window on my world: Bogota - my South American adventure

I have only dreamed in recent years of travelling to a continent that has intrigued me on so many levels for the past ten years – South America. In November I had the immense pleasure of being at a wedding in Baja Mexico and hence could claim as having been south of the US border for the first time. However, on the 10^th of March I touched down in Bogota, Colombia and so set foot for the first time on the geographical continent of South America.

Many of you may be aware that in September 2012 I started learning Spanish while I was still living in Dublin. It had been a dream of mine since I started visiting Dara in Barcelona in 2007 and I was not to be disappointed at the beauty of the language and the fascinating cultural experiences it opened up for me. I was introduced to artists, musicians, political activists and many others from Spain, Central and South America. In February 2013 Ruanne and I had a fantastic trip to the south of Spain where I had the opportunity to put the basics of the language I had acquired into practice; see blog posts from that exciting trip for details. The wonderful experience in Spain with the language and culture only fuelled my desire further to make it to South America.

In late January, the student recruitment coordinator for the international college at UBC, which I am involved in setting up, asked if any of us faculty would be interested in travelling to a number of countries around the world to meet perspective students and spread the word about UBC and the new international college, of course I jumped at the chance when I learned Colombia was on the list. Prior to this year I knew few extensive details about the country aside from civil war and kidnappings of foreigners especially the story of Ingrid Betancourt. However, in Vancouver I had taken a further Spanish course between September and December with a teacher who was from Bogota. She shared with us the wonders of the country and city including the political artist and sculptor Botereo. Nothing however could have prepared me for the visual, intellectual and linguistic experiences which awaited me during my brief 4 day visit to Bogota.

I arrived late on Monday night, but the student events were not due to start until the following evening and so the following morning I set out to pedal around the streets of Bogota with Mike and the Bogota Bike Tours. Most of you know how much I love to hop on my bike and avoid often cramped and unreliable public transport; however, I also contend that a bike tour is one of the best and most inclusive way of seeing a city especially when limited time is a deciding factor. Mike is a Californian who has lived in different parts of South America for the past 20 years and in Colombia for the past 7 years. As we cycled around the central streets of Bogota everyone seemed to know his name and recognised the wheels of the bike company. We were introduced to the history, culture and most importantly the food of the city. Two boys rapped for us about growing up in central Bogota, market sellers cut fresh fruit for us to try, we visited the colourful red light district where prostitution is legal and when the rain shower banished the midday sun we went into a thiujo club to play the national sport of Colombia – this involves throwing a metal ball at a clay box 10 feet away in the hope of landing the ball in the centre. The most fascinating aspect is that buried within the clay box is an exploding horse shoe which emits a loud bang when hit and hence is the prized result of the game.

Back at the hotel I prepared for my first student fair, which was certainly an experience particularly watching the representatives from other universities across Canada. My colleague Chris, the student recruiter had been delayed in Brazil and so I was flying solo as the saying goes. I realised that it is not much different than being a sales person attempting to convince students that your university is the one they should choose, and it certainly made me glad that I was the person that they had the opportunity to meet once they arrived there rather than having the task of convincing them they should come. The following day I had Chris’s lead to follow and so was happy to take a backseat and answer specific questions from students. The day started in the gym of a high school followed by a traditional Colombian lunch in one of the city’s oldest universities and a fair for the undergraduate students - an exhausting but fascinating day. The final event was breakfast the following morning in the Canadian embassy where we met with representatives from local schools and universities, which was fascinating in itself, meeting the people who guide their students to choose international study in Canada. An early start meant the event was over by 9.30 and I had the rest of the day to explore some more of the city.

The first stop was the Botereo museum to see the work of the artist which I had only seen in pictures. I had a deep fascination with sculptor and to see it used to make profound political and social statements about the Botereo’s perception of his society was truly inspiring. Ellen had assured me before leaving Vancouver that the Gold Museum must be on my list, and she was certainly correct in her judgment. As I walked through the 3 floors of a history of gold and mining in the region I was introduced to a deep seeded history of the area, one which is both cultural and spiritual. I ended my visit with a traditional Colombian coffee, which as you can imagine is a true revelation to the taste buds. The next 2 hours involved a fascinating adventure of trying to post my postcards – those of you who receive them treasure them as much I treasure the experienced of sending them. The conundrum began what a post office was called as it seems Colombia has a very local name for the service. Stamps are only sold in the office and all mail must be deposited there rather than in a postbox. It was an adventure which involved wandering streets, chatting to various people, a visit to the Ministry of Communication and finally the second cheese empanada of the day (heaven in food form), but I got there and watched as the lady covered half the postcards with stamps destined for all corners of the earth. It was a wonderful victory of which the end result was simply a culmination of the fun of the actual adventure.

I departed early the following morning headed for the sunshine of San Francisco, but I have certainly left a piece of my soul at the top of South America in Bogota. The beauty of the rest of the country awaits my exploration at some future time when I can once again engage with the warmth and vibrancy of the local people. I saw a news story today on Al Jazeera about the city of Buenaventura on the coast of Colombia where gangs control law and order and ordinary people struggle to go about their daily lives. It was a stark reminder of the many issues which continue to face many of the countries in central and south America, and mean that the streets of Vancouver seem a million miles away today from my adventures of last week.