After one heck of a shitty journey (especially, for the Bdog 😩 💩) we arrived in Colombia via a long delayed flight from Mexico City.

Colombia is such a contrast. The landscape changes drastically from the mountains to the beaches. The vibe of the people, the weather, every place we visited in this country had a very different feel.

We started our month long journey around this country in the capital. Bogota is a very large metropolis. Over eight million people reside in this city and it is full of jaded history. Venturing through Bogota, one can clearly see the progress that has been made but, despite years of growth this city is still very rough, and plagued with poverty. Years of corruption haven’t been kind to a big portion of the population in Bogota.

It didn’t take much time for us to realize, no one in this country seems to have much trust for the government (police or military included) but nowhere was a clear as in Bogota. Shit goes down in the capital and although this city has many beautiful things to experience, it also felt dicey.

There was an obvious divide between the very rich and the very poor, and because of this, every time we ventured out, kind folks debriefed on issues of safety.

There are so many great and beautiful things to share about this city but we also felt very unsettled in Bogota. People seem to go about life, almost forced to look away from the bad things going on around them but struggle is everywhere. It is apparent that instead of waiting for better days people are sort of forced to accept the vibration of constant unease.

No doubt, things are much better than they once were in Bogota, but people are also resolved to the fact that some things will never change and they are very clear, you should trust no one and never take your safety for granted.

The week we arrived in Bogota, was Semana Santa.

Holy week is a very busy time in Latin America. Most families have the entire week off work, shops are  closed and people are on vacation. Traditionally, this week in Bogota is quieter than usual. We heard most families like to leave the big city for the mountains or beaches.

However, for whatever reason, this year, the government had deployed an additional 50,000 police and military to patrol the streets. We aren’t entirely sure what the reason was for this action but we pieced a few ideas together from reading local papers and asking around.

There is an upcoming election in Colombia this May.

The peace treaty with the FARC (one of two of the most powerful guerrilla groups in the country) recently expired and the current president is seen as a villain who has sold out most of his people by allowing these bad guys into the government. Having the FARC in the government has caused a bit of an uproar with the other other bad guys (THE ELN) because they don’t have any seats and it is causing disruption and ‘turf disputes’ in the drug trade (a HUGE industry in this country). Although talks are going on, the ELN seems uninterested in laying down arms and as such, have not agreed to their own peace treaty.

It is all very complicated and I am likely only scratching the surface of it all, but one thing is clear. The current president will not get re-elected and the people of Colombia are passionate about their politics.

Half the country wants to continue to work towards reinstating and moving forward with the peace treaties and the other half wants a leader with an iron first to regulate the guerrillas and keep violence to a minimum. For us, being ignorant blissful Canadians learning about the violence and corruption the citizens of Colombian have lived through at the hands of drug lords and sketchy governments was a complete eye opener, and really hard for us to comprehend.

In the month since we arrived in Colombia things heated up, the ELN bombed a highway we were supposed to be driving in a rented car on, (we took a shuttle instead 😳) and there was an attempted bombing on US embassy employees in the area where our hotel was (possibly unrelated to any Colombian politics or drug lords). There was also the absolutely awful slaughter of two Ecuadorian journalists and their driver on the Colombian border, an area fought over because of the high drug exports. The ELN is involved but there is also a big black cloud forming and disclosing the subgroups formed from FARC members who refused to lay down arms and are fighting for control over the drug exports in this area.

All this to say, the energy of Bogota was uncertain. It is the epicenter of the country’s corruption and conflict. You could feel the negative vibration festering here.

We felt like things were dicey and unsafe but the local people were complacent to it.

They have accepted this is life in Colombia and they go about their business despite the apparent fear just below the surface.

We had our bags checked, our cars sniffed by bomb detecting dogs, and when we decided to take a walk to have our laundry done 800 meters away we were chased down by hotel security letting us know that we were not safe to walk in the area we were in.  Apparently, the city is divided into districts 1-6 but unlike at home they don’t generally separate the ‘bad’ areas from the good ones. You might need to walk through a few sketchy districts just to get your underwear washed down the block.

Being a Canadian, I realized how ignorant I am. I also realized how most of the people I know are also completely oblivious when it comes to how lucky we are, simply for our freedom.

Sure, we have unsafe areas in Canada. Sure, we have problems. We bitch about the corruption of our own government and how many taxes we pay, but honestly, most of us have no idea what it means to live in a country where your basic needs are not always considered and you always have to worry about being caught in a cross fire.

Bogota opened my naive little eyes to the way so many in this world are forced to live and for this,  I am so grateful.

The people of Bogota are kind but guarded, and for good reason.

The shopping mall we visited had been bombed in June of last year. Three women died and many others were injured. People seemed almost passive about the police who lined  surrounding  shopping centres, corporate buildings and banks. It blew me away to think that something as simple as running errands and going to work could be actually be a life threatening risk these people took.

But, again all this said, there were many amazing things about Bogota.

We got to see the city from the perspective of a wonderful friend who grew up there. She took us through old town explaining the history and introducing us to the delicious street foods she grew up with. She then toured us to the area she lived, past the school she attended and we ended the day in a trendy upscale neighbourhood for dinner in a hip restaurant. As she drove through the city, she shared her experiences of growing up in a time of uncertainty.

I couldn’t help but feel the pride she had for her family and all they had accomplished through hard work and hard times. Family is very important in Latin American and it is clear, families here are very connected.

We visited Monserrate which was incredible. This sacred cathedral towers high above the city, 10,500 feet in the air perched on a mountain top. The view was absolutely breathtaking. We were lucky enough to visit this holy place on Good Friday and although it was the busiest day of the year, it was remarkable to be part of the thousands of people who were making the pilgrimage to pay their respects during holy week. Hundreds of people walked the 1500 stone steps all the way to the top on their own broken knees.

I was incredibly humbled to witness this depth of faith and Monserrate was my first introduction to the hope, and resiliency the Colombian people have.

We also took a train from Bogota to Zipaquirá and saw the remarkable salt cathedral built by the miners who worked in the local mine below.

It highlights Jesus’ last steps by honouring each stage of death and resurrection in a breathtaking display.

After meandering through endless tunnels for hours, we finished our tour in a stunning three-part cavernous cathedral 190m below  ground. This cathedral is highlighted by the largest cross ever built in an underground church. What is most incredible, is beneath the cathedral there is still a working mine. The local mines in this area still churn out 40% of Colombia’s salt resources.

We were introduced to the interesting and fun work of Fernando Botero, arguably Colombia’s most renowned artist. His art was a joy to contemplate. I could relate to his humour and exaggeration. 😉 We visited the famous gold museum, we ate a ton of plantains and Obleas (a Colombian dessert crepe filled caramel) and pork rinds until our bellies were the size of a pig.

Torrential rains poured down on us every single day at three o’clock and with it cleansed any exception we had coming into this country. As soon as we arrived in Bogota we knew,  if we were going to enjoy and embrace this place for all it was we were going to have to open our hearts and minds to it and not judge any of it.

I am a firm believer in the fact that there is no space for an opinion about something when you have ZERO experience to back your big mouth.

I also believe, just become someone says something is true, doesn’t mean it is.

Truth is almost always a sliding scale and truth is deeply personal.

What might be true for me, may not be true for you, or for the people of Bogota.

I know it is imperative to be open, and realize the truth we seek in our lives will always meet us exactly where we are at.

There is a big difference between opinion and truth.

In the words of Marcus Aurelius “Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth”

I had remind myself of this the entire time I was in Bogota. Oddly enough, (not really 😉) this is also  a HUGE lesson I am working on learning in my own personal life. (Thank you universe)

I can have an opinion or perspective and someone else can have a very different opinion and a very different perspective and almost always, neither are absolute in fact.

Funny thing is, I am also learning…. generally speaking, the fewer the facts we have, the stronger the opinion we feel the need to blurt out.

Righteousness can be so unflattering.

ANYHOW>>>>>>
I knew we really wanted to be open minded while visiting Colombia.

We immediately felt uncomfortable in Bogota but we can never begin to imagine, or make reason of what the people in this country have lived, or continue to live through so we needed to see this as an opportunity to learn and to #rollwithit

We left Bogota feeling very clear. We are lucky to live where we do.

Times are much better than they one were and they are changing and the city is growing.

We are so grateful Bogota was our first stop in Colombia.

It gave us the awareness to know, this was going to be like no other place we had ever traveled to on this planet.

Bogota was rad but we were also super happy to leave it behind.