Trip to Bogota, Colombia
For a number of years, Colombia has been synonymous with cocaine, kidnappings and Guerrilla warfare. Even in Bogota today, there are security guards and K-9s in front of most buildings checking for potential terrorists in the wake of recent bombings. Taxi’s have their license plate number plastered on all sides of the car (including the roof), from what I hear, in an effort to more easily identify cars used in kidnappings. In the clubs, washroom stalls are literally a revolving door for cocaine. Needless to say, this did create a somewhat nervous environment at times. Luckily we had friends living there who spoke some Spanish, which vastly mitigated any sense of risk.
Overall Bogota was a great time, the city has a great young vibe to it, the electronic scene is really hip, with a lot of the big musical acts like Massive Attack rolling through regularly. Beautiful graffiti that paint the street walls set the tone of the city, and the myriad of museums, like the Botero, punctuate the rich art and culture of the country. The food was simple but good. A lot of stews like Ajiaco and grilled beef, chicken and chorizo sausages defined my culinary experience. That and a lot of coffee.
I’ll throw up a link to pictures when I get everything together.
