Colombia January-February, 2018

Monday, February 5, 2018  Cartagena My brother-in-law Lee wrote, “When I lived in Colombia during my Peace Corps days in 1966-1968 we referred to Avianca as Avianunca. (Never fly).”  Well, the planes that don’t fly are updated, but they still don’t fly.  The non-stop from Medellin to Cartagena on Sunday, a very short flight, was cancelled.  We had to fly from Medellin to Bogota and then Bogota to Cartagena.  It took most of the day, and we arrived at our hotel in Cartagena in the late afternoon.  Our non-stop home tomorrow from Cartagena to Miami is cancelled.  We’re currently scheduled to fly Cartagena-Bogota-Miami, and will arrive in Miami after our flight to Rochester leaves.  Avianunca indeed. We took a long walk around Old Cartagena last evening.  The temperature was in the high 80s and the humidity felt like 100%.  It’s an old walled city, with charming streets and plazas, all crowded with tourists, most of whom are speak...

Saturday, February 3, 2018  Guatapé This morning we drove about 50 miles from Medellin to the beautiful town of Guatapé.  The road, on a weekend morning, had an amazing number of cyclists; we are told cycling is the second national sport, with only soccer being more popular.  This hilly, winding mountain route seemed extraordinarily dangerous for bicyclists, but we saw no accidents.  We stopped on the way at a very popular café for their signature hot chocolate and freshly cooked cheese bread.  Here’s a short video of the baker and  a photo of the finished product:       Outside of town is El Peñón, a giant monolith rising our of the earth: Some of our group climbed the 650 feet up; we did not.  From the base of El Peñón there is a wonderful view of the large lake created by an enormous hydroelectric dam, built in 1977, which produces a substantial part of Colombia’s electricity.  Colombia prod...

Friday, February 2, 2018  Medellin We had a difficult day yesterday, driving from Manizales to Medellin.  The main road is out.  The alternative for the first half of the trip was a very small, two-lane road in poor repair up and down the Andean mountains, with miles of switchbacks.  The countryside was beautiful: But the road deteriorated into a dirt trail in parts: We arrived in Medellin in the late afternoon, and our only activity for the day was truly remarkable—an hour-long talk on the history of the drug cartels in this city and how the city recovered.  It’s a long, complicated story, but one important factor is the substantial US aid, both financially and with military advisers.  They give us great credit and say it could not have been done without us. Today was devoted to learning about the city and the ordinary people of Medellin, with special attention to the things which have been done to integrate the poor people into...