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when i was younger, every summer i would spend a week or two at camp anokijig in up north Wisconsin. When i would come home i would be semi depressed for a good week or so - thinking about what had happened during the past week, wishing to go back, missing friends, and no one else really understanding you.

Thats how i feel right now after spending 5 days in Colombia.

I don't know how to exactly put it into words. It was one of those trips where you feel like you are on cloud 9 the entire time and everything exceeded your prior expectations.

After getting picked up from the airport in Bogota with a big warm welcome from a colombian friend of mine, Jennifer and I were brought to another friend of mines house were we stayed for the next five days.

for the next 5 days my Colombian friends went out of there way to make sure we had an amazing time. We kicked of the trip Wednesday night with drinks at Bogota Beer Company and then went to watch a concert in a Rock and Roll bar - Crabs- that might be one of the coolest bars I've ever been to. It was in a old house, each room having a different rock and roll theme- with the largest room having a concert. It was a great time.

The next days we spent our time touring the city, drinking Colombian Juan Valdez coffee (omg. so good.), visiting the historical center of the city, touring the house of Simon Bolivar, taking a ridiculously bumpy bus ride to an beautiful park to do some colombian style camping in the mountains, walking walking walking, eating eating eating, talking talking talking about anything and everything and just enjoying presence of the company we had for such a short 5 day trip.

I feel in love with it.

The city. It tops my favorite latin american city i've been to thus far. There is a grid system- streets were numbered and made sense, you don't fight or bargin with cab drivers- each cab has a very systematic way of paying and its universal in bogota, cabs felt safer- all having detailed information about themselves including blood type on the back of their seat, the city is green- there are TREES big trees and big parks everywhere, there was a recycling system, you can WALK AT NIGHT, the city is alive at night- not only in a 6 block square- but there are people walking around all over the city at night, you can take buses at night, i felt safe at night walking (i haven't felt that in 5 months), the people are really really nice people- i have seen this trend throughout latin america but it was even stronger in colombia- from a women behind me in line and McDonalds spending 5 minutes explaining to me what in the world was going on (turns out when you pay with a card they ask you how many payments you would like this transaction to be on....) and then when i still didn't get it- going to get her english speaking daughter who was sitting eating to explain it to me... to the couple who heard my colombian friend asking someone how many blocks it is to the train station and having them give us the best tips on how to get too a certain area of town the fastest and cheapest and this certain time of the day... to our camping neighbors who saved us with our horrible planning and lending us lighter fluid and a can opener and later letting us have a dance party by playing music form there car- they even shared their beer with us when our boxes of rum ran out (thats right i said boxes of rum)....the list goes on....

I could sit and ramble a heck of a lot more, but i swear its the people that make the experience...I didn't just fall in love with city, the food, the countryside- but i feel in love with the warmth of the people and i know i will return. 5 days was like a tease.

And yet when i returned home i had a 'reply email' waiting for me in my inbox in respose to my "i have arrived safe and sound in colombia email" i had sent telling me that bogota is probably much more dangerous than i know and that i should watch my back.

Even though i know it is out care- i don't know if that should make me feel angry, ignorant, or indifferent.

In one of the many deep 'campfire conversations' that were had last night - perspectives of countries,our fears of going to them, and the fears of our families and friends for us traveling to them- including colombia came up. I thought it was interesting to hear one of my Colombian friends ask the americans ...."well what about the states? what about the crazy massive school shootings that we see on the news that have happened?....thats scary!... i mean really bad things can happen anywhere..."

..."there is so much more to this country than the bad things that have happened in the past and in certain areas now..."

I wish people would let there blinders down and give it a chance.


When it's over, it's over.
This was one of the catch lines for axlds in mexico. You can never get the time back so you need to take advantage of every moment. Relationships continue- but the experience you had wont ever happen again- so don't dwell on things that didn't happen- but rather make things happen with the time you have.

When it's over, it's over. I hated that saying 8 months ago, and this weekend was the first time I've heard it since. I thought it was a bitter way to look at an experience, and even though it might have been true, i thought it left people with a sad feeling. Last night the phrase was brought back out- but it has changed now for me. I have a new appreciation for what it means and how i feel when i hear someone say it. I don't feel sad- but rather a sense that i have my feet on the ground, and I have to power to decide where my feet will take me.

And using your feet for walking, is a whole lot better i've come to find, than sitting.