There is talk that I am the great white Rumbero* of which the prophecy of King Momo of 1888 spoke. Sorry it took almost a week to finish the Carnaval blog, struggling is the word that most handily comes to mind. Quien lo vive es quien que lo goza! A few tales that are profoundly Carnival. Joe (Minnesota gringo) is peeing on the wall of the most expensive hotel in the city taking a break from the street party that is gathering outside and listening to band. You could see the band, hear them perfectly, and all of the poor folks [View Full Entry]

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After all this time traveling I still find it both refreshing and disturbing how open and direct people are in South America, people talk happily to me about their hemorrhoids and sex lives, people talk about how black somebody is as a means of distinguishing who you are talking about (as in "do you mean Bruno el negrito or el morenito?). This always confuses me because to me they are all dark skinned and I obviously cant distinguish the finer points of brownness yet! The most common name I hear people call each other in Colombia though is Maríca, translated as [View Full Entry]

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Oooooooh! I was very excited when I learned that one of the best places to celebrate Carnival in Latin America (apart from Rio and Salvador, obviously!) was in Barranquilla in Columbia, woo hoo! Barranquilla is a town that absolutely no tourists go to at any other time of the year because it is quite an ugly port city with not much to do. The only good thing about it is that it is where Shakira lives!!! I was very dissapointed not to see her! However, over the 4 days of carnival Barranquilla comes alive with floats, parades and people generally partying [View Full Entry]

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Barranquilla Tis time to write my blog so here I go. First comes the interrigation session as always when going through the lovely US of A. This time he wasn´t trying to convince me that I am a criminal. This time the moron was testing my patience. He was asking my why I went to Houston a year ago....to which I replied that I didn´t. Then I thought about it for a bit and realized that I was going to Rio through Houston...even though he already knew that because he had to have it in his computer. The he asked me [View Full Entry]

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Colombia was never really on the map in terms of my journey to South America but having heard such good things, being here felt somehow just right. Sitting in a little outdoor bar in the quiet town of Carpugana, there is a trickling of street folk milling around chatting whilst the famous Vallenato music seeps through the tepid swarmy night and heats the veins. I could not help but feel like a helpless moth being slowly drawn towards the fire somehow knowing but having no control over its desire to feel, to see and simply burn. My friend Claudio somehow [View Full Entry]

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1. English first 2. Español abajo I am now in London, about to start my new job, therefore this is the final blog on my Colombian experience. Here are the final reflections of a young British guy who went to live with his girlfriend in her tropical native land…. The photos I have chosen for this blog epitomise the effervescent nature of life in Barranquilla. Since I returned home to Scotland last month, some differences between the UK and Colombia have really dawned on me. I once spent a day at Notting Hill Carnival, which is probably Britain’s biggest and [View Full Entry]

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1. English first 2. Español abajo This is the way my girlfriend's country looks from the inside! This entry’s photos are mainly from the Carnaval de Antaño, a colourful prelude to the actual Barranquilla Carnival, which begins in just over two weeks. Although I am going to miss the Carnivals here this year, Rochy and I have tasted some of the colourful, chaotic experience. You can see this in the surrounding photos! Apart from that, here are some of my thoughts on life in Colombia… Muchachas Most middle-class families here have a ‘muchacha de servicio’, who is effectively a maid. She [View Full Entry]

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1. English first 2. Español abajo Welcome! It’s been an interesting start to 2007, exemplified by some pretty varied photos this time. Check out some more images from our holiday in Cartagena, the Barranquilla Zoo, a trip to El Rodadero near Santa Marta, and some shots of local food. An eye-opening experience In spite of my generally ‘lazy bugger’ lifestyle here (my words, not yours!), I have managed to make a small, but meaningful, contribution to the people here in Barranquilla. Recently I found out about a project being run by some Christian missionaries from the US and Canada. I [View Full Entry]

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1. English first 2. Español abajo Enjoy a whole bunch of photos from December: Xmas, Rochy's uncle's farm, a trip to Cartagena, and my birthday night out ;o) Happy new year from Barranquilla! “Winter in Barranquilla” is an alien concept for someone like me. Nonetheless, locals here revel in the (relatively) cooler, breezier months of December and January. It’s still around 25-30 degrees almost all day long, but the wind makes it bearable. In fact, it’s wonderful. You can walk ten metres without breaking a sweat. Like in Florida at this time of year, some locals allude to the ‘cold’ [View Full Entry]

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I found these photos browsing through my old pictures from my early period in Colombia...I came across these nice photos from Barranquilla...the famous festival which is held every year in February or March in Barranquilla...I can't remember the month exactly...but I do remember it was pretty crazy...spectacular..can't really tell if it was a puente or a short holiday, I remember I spent a few days there with Kath and Steph, 2 AIESEC Santa Marta members. A few days covered in my cena, do you spell it MAICENA?? I have no idea! It is a kind of powder or flour people [View Full Entry]

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