Blogs from Bogota, Colombia, South America - page 51

Wow....the last week has flown by. With so much packed into my days, its hard to get time to breathe....let alone write on the blog. But let me try and catch you all up... Last Tuesday, a little over a week ago, I chaperoned my Senior class to Santa Maria Plaza de Toros......One of the oldest bullrings in South America. Unfortunately, we didn't get to see the bullfight, but we did hang out in the ring. We toured the facilities, went into the holding areas where they keep the bulls and saw the stadium from inside and out. I promise to get pictures up as soon as possible. Again, my computer just can't handle the task.... From there, we went and chilled out at a beautiful nearby park. Bogota is filled with small parks. Literally, every ... read more

My roommates took off this weekend to go play in a mountain lake, and I'm left here alone. It's okay. First, I really didn't need to spend the money to go there, when in two weeks we are going there for free on a teachers retreat. Second, two people are coming down this weekend. One of my roommates is coming back, and then a good friend of us Judson guys is coming to stay for a while....like a couple months while. Its another amigo to hang out with, help on rent and help sub some of my classes. Also, we had our maid come for the first time today. I know! Sounds very bourgeouis, but five guys living in an apartment is not a good start for cleanliness. Plus, its worth $15 American dollars a week ... read more

Hola everyone. First thing first....I haven't been kidnapped. I haven't been mugged and I haven't gotten any weird tropical disease. Those were my biggest concerns, but they really are unfounded. Actually, the only things that really separate Bogota from Chicago are the amount of pollution, the size and that everyone down here speaks Spanish. Other than that, I'm living in a major metropolis. There's plenty of 'social capital', people walking around talking to each other. Five blocks from my apartment is a nice little shopping center called Mazuren. It's clean, safe and has a couple really nice restaurants that are inexpensive. There's a little cafe where I can grab some coffee when I need...and they actually do have real coffee...not the stuff Colombians call coffee. It's so strange, but the majority of the coffee crop is ... read more

Greetings from Colombia! I'm writing this blog from the friendly home of the Bye/Van Zandt family. When I arrived in Bogota, my apartment wasn't ready, so I am spending the extended weekend with this family. Two of the sons are students at El Camino, and Kathleen Van Zandt is a teacher at the school. The first morning and afternoon I spent here, I camped out at the house. There wasn't much to do really. The father and sons went to a missionary farm, while Kathleen had an appointment to keep with a local single mother in need. I stayed in, napped, watched a movie and got accustomed to the thin mountain air. It was really quite pleasant. Later in the afternoon, I ventured out into the city and went to a local bakery, and I can't ... read more

Despues de nuestra enriquecedora experiencia en tierras de caña y cafetales llegamos a Bogota, donde nos acogio Diana, la cuñada de nuestro amigo Juan. Como todo el mundo en Colombia el trato aqui (o acà como dicen ellos) es increible. Bogota es una de esas ciudades que se dejan descubrir poco a poco. Es una ciudad llena de contrastes y bellisima. Una de nuestras mas gratas experiencias en Bogota fue el barrio de La Candelaria. Este es un barrio de arquitectura colonial y muy colorido. De aspecto muy bohemio y con teatros, bares y un gran numero de colegios, universidades y escuelas. En este barrio encontramos un teatro llamado la Candelaria. El teatro cumple su 40 aniversario y tiene una larga historia de continua lucha politica en Colombia y cuya base es acercar y extender la ... read more