The Danger Zone

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San Jose is an extremely poor neighborhood located in the suburbs of Ibague. It’s filled with dirty crack addicts, extremely poor people, trash-lined streets, and tiny, uncompleted shacks made mainly of brick with tin roofs. It also hosts one of the centers we may go volunteer at. Its location is not even a ten-minute walk away from my home, and it is here that an entire dark world lives and breathes.

To get there, volunteers may not go alone. Usually Yamile, an amazing 33 year-old Coordinator of the San Jose location, will come pick you up to walk you over. I say “usually” because in one instance, they sent big black Dave there with two young girls who attend the center in order to accompany him as protection. When I first got here and heard of this, these two chaperone types sounded ridiculous. A) I want a muscly male chaperone. B) People here are already scared of black people. David’s both black and pretty big, he doesn’t need any protection in my eyes. What are two young skinny girls going to do for him anyway?! Since these chaperones didn’t sound like they would be very effective, I had brushed San Jose's bad reputation off completely. It couldn’t be that bad with all things considered.

To get there, you must walk through my neighborhood (more or less safe), down a small hill, and over this short bridge across a rushing river. Once across, you barely have to walk two blocks worth to get to the center. -You only really need the bodyguard once you get to the other side of the bridge. When I first heard of this, I also thought it was silly that such a short distance would even require a chaperone. This short distance didn’t sound worth it or necessary. Despite the fact that all of the volunteers told me about how unbelievably crazy this neighborhood is (ex. as soon as you cross the bridge, the fresh air you would normally be breathing becomes polluted with crack cocaine), I was told I had to go at least once. I had to at least just see it for myself but was also told not to worry, as Yamile is almost always the chaperone. Yamile used to be what they call the “President” of this large neighborhood (suppose it’s more of a district of Ibague), she knows absolutely everyone there. She’s the only one that has complete immunity there. They all still love her, even the crack addicts wave hello to her!

I finally got my chance to go last Tuesday, and I’m not sure how or if I’ll ever go back. Yamile dropped me off at the really crappy, run down center with a handful of kids and two skinny women watching them. She then went across the street and around the corner to the music center that they also have for the kids. Within five minutes, some teenage boy threw a large bag of trash in the front door, spilling across the floor. The two scared women immediately went to the metal door and locked it. One stayed by the door and was watching for feet through the large crack between the door and the floor. Within minutes, you could see a few sets of feet standing on the other side. She then put up this wooden frame as a way to barricade the door shut, my heart began to pound –where’s Yamile?! The two women began talking to each other, and I heard Yamile’s name come about. They wanted to get her as she has complete immunity in San Jose plus she’s pretty buff, I wouldn’t want to mess with her! For a clearer understanding of her God-like status in San Jose, her gringo boyfriend was chasing a few people one night that had jumped him (not a smart idea), which lead him into San Jose. Somehow, this dangerous location he found himself in, nor the fact that it was night stopped him. Once in San Jose, he immediately got circled by 11 men and was told to take off all his clothes (they steal those too when they jump you). He then let them know that he was Yamile’s boyfriend, and they all backed off completely, letting him go home with all of his belongings. Once he returned home, he had to tell Yamile what happened. She immediately went to San Jose to find out who tried to jump her boyfriend and set them straight. It took her no time at all to find out every single person who had threatened her boyfriend. Obviously, she’s equivalent to a God. You better believe I’m extremely grateful to know and have Yamile on my side!

Now I was a bit frightened when that bag of trash was thrown in the building, as I had heard another story when a group of teenage boys were harassing them from outside of the locked building not too long ago. Plus, San Jose is already scary enough as it is without hearing stories! I was trying to keep my imagination under control and not get freaked out by convincing myself that it was just some kid acting up. Hopefully, this event had fulfilled him and he would go on his way. But as soon as I saw a barricade go up and heard them plotting who was going to get out and get Yamile’s help, my imagination started running wild. Anything goes in San Jose, a children’s center is fair game. I don’t think I’ve ever been so scared in my life, and trust me, I’ve been in some pretty dangerous situations before. I wasn’t even directly threatened in this instance, and it still takes the cake! All I wanted was home as it flashed before my eyes. The two women wound up opening the door after a few more minutes had passed (which I don’t think I would have had the guts to do), and one went and got Yamile. Those few minutes were by far the longest minutes of my life. The frail one stayed behind, what kind of fight could we put up? And would they come for me or the children first? Should I start moving them into a group to better protect them, or should I prepare to protect myself? What’s more is that I’m not fluent in Spanish, which would only hurt me more. Finally, Yamile arrived and stayed with us and nothing more happened. They even left the door open, which distracted me for most of the time as I was constantly looking over my shoulder to make sure nothing more was about to happen. Luckily, Yamile had to leave early that day, which meant I had to too! Thank God! However, those two hours passed by so slowly as a constant, faint breeze of a certain illegal substance passed through the windows.

When it was finally time to leave, it had started to rain and the sun was starting to go down. All the crack addicts were hanging out in the trash covered park alongside the dirt and stony road that we have to take to get back. My heart was beating a little faster during this part too: a gringa in shorts with 5 feet of legs! I certainly didn’t want to test Yamile’s immunity! But having her alongside me was the ultimate shield, untouchable.

For all of you that say I’m courageous, this is my proof that I’m not. I don’t ever want to feel that way again. But on the same note, I don’t want to give up that easily. The kids at that center are highly uneducated and need the help the most. Perhaps I’ll work up the courage to make it back and try to make it a weekly thing (ha! in pants, no matter the temperature!). We shall see I suppose….Don’t worry Mom and Dad, I bet it’ll be about a month before I’ll go back! :0)

However, I feel like I owe Colombia some justice. So far, I imagine those of you who have never been to Colombia are imagining that it's a pretty dirty and dangerous place. But it’s not. Like any country, you have both your rich cities and your poor ones that you wouldn’t dare step foot into. I happen to be in one of the poor ones that is dramatically different than most other cities here. For example, I was convinced by Jhoanna and her best friend, who was visiting the Friday night before last, to go to Bogota for the weekend. I would spend Saturday with her best friend who would show me around the city, go clubbing at night once Jhoanna got into town to meet up with us, and then spend Sunday in a small town of Zipaquiria to see this church in a salt mine with some of their friends. Bogota already felt cleaner and safer upon arrival. A sprawled out, western feel to the city. And Zipaquiria is a quaint town nestled in some hilly mountains and is extremely clean and touristic. This cute town has no bars protecting its windows and has this cozy, at home feel to it. I hear Medellin is extremely clean and gorgeous as well. Nicolas, a new volunteer from Sweden, says he didn’t even feel like he was in Colombia during the week he spent there. And apparently, Cartagena has been the Dutch resort vacation spot for over 20 years now. So it’s really just where you go, don’t let me scare you out of travelling to Colombia. It’s an extremely gorgeous country filled with lush green mountains absolutely everywhere, tasty exotic fruits that even accompany your dinner and friendly faces. If walking on the wild side appeals to you, come visit Ibauge, otherwise stay on the “Gringo Trail” and go to the bigger, well known cities.

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Photos

Yamile
gotta love her