Arrival in Manaus and Farewell to Colombia

Greetings from the final South American County I will visit on this trip, Brazil. I have now just over 3 weeks in South America and given that Brazil is the largest country on the continent its going to be a rushed highlights package for me as I hightail it down to Sao Paulo to fly to Canada. Yesterday I flew from Tabatinga on the Brazillian side of the Brazil - Colombian border to Manaus, deep in the Amazon rainforest and a major port city of nearly 2 million, despite the fact it is over 1500km from the sea. The flight over the Amazon was spectacular, a sea of green forest, with the huge river and its tributories cutting through it.

Im in Manaus to catch the boat to Belem on the north coast of Brazil, its a 3 - 4 day trip that will hopefully give me a flavour of life on the Amazon. More likely then not I will be incredibly bored and uncomfortable but I couldnt come to South America and not sail down the Amazon. Manaus itself is like most other port cities, bussling, noisey, smelly, and with little to see. It became rich on the back of the rubber boom in the late 19th Century and at that point was called the Paris of the Tropics but now any colonial buildings that remain are run down and dilapitated. The exception being the Teatro Amazonas, which closely resembles counterparts in Paris, Vienna, or Budapest. The only other thing I plan to do while im here is to visit the meeting of the waters, where the dark Rio Negro meets the lighter Rio Solimoes and they form the Amazon river. Apparently they flow beside each other for several kms before eventually merging. Anyway enough of Brazil, I still have my last 2 weeks in Colombia to write about.

Medellin and Santa Fe

I finally left the Carribean coast and met up with Sam again in Medellin. Medellin was once one of the most dangerous cities in the world, and also a kidnap capital with its most famous son being the legendry Pablo Escobar, once the worlds biggest drug dealer. Those days are largely gone, and while not a very pretty city it is certainly a progressing city.

At this point it is probably worth writing abit about the problems that Colombia is synonomis for. Over the last 30 years. The problems are two fold, firstly the left wing revolutionary group FARC who wish to change the policital structure of the country and the right wing paramilitaries who sprang up to counteract them and then the drug cartels who were able to fund private armies to protect their lucrative trade.

FARC like many left wing movements of the 1960s wished to introduce socialism or communism to Colombia and was supported by Moscow and Havanna. However, with the collapse of communism they have moved to drug dealing and extortion. Now they are largely a rump group focused on survival and making money. The Colombian government proved largely unable to combat Farc particularly in rural jungle areas, accordingly rightwing paramilitaries were formed by people opposed to Farc for self protection. Like most paramilitary groups they were often linked to human rights abuses against Farc supporters and illegal activities of their own.

Colombia apparently controls 80% of the worlds Colombian cocaine market. This has made those involved in the trade, particualarly the Godfathers very rich and they are willing and able to use any means possible to them to maintain the status quo be it through corruption or out and out violence. The story goes Pablo Escobar used to offer those policians, soldiers, or policemen who´s services he required a choice either Silver (a bribe) or a bullet. The amount of money the drug lords had at there disposal meant they were often better armed then the Colombian armed forces.

Over the last few years the situation has largely improved thanks to alot of American money and the current Colombian President Alvaro Uribe. American guns and money have allowed the armed forces to expand ( combat ready troups are 60% greater then in 2002) and they are now better equipped, which has improved security and taken the fight to the drug dealers and guerillas. However, Colombia is a very unequal country and many still sympathise with FARCs ideals and until there is some political change it is difficult to see how there will be lasting peace. Similarly has long as Cocaine is proibited and demanded across the world there will always be Cocaine Godfathers like Pablo Escobar.

Anyway, back to Medellin. In all honesty there wasnt a huge amount to see or do. The highlight for me was the Science museum, where Sam and I ran between all the interactive experiments and tests (how hard can you kick a football, your reaction times, balance, how quick are you etc) like children. We also watched a 3D film on dinosaurs which was fun too. We also visited Pablo Escobar´s grave, which was under whelming but interesting, posed for photos with lots of sculptures made by the Colombian artist Bodero, and rode on the cable cars that Medellin city council has built to provide better public transport to the poor who live in the favellas in the hills that surround Medellin, but in my mind is largely for tourists both local and international to act as voyeurs on how the poor live.

Given Medellin, was also pretty wet (the locals believe this was due to a World Bank experiment on global warming that was apparently being conducted over Medellin) we headed over the mountains, an hour outside the city to Santa Fe. It was the opposite of Medellin, small, very pretty, quiet, and warm. We spend a lazy couple of days there in a lovely hostel, called Sweet Home Santa Fe where as we were the
only 2 guests so we had the complete run of the place.

Manizales

From Santa Fe we went back through Medellin and out to Manizales, the gateway city to Colombias other big industy, Coffee. Again Manizalles was an unremarkable city but the surrounding countryside was beautiful. We completed a one day trip out to the hamlet of Guayabal where we went to a Coffee Plantation called Hacienda Guayabal. This proved to be an excellent daytrip as we were provided with an English tour that not only took us through the processes of Coffee manufactuer from planting the seedlings to grinding the beans, but also detailed alot of the local fauna and wildlife. All this while we got to walk round the plantation beautifully situated in rolling green hills.

Of interest to me that evening was that the football team from Manizales, Once Caldas, where playing the second leg of the Colombian Championship playoff. Unfortunately the second leg was away from Manizales but we still watched the match and then went out to experience the celebrations when they won 3-1 to become champions 5-2 on aggregate. As you would expect the main streets were blocked and there was lots of singing and drinking, but less expected was that flour would be thrown about! I guess it beats throwing alcohol about.

Close to Manizales is the Parque National Los Nevados, which contains the Nevado del Riuz, a still active volcano of 5325m. Amazingly you can do a day trip where they drive you from Manizales (2,600 m) up to 4,800 metres and you then hike to 5150 metres to view the Volcano. Now having experienced the effects of altitude in Bolivia and Peru Sam and I were somewhat suprised that we got on a bus with loads of families on daytrips. The climb was steep and at that altitude it was unsurprising that a significant amount of people especially those with young children had to turn back. I made it to the 5150 mark but clouds meant I couldnt fully appreciate the view, however you could smell the Sulphur produced from the volcano nearby. After that exertion we were glad that our tour took us next to Termal springs where we could rest our weary limbs in the 38 degree water.

San Gil

From Manizales we headed to San Gil, a small town that is the Colombian adventure sports capital. There we got adventurous and went first paragliding and then abseiling. It was both mine and Sams first time paragliding and something we had wanted to do for ages. It was nice get the chance to do it together in our last week. We paid less then 20 pounds and got about 20 minutes in the air. That doesnt sound alot but is actually enough time to enjoy the view, and for the instructor to take you on a couple of loops down. The view was spectacular over a massive canyon and the surrounding mountains. However, I found it relaxing rather then particularly adventurous.

More adventurous was our activity for the next day which was abseiling down a 60m waterfall. I had never been abseiling before and so this was a baptism of fire, especially when Sam, who had been abseilling many times in the past told me this was the hardest one she had ever done. In the end despite the fact the whole time I was going down I just wanted to be at the bottom and that I was soaked in freezing water I really enjoyed it. Once at the bottom I would loved to have gone again.

On our final day in San Gil we visited Barichara a beautifully preserved Spanish colonial town. While the town was beautiful of more interest was that the local delicacy was ants! We went to a recommended restaurant where I ordered Steak in ant sauce, which came garnished with ants. The meat was easily the best I had in Colombia and the ant sauce was nice but the ants themselves I thought tasted like dirt. I wont be buying and bringing any back thats for sure.

Bogota and Leticia
As I am reaching the end of my trip while Sam has 2 months left, after over 3 months we finally had to part ways. I to head to Brazil and her to spend another month in Colombia. I´ve had a fantastic time travelling with her and so it seemed suitable that we spend our last night together in a nice hotel rather then another grotty hostel. Accordingly we stayed in the Hotel de la Opera in Bogota. A beautifully renovated colonial building in the la Candeleria, complete with spa. It was the perfect place to end the time we spent together and I would recommend it for anyone looking for a bit of luxury in Bogota.

After a sad farewell I flew to Leticia on the Colombian border, which has a fluid border with its neighbouring town of Tabatinga. Its a quiet town but pleasant, I spent most of my time sorting out formalities like booking my flight to Manaus, getting my entry and exit stamps from the relevent authorities (there is no actual border between Colombia and Brazil). More interesting for this blog was that when I said that I lived in Liverpool, he told me he loved the way people in Liverpool used ´La´in every sentence. I was somewhat intrigued by his intimite knowledge of the scouse dialect and quizzed him further. Apparently he had read a book about a Liverpool gangster who had turned supergrass. Im pretty sure I have the same book back in the office in Liverpool! It really is a small world.

I think as far as the blog goes we are in the final straight. There is in all likelihood 2 at most 3 entries left! All the best people and that moment when we see each other again is fast approaching.

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