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Published: August 11th 2008
A Short Time in Bogota
Cartagena to Bogota was twenty hours of what actually amounted to pretty good rest. Well good rest for a twenty hour bus ride anyway. Which means I was kinda pooped. At anyrate, I´d headed this way in hopes of catching up with my newfound friend Monica who´d offered me a place to stay after knowing me for approximately 30 minutes.
I
love Colombia.
Unfortunately Sticky Taganga had snared Monica as well and she was still there as I arrived in Bogota. In true Colombia form, she still offered me a place in her home (even though she wasn´t there to make sure I wouldn´t steal the silverware). As it was, I didn´t quite feel comfortable crashing in her pad without her there (I´d be too tempted by all the shiny forks...) so I went to the much vaunted old town, Candelaria.
The Candelaria was pretty. And due to the nearby university´s vacation, pretty much vacant after dark, making it more dangerous and downright boring. Luckily, Monica had charged her brother with showing the gringo a night on the town. After the seemingly requisite disastrously incomprehensible phone call (my fault totally). I was met by Monica´s brother Jhonathan, his weed happy
friend Leo and three Colombianas whose names totally escape me. But It seems that Jhonathan had procured me a Chaperone for the night. How thoughtful.
While I can´t say the night was raucous (most Colombians didn´t club that night in anticipation to the Colombian independence day), it was certainly an experience in the effort of communication and an exercise in how NOT to keep a Lady´s interest. Jhonathan and Leo spent alot of the night talking to each other. While their dates stared off into space alot. When I´d suggested to Leo that he might want to go talk to his girl (who was sitting solo looking quite fiercly at the top to an empty Aguardiente bottle) he looked at me in earnest surprise and said, ¨You think I should
TALK to her?¨.
Rrrrrrgh. Must I be the Master Ace Wingman for all?
I ended up spending the night trying to dance with two women (my chaperone had left citing an early workday) and simultaneously talk up two fellows who didn´t seem to care. Didn´t help that I didn´t know either one of them at all either. On the plus side, I did get the compliment that I didn´t move like a gringo.
Hip
Candelaria
Looks pretty in the daytime, but there wasn´t nuthing going on at night.Hop hooray for having rhythm!
In the end, my efforts seemed to go unappreciated as Jhonathan´s date ended up getting booked by an eagle-eyed vulture of a fellow who couldn´t dance, but DID pay attention to the lady.
I think everyone left the club with a feeling of...well I really don´t know what, but it darn sure wasn´t felicity.
While the Colombian Independence day didn´t quite create the makings for a great night out, it did make for an interesting spectacle the next day.
Liberty for All
Candelaria had transformed into a massive mob of people. Part celebration of independence, but mostly Anti-FARC demonstration, the streets were filled with people who had relatives kidnapped while people chanted, sang and marched for liberty for all.
It was around then that I started to understand what it must mean to a family to have its father, mother, brother, daughter ripped away with no assurance as to their well being, or even life. I wanted to join in, but knew that my slight beginnings of appreciation didn´t give me the right to intrude upon what amounted to sacred revelry. Instead I sat to the sidelines and watched, listened and learned.
Liberenlos ya indeed.
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Agi
non-member comment
Not everyone is a Casanova...
Oh Casanova! Great efforts at attempting to show the men how to grab and keep a lady's interest. Unfortunately, some will never learn. Not you of course ;-) Currently, still interested... Very awesome that you were able to experience Independence Day. And even MORE awesome that you can get coffee on the street from a steel backpack! A cafe lover's dream come true!!! (No worries, I am seriously working on my addiction...).