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Published: November 24th 2010
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There was lots to do in Medellin, meeting lovely people and seeing the city. I got in trouble one night after walking home from a club alone. The man who owns the hostel said 'where have you been' and I replied that I had been out with friends. He asked me why I was alone and got very angry with me when I replied I had walked home. I promised I wouldn't do it again and realised I have no idea if it is dangerous here. It just feels so safe.
I left Medellin with Ronnie from Switzerland and we shared the nicest room in Salento you can imagine in a hostel, it even had a double bed. We met in Medellin at the hostel Casa Kiwi, you kind of get to know everyone there as the rain keeps people on the balcony playing cards and drinking beer for hours on end. She is a tiny little thing, active and likes to get as much into the day as possible. The area surrounding the hostel is full of coffee plantations and mountains. It is stunning and yes it rains all the time.
Ronnie and I caught the bus here
on Sunday after a fantastic night at a housewarming on Saturday night. It was the housewarming of a boy who had been at the hostel but had decided to stay and look for work in Medellin. It seems lots of people end up staying there. I am not surprised, it is lovely. In fact Mathius and Sam have decided to stay there for at least a month. After the party we all ended up at various clubs throughout the night. I ended up kissing a boy, Sebastian, who I have been hanging out with the last few days. He is Swedish and cracks me up. He is kind, cute, funny, (though he isn't trying to be,) and pretty highly strung. The reason he is travelling is because he is a teacher and was pretty stressed out during the final year he was at the school. He decided to take a trip, though I don't know how relaxing it has been for him. He has been robbed on a bus by a smiling millatary man and beaten up by a group of teenagers who wanted his wallet. He stands out-blond and blue eyed that he is.
He left the day
after the party to go fishing in Leticia, even though he is deathly allergic to fish. He was travelling with two other boys, a German and an American who he met in Niguagua before he left Medellin. They told me he nearly died one day when his meat was cooked in the same pan as their fish. The American who is around 35 and a Univesity drama professor calls Swedish Herby Derby. It does sound pretty much like that.
One day in Medellin Seb and I decided to go and get some lunch. We went to about twenty different places before settling on a take out place where I had chips and salad, very unsatisfying to be honest. I am a pescaterian. He can't eat fish, nuts, eggs-all things I love. Talk about opposites attract. Both of us don't speak Spanish either so trying to explain I want fish and he wants meat is ok but when it comes to the finer details, such as they can't be cooked in the same pan, the trouble begins. I felt horrible leaving one restaurant after ten minutes of trying to explain this to the man with the kind sad eyes. He
must have been very perplexed as he had said they did have fish and meat only to see us walk out the door.
Here in Salento I have enjoyed a few days of being active, going to the valley of cocora which is stunning and hiking for 12km. Then today I joined a boy, Felix, and we did a 14km bike ride. The surroundings are stunning and green with loads of things to see and do. I also went for a coffee tour today where we learnt how it is harvested and prepared. The nights here are early and it is cold and wet in the afternoon. Early nights and early rises is suiting me just perfecto at the moment.
Tomorrow I will leave for Bogota and look forward to it even if I am dreading the bus trip. I also recieved an email from Seb who said he will be in Bogota at the same time as I will and would love to meet up. I look forward to seeing him. This is short and sweet but it is time to go out for dinner with some new Swiss friends. My German is improving due to all
the German, Swiss and Austrian people I keep meeting along the way, pity about my Spanish or lack there of.
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