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First day in Colombia
oops, actually it´s the 2nd. Travelling from El Burro to El Banco I very nearly didn´t get into Colombia. Justo and I traveled from Maracay in Venezuela, overnight to Maracaibo and when we were nearly in Maracaibo I went to get my toothbrush out of my bag and discovered that it had been gone through and my passport, driving licence, credit card and some dollars were missing (everything was in one of those silly waist-pouches which are uncomfortable to carry around). I wasn't that worried about myself but Justo really wanted to go to a Cumbia festival in a place called El Banco in Colombia and without my passport it would delay matters. We arrived in Maracaibo and I went to search the empty bus incase the little waist bag had been discarded or anything. Horrible bus driver didn´t want to let me on the bus, so I had to threaten to tell the police until he let me back on the bus. Anyway it wasn´t there, but as I was walking back to Justo and our bags a guy came up to me and gave me my passport and the rest of my things, apart from the dollars! He said he'd been on a bus which had stopped in a place called
Some of the Cumbia Festival People
I really can´t pretend to be Colombian.. Cabimas and he'd got off and found my stuff on the ground and took it back to his bus thinking it belonged to someone there but found out it didn't and so the bus driver told him there was another bus which had just left, which was going to Maracaibo, so he came to find me in Maracaibo. I was so lucky! Unfortunately I'd already got my ever-loving mother to cancel my credit card so when it was returned I couldn't use it. But delighted to have my passport back!
So.. we continued in a taxi towards the border; we were stopped by the police who told me that because I'd entered Venezuela by air, that I could only leave it by air and that I couldn´t go to the border. They just wanted money. Justo offered to play them a song and they let us pass- we didn't have any money anyway...
Arriving in Colombia, the first pueblo was Maicao, where we got a bus to El Burro, a village from where we could go to El Banco for the Cumbia festival. I didn´t know that one could only pee in the loos on the bus and
Fiesta de la Cumbia
El Banco Rio Magdalena when I came out of the loo a lady gave out to me and held a towel to her nose for about half an hour afterwards. Apparently the air conditioner blows all the air from the loo all over the bus. I've since realised that this is true because on Saturday there was a terrible smell... Anyway that was quite funny, if a little embarrassing. We had to spend a night in El Burro cos we arrived so late. Justo had brought me an old lady's skirt as a present which I had turned my nose up at, but we stayed in a place where there was an elderly lady who was happy to have it and gave us breakfast in return.
In the morning we played some music, I´d been learning the Maracas a bit, and Justo plays Charango. People have been giving us money, amazing! Anyway we got to El Banco finally and found a place to stay and then Justo wanted us to go for a swim in Rio Magdalena. I was imagining a nice clean watering hole, but we got there and it was filthy brown and really strong currents and when I got in,
El Banco
Tan lindo I was sitting on a step and a nasty Barbuda fish came and stabbed me in the foot. It swelled up and I was in pain for the afternoon, lucky lucky me! So then I was limping on both feet, cos a few days before I´d been dancing barefoot and put a huge piece of glass through my other foot! ahh the fun...
Anyway that night there were great festivities all round and lots of dancing. It was fun to watch and I hope to put some photos up sometime soon! Justo knew a few people there cos he'd been there about 2 months previously and so we met up with them and played some more music. We fought quite a lot and since we met up I´ve cried for Ireland. But anyway that's a different story and now I´m on my òwn'again...
After the festivities we went to a much quieter place called Mompòs, which is an old colonial town on Rio Magdalena. It used to be a major trading post back in the day when the river was deeper but in the last 80 or so years the river became built up with sediment and so
the bigger cargo ships couldn´t pass anymore, and the town lost a lot of its ricesa. The buildings are impressive, they're all old style colonial houses, very big and airy. There are about 7 large churches there, apparently built by wealthy families to demonstrate their fortunes. There is a legend of Santa Barbara, a young girl who fell in love with an unsuitable chap and whose father imprisoned her in a tower which he built at the side of church. He cut off one of her breasts as a punishment for not wanting to marry someone else and then was going to kill her but she prayed for something and a beam fell on his head and killed him so she was ok in the end.
Justo knew quite a few people in Mompòs, very nice people too. We were well taken care of and I enjoyed it a lot. We left on Weds 2nd July, Justo's birthday and spent most of the day travelling and then ages looking for accommodation in the rain in Tolu. Tolu is a coastal town but everyone had told us that Coveñas was nicer, with more transparent waters, but we went there the
next day and it was more expensive and actually not as nice at all. We spent two nights in Coveñas and then I left Justo to come to Medellin.
On the bus to Medellin (which took 12 and a half hours!) I met a guy whose hand had been destroyed by the FARC in Turbo (another coastal town) 4 years ago, for not paying protection money to them. It was huge his hand, all swollen and he couldn't use it at all. When we stopped for lunch I sat next to him and cut up his food for him and he offered to buy me lunch. I wasn't hungry cos I was upset after leaving Justo, but he insisted on buying me a yoghurt, even though he'd been begging on the bus. I'd given him some mamones, which are fruit which you open up and suck around a stone, nice but quite acidic. It's great to meet people like this guy, Carlos, who've been through so much and are so positive. It made me feel a bit ashamed for being so miserable about Justo, when there's far more to life than that. Tengo que dar gracias por cada dia
y por mi salud y tal... Unfortunately I was asleep when he got off the bus and so I didn't get to say goodbye or take a photo of him.
Gali and Maria Elvira met me at Terminal Norte when I arrived. They normally go to bed at about 9pm and I arrived at nearly 1am so luckily they'd both been in bed and hadn't waited up for me. They belong to a congregation called Cruzadas de Santa Maria, which is a Catholic organisation set up by the Spaniard, Tomas Morales, to give guidance to young people. It is a fairly new organisation but has centres all over the world, including one in Ireland, near UCD. There are about 3 or 4 fulltime workers in the house where I'm staying- they have normal jobs and dedicate their salaries to the organisation and work with young people in their spare time. I really like what they do and they're really nice people.
Ya esta for now, I'm waiting to have an interview with the director of Gali's school now to see if I can work this week or not. I hope I can because I rushed to get here
La fiesta de San Juan
Oops this is actually in Venezuela... for this date and if I can't it´s a bit of a shame because I could've gone with Justito to la Ciudad Perdida...
Besos a todos and hope you're all well.
Helan
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Jamie
non-member comment
Medellin
Glad you are having a great time in Colombia. Now that you are in Medellin ask the local youth about a place callled 'parque los periodistas' - or something very simliar. It's a very small park/plaza that goes bonkers on a saturday or friday night.... drummers, fire eaters, pot smokers, drunks, kids, life, love and beer. Have a great one Helan.