¡Qué chévere, Bogotá!

I took a quick vacation to Colombia before heading back home; first to Bogotá to see some CISVers, then to Cartagena for some sun. Colombia felt so similar to Manila, yet so different. During many conversations with Colombian friends on culture, life, government, and whatnot, there were so many times I would comment "igual que en Filipinas" (same as the Philippines). Yet at the same time, the city and country had its own beautiful and unique culture. A few snapshots of Bogotá below, but be warned, there will be a lot of exclamation points and superlatives, because I really had the most wonderful time in this country. :)

It was my friend Ivan who convinced me to visit Colombia, when I had met him in a CISV camp the year before. He picked me up at the airport and we had a lovely catch up dinner before heading to his house where he so graciously hosted me for the next few days. :)

Touchdown, Bogotá!

The next day, Ivan had work so his mom took me out to explore some neighboring towns. We stopped by a famous restaurant Andrés Carne de Res in Chia. It was such a quirky but fun restaurant. I have no pictures because I was too shy to take some, but I did snap some of my food (because, food), which was too die for.

patacón (plantain) with cheese on top and pulled pork on the side

carne, papas amarillas, arepa

We spent most of the morning and afternoon out, then she dropped me off at Ivan's work. Then Ivan and I headed to the airport to pick up Jan, another friend who was also in camp with us. We arrived a lot earlier than expected, so Ivan and I killed time drinking at a bar.

Cheers!

The next day we started off with lunch at Cuatro Vientos, where Ivan works.

Jan, me, Ivan

sandwiches, quesadillas, and fresh fruit juices

Then Jan and I walked to explore downtown Bogotá. We headed to la Candelaria, the Old City, and visited some artisanal stores, the Gold Museum, some parks, and the Plaza de Simón Bolívar. It's a big square where you can find the Cathedral, the national Capitol, the Palace of Justice, and some other important buildings. The plaza was named after Simón Bolívar, a Venezuelan who helped several South American countries establish independence from Spain.

Plaza de Simón Bolívar - the Cathedral on the left and the National Capitol

Then, we just wandered around aimlessly, enjoying some good conversations.

We headed back to Cuatro Vientos in the evening and were reunited with the Colombian kids who were with us at camp (Ivan was their leader; Jan and I were staffers). It was so lovely to see them again, and amazing how much they've grown in a year!

CISV reunions are the best :)

We had dinner with the kids and their families while watching the opening match of the Copa América (Colombia v. USA). It was so much fun to watch in a room full of Colombians (who take their football seriously!).

Full house for the match

The next day we ventured out of Bogotá to a small city nearby. As we were driving we spotted a street vendor selling this fruit, and Jan was curious to what it was. So Ivan called the vendor over, and we bought some guama.

It was quite an interesting fruit (Colombia has the most amazing fruits!). The guama fruit has a black seed in the middle and is covered by white cotton-like flesh.

We made a quick pit stop at this restaurant to order some food to go, but we snacked on some empanadas, morcilla, and papas while waiting for our food.

We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening at the country home of some friends of Ivan's parents. It was a mostly lovely evening socializing and conversing with them over some good food and wine. :)

We spent the night in Suesca, where we went rock climbing the next day. We ventured a little bit out of town to the Rocas de Suesca, which are natural cliffs ideal for hiking and climbing.

Following old train tracks to the Rocks

Gearing up

It was a spontaneous decision to go rock climbing. I was quite nervous because I had never even done wall climbing before. After our guide geared us up, he was all "Ready?" and I just replied with, "Uhm, so how exactly do I climb up?"

At the halfway point

View from the midpoint

Climbing up, there was one moment when I was legitimately terrified that I would fall, and several other moments when I really wanted to give up, but I made it!

Starting the second leg

My awkward face because I'm trying to look confident but secretly am afraid of falling

At the top!

The climbing was really more for the experience/practice, because from the top, you can actually walk back down via another path. Haha.

We spent the rest of the afternoon with the Colombian kids and their families. What was just supposed to be a lunch transitioned to an afternoon walk/climb out to coffee and to dinner. :)