We arrived at one of the stops that I have been most looking forward to: Bogota. Most people's idea of Bogota, and Colombia in general, is that the ghost of Pablo Escobar still haunts the country, and that there are roving gangs of FARC Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia) that are kidnapping people off the streets. Just like any other country, being careful is essential, but Bogota is a city that is rapidly improving safety, and is beautifully nestled in the mountains. There is still the FARC (CNN reports they are on the borders near Ecuador and Venezuela) and it will take a long time for Pablo's ghost to fade completely (especially when even the Colombian National Police Museum prominently displays his beeper, Ray Bans, and a piece of tile roof which has his blood on it), but Colombia is soon to become a new hotspot.
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We are staying in a great hostel Destino Nomada, and pretty much right when we arrived we got invited to a poker game that night and to head to the Botero museum. Like most museums in Colombia, the Botero is a free museum. Besides obviously housing the robust figures by Botero as well as paintings and sculptures by Corot, Renoir, Bonnard, Dalí, Chagall, Beckmann, Delvaux, Giacometti, Picasso, Miró, Bacon..... That night after 50 cent empanadas in a tiny family run place, we played poker at the hostel, and lost (luckily only $5). Coolest part was that we met a great group from all around the world including Peru, London, Wales, Puerto Rico and New Zealand.
Day two involved a stop at the Colombian National Police Museum. Like a majority of the visitors that go, no doubt we were there because we heard that it houses artifacts from the hunt for Pablo Escobar. Our guide was a young cadet with the police who delivered his pre-written jokes with very little enthusiasm, then ask for a tip at the end of the tour. He was nice, and it was pretty funny really.
We also went to the Gold museum, and just wandered around the colonial streets trying the local street foods. We have been in the large Andean cites (Cuenca, Quito and Bogota) and are excited to get to some warm weather and smaller towns on the Caribbean coast of Colombia in Taganga.
Great pictures, guys! I really hope you keep up this level of blogging, because I am TOTALLY having a vicarious adventure. I love the picture of the poker game!
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