think I'd last 5 seconds in Bogotá! In my opinion it's much safer to travel by bus as many routes in the city are segregated from the main traffic.
22. Dogs
Dogs are most certainly man's best friend in Colombia. They're a very popular pet and it is very common to see plenty of them with their owners when you're out and about as well as a large quantity of sniffer dogs used by the police. The sad thing is that you also see an abnormally large amount of stray dogs in the streets so in this case maybe what I said earlier isn't always true.
23. Safety/Personal Security
Colombia has often been given a bad reputation by western media over the years. Stories of drug related violence, crime and smuggling as well as tourism and political unrest have not shed a very positive light on the nation. Crime rates and general safety is still improving and at times when walking around Bogotá you may feel like you're just in any other busy world city but there are still dangers out there. My best advice would be to be constantly alert about yourself and surroundings. Never walk the streets alone at night, don't go around showing off valuables items such as Phones or Cameras and generally stick to the more touristic areas as you are more likely to blend in with fellow travelers. Really just have your wits about you and make sure you don't draw too much attention. I did all these things and as a consequence I faced no problems with crime or anything else of that nature.
24. Radio GaGa
Listening to Colombian radio is really confusing. Unlike in the UK, stations don't seem to have a common musical agenda which makes for a rather inconsistent playlist of songs. You could be listening to a heavy metal band one minute then a jazz band the next. I even heard a bit of Brit music from Oasis, Blur and my favourites Bombay Bicycle Club! To call Colombian radio stations diverse would be an understatement.
25. Rice
I don't for sure but it would be a very good guess to say that Rice is Colombia's staple food. I ate it with most meals as it is suitable for the local climate due to its dry nature and long shelf-life.
26. Salsa
Colombians love their music and partying so it is of no real surprise that Salsa is taught to kids in many schools. This means by the time they're adults salsa becomes like a second nature to many people and there is a real passion for it in the country. I did try my hand at it but it turns out it's much more difficult than I expected. Better get practicing...
27. Kissing Greetings
Being an awkward Brit, kiss greetings is something I've struggled in every country I've visited so far on my gap year. In terms of Colombia, more often than not it's just the one peck on the person's right cheek although some people go for the double which really does confuse things. I'd suggest sticking to one just to save the embarrassment if the other person doesn't go for a second one.
28. Poker
In the hostel we played a few games of poker to pass the time during the evenings. I've never really been that good of a poker player and confess that I still don't quite understand the rules but somehow I still managed to not lose any of the games we played and even finished second in one of them. It's by no means my favourite game but I wasn't put off it by my recent experience, I'm sure I'll get the hang of it in the future.
29. Hostelling
My week in the Cranky Croc wasn't my first stay in a hostel but it has certainly improved my opinion of it. Hostels are great for travelers and students-people wanting to travel on a budget. Beds are generally cheap in most countries, you get lots of great facilities provided as well links to tourist activities but the best thing for me about hostels is that sense of community and friendliness that you just don't get in hotels. You get to meet lots of like minded people and even makes some friends which makes your time away that bit more enjoyable.
30. More to Colombia than just Bogotá
Overall I'd say I enjoyed my 5 weeks in Bogotá but I hope this isn't the last time I visit Colombia. The country has improved greatly from its bleak past and is now really starting to open itself up to tourism. Colombia is currently an almost undiscovered gem of a travel location. There is so much it has to offer from its high peaks, to tropical rainforests, to its white sandy Caribbean beaches, to its lively cities and nightlife. There are many great places in the country that I heard about from travelers in the hostel that I'd love to visit someday so I most certainly won't reject the idea of a return to the country or South America at some point in the future.
So there you have it. What I learned from my time in Colombia. Same drill again, if you feel I've made some misguided observations then don't be offended and feel free to call me out on anything that you think isn't right. I enjoy writing these posts a lot and they're only meant as a bit of light hearted fun.
Expect to be reading my final observations post from gap year when I return home from the US. I look forward to writing it for you. It's now just a matter of hours till I leave on my flight over there and I can't wait for my summer camp experience to begin. I've no idea as to how often I will be able to blog while I'm at camp but I hope to update my blog at least once or twice a month to keep up appearances and so that my family won't be worrying about me.
That's all for now,
see you stateside!
FP
#FraserOnTour
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