Bogotá's Early Bedtime

One thing that has amazed me so far on this trip is how "industrious" of a city Bogotá is.  I've been to a few different cities in Latin America, all of which were pretty good sized; however, never have I seen so many people heading home so early, and waking up before the crack of dawn, outside of Pittsburgh.  I'm writing this as my Wednesday entry because Wednesday is normally the night that I'm out the latest, besides on weekends.  I have a class from 5:00pm to 8:00pm, so I find myself rolling into Chapinero around 8:45 at night.  Most Pittsburghers would ask themselves in this situation, "Hmm... McDonalds... pizza... Primanti's... Subway... what's on the menu tonight?"

If a large, clumsy young man tumbles to the ground on the wet pavement, and no one is around to see or hear, does he make a sound?

It's quite funny to look at the UniAndes neighborhood at 7:50, as I'm leaving the school.  At 8:00 in Pittsburgh, you still have a healthy crowd circulating in and out during night classes, not to mention hitting restaurants in Oakland hard, but here seems to be a ghost town.  I figure crime has a great deal to do with it, but it's just sad to me because of all the potential that there could be if the area were just a bit safer.  It would also make getting on the TransMilenio D70 about ten times easier, as people wouldn't be shoving like crazy to get on the bus to get the heck out of La Candelaria.

This is a time when American football skills come quite in handy...

My life here certainly doesn't come with that many options.  Chapinero is noticeably dark by about 6:30.  By the time 8:00 rolls around, nearly every store front on Calle 72 in my neighborhood is either closed or closing, and I'm left to fend for myself with either street vendors or a lukewarm empanada from a nearby cafeteria.  It's not that I don't like the street vendors and the greasy, salty arepas that come off their grills:  it's just that it gets old after a couple nights.  What I haven't tried, though, are the dozen sauces that all the vendors have sitting on top of the grills.  Really, I need to figure out which one is the spicy one...

8:30 pm... c'mon, man.  I've seen bigger traffic jams in Williamsport.

Now it's 9:00, and I'm with even less options.  Many of the vendors are even going home, the last grocery store in the neighborhood has closed, and the bologna and cheese in my fridge at home are starting to look better alongside the $1 loaf of bread I have perched on top of the fridge.  Nonetheless, I find a small cafeteria that (miraculously) sells liter-and-a-half bottles of water at the inflated price of 3,500 pesos, so I bite.  Throw an arepa con chorizo on top of that, and dinner is served.  Not exactly a dinner of champions, but hey, I had a big lunch, so my stomach isn't complaining.

Wednesday night into Thursday is usually the hardest for me because I have night class on Wednesday, only to have to wake up and go to early morning class on Thursday.  When I don't have work due in either class, it's not a big deal; however, when I've got papers to turn in or other articles to read, sleep is a hot commodity on Wednesday nights.  Bogotanos seem to share my Thursday morning dragging, as I find that Thursday is one of the more difficult days to get to school, even when I get to the bus stop early.  I've got to give them credit, though:  they're up and ready to go far earlier than I can say most Pittsburghers are, and they are slowly making me more into a morning person once again, like I was in high school.  Anyways, I'll leave you all for now.  Enjoy the rest of your week!

Rainstorms... Hell Hath No Fury Here...

So in a few other previous blog posts, I've talked at length about how much I like the weather here in Bogotá.  We've had dry days, some cloudy, some sunny, but on balance pleasant to go back and forth between school and other parts of the city.  Over the past few days, however, we've just been getting hammered with rain, almost at the same time of the day.  Today I had the misfortune of doing my usual Tuesday chore, laundry, a little later in the day.  Usually I go at 8:30 or 9:30, but this morning I had to tutor a little bit, so I pushed it back.  Anyways, I made it to the laundromat around 12:30.  From there, I always give the washerwomen about an hour and forty-five minutes to get everything done, then I pay them and go.

I think God was playing with me a little today.  I sat at Juan Valdez Coffee, my usual waiting spot while I'm passing time waiting for my laundry, and I noticed that, gradually, the sky got darker and grayer.  Tapping away at my Kindle, I saw that there were thunderstorms in the forecast, but it didn't specify when.  Leaving the coffee shop around 2:00, I made it to the laundromat under, shall we say, a light drizzle.  Ok, I thought to myself, if it can just stay like this for about the next 30 minutes, I'll be a happy man...

Remember how I said God was playing with me?  As I waited the final five minutes for my laundry to cycle out of the dryer, I saw the rain start to pick up.  I started to see the drops falling from the sky in neat lines, then saw massive levels of puddling as the intensity picked up.  Paying for my laundry, I told the washerwomen to have a nice day, and to keep a good thought that I *might* stay dry.

As I waddled out of the laundromat, fifteen-pound sack of clothing over my shoulder, I noticed that I understated the fact that the rain was picking up earlier.  By the time I had reached the next block, my shoulders were soaked.  Standing under a bus terminal for about five minutes, I quickly grew frustrated at the fact that every car driving by had driven just fast enough to splash my pantlegs and parts of my lower body, so I made a daring sprint across Carrera 7.  For those of you who know, I'm big and awkward when it comes to running to begin with... imagine me with a bag full of laundry over one side!  It's probably a bit like watching the Frankenstein monster in fast forward...

Anyways, I made it across the street miraculously without falling on my butt, and walked along the sidewalk as close to the buildings as I could.  The rain managed to kick it up yet another notch, making small rivers near the sidewalk.  Finding a canopy near a small breakfast hut, I stopped with my laundry and just stood in awe.  We've had some pretty intense rainstorms in Bogotá in the past week, and this one pulled no punches.  Annoyed with the persistence of this storm, I walked into the cafeteria and got myself a croissant and iced tea, hoping to wait it out.  After a good 20 minutes, the rain subsided, and I was able to walk the remaining three blocks to the TransMilenio.

Without rain, my walk to the laundromat is usually quite easy.  It's when flood-like conditions emerge that such a venture becomes a living hell.  This past weekend, I went with my friend Harrys to buy this:

I love this jersey, and it will be something I treasure from Colombia for the rest of my life.  Anyways, we were talking about rain... after lunch, Harrys and I walked over to Juan Valdez to get a coffee; and, wouldn't you know it, yet another spontaneous downpour.  Fortunately, this time I had a coat, and while my head was drenched, my body wasn't so much.  In addition, thank God for my closet, as I have room to hang up just about anything I need.  In the meantime, though, a coffee was exactly what I needed to cure a good dampening:

We must be entering into some sort of rainy season here in the capital, because I just can't seem to get enough of the afternoon storms.  At least we should expect some leafy green trees and flowers, though, when the sun comes out, right?  In the meantime, I'm going to have to invest in either some sort of waterproof jacket other than my GSPIA one, and/or an umbrella.  If I could only find an umbrella that didn't have flowers or polka dots on it, I'd have had one today.  Alas, hopefully I remember that I need one the next time I visit a mall... anyways, that's it for today.  As I dry off and fold my clothes, I hope all of your respective weeks are drier and (if not) comfortably contained by umbrellas and rain slickers.  Have a good one!

A Little Bit More about Where I Live

In the first few weeks here, I've heard some pretty funny questions from my American friends regarding where I live.  "Does your neighbor wear a poncho and walk around with a pet donkey?" "Do you have coconut water every morning for breakfast?" "Are any of your classmates supermodels?" The list goes on.  Colombia is a bit of a trail less traveled by my fellow compatriots, so I can understand the lack of knowledge.  That being said, I snapped a few pictures this morning, so I'll try my best to share with you guys a little bit more about my living situation.

Neighborhood:  Chapinero

As I mentioned in a previous post, Bogotá is situated in the mountains.  Therefore, the climate here is neither tropical nor desert conditions.  In spite of the thinner air, it's quite comfortable every day, except for when it rains.  Like any other major city, Bogotá has its good neighborhoods and bad ones.  The neighborhoods near my school, for instance, are not very good to walk around in after 8pm.  Fortunately, I find myself in Chapinero, a nice section of town populated mostly by college students and young professionals.  I'm literally a five-minute walk from the Transmilenio terminal, which means a ride to school doesn't set me back too much time.  The streets are pretty tight here, but at no point are you far from an arepa or empanada stand in the neighborhood.  I'm also a stone's throw from Calle 72, one of Bogotá's busiest streets.

On Sunday mornings, the streets are pretty empty, but one of the cool things about the area (and the city in general) is the presence of the Ciclovía on Sundays:  every Sunday, from 7am-2pm, the authorities close off a part of some of Bogotá's major streets for cyclists and runners to take advantage of the space.  Though I haven't gotten to run on the streets, it's definitely on my to-do list in the next couple months.  Comparing the area to Pittsburgh, think of Chapinero on Sunday mornings to Oakland or Shadyside.  It's pretty peaceful, and the busiest times are for the most part dependent on the work day.

My street is about a block and a half from the busy Carrera 14, where you find the Transmilenio, running parallel.  It only goes about two blocks before a group of houses breaks up the street.  My apartment is on the left in the picture, connected with the driveway in front of the car pictured.  I live on the second floor of a duplex house, sharing the floor with five other people.  My room is pretty small:  more or less a cell with a desk and a bed.  However, I've never been a person who needed a lot of space to function, and so the apartment totally serves its purpose.

Finally, I snapped a picture of the church where I attend Mass on Sundays.  It's located on the Calle 72, about a 3-4 minute walk from my apartment.  It's a Franciscan church, doing about half a dozen Masses on Sundays (this particular week, I went to the 9am).  It's a great start to my Sunday, especially on such a beautiful day as this!  Overall, I'm still learning how the prayers go in Spanish, but for now it's nice to listen along.  I hope all of you are enjoying your weekend, and I'll post some more about my weekend and the upcoming week later.  Take care!

Street Food, American Food, and Learning to Value Drinks

Fourth week of being here, and I'm starting to set in stone a diet.  With thrice-a-week visits to the gym, along with relying on just bottled water and fruit juice, I think I'm starting to get over the Christmas bloating.  Nonetheless, there are plenty of foods here that can set you back towards big-guy status, a few of which I'll share here.

Street Food:  Arepas, sausages, "super" hamburgers, hot dogs, empanadas

They tell you before you even come here to get a Hepatitis A booster shot because of the food and/or liquids that you could consume here during your stay.  The first recommendation I would give to any traveler considering getting a quick meal off the street is to make sure that it's cooked.  I thought fresh-squeezed orange juice off the street here was a great idea until I found myself running to the bathroom a little bit more than usual over the next few days.  Granted, I could have eaten or consumed something else that upset my stomach, but I'm blaming the orange juice because everything else I had either at a restaurant or a school cafeteria during those days.

Nonetheless, I still grab something quick for dinner if I'm not looking to stretch my wallet a given night.  I had an arepa con carne the other night, pictured above, and it had to be one of the most delicious yet unhealthy things I've consumed since being here.  They take an arepa, essentially a poofy tortilla made of maize, and stuff it with cheese, a little lunch meat and shredded beef.  They then butter and salt both sides and serve it in a sleeve.  For about $1.40, I had enough to fill me for the night.  Earlier this week I also tried some beef and chicken empanadas, sold on the Calle 72 and nearby for no more than about $.50/empanada.  Usually two or three will do for me, balanced with some fruit and water.

American food:  Subway, Friday's, Papa John's

One of the biggest surprises, as I've mentioned in another blog entry, was the number of American restaurants I have found in Bogotá, as opposed to what I ever saw in Brazil either time being there.  Subway is my usual go-to on nights where I'm feeling like having a sandwich with ingredients that I can see.  They have a pretty decent deal down here, too:  for about $3.50, they offer a 6" sub of the day.  Although the variety isn't as wide, you can still make out pretty well with a good sandwich at an affordable price.  In fact, last night I had a chicken breast sandwich with provolone and all the veggies/peppers.  It ended up being pretty tasty, though I wish I could find some hot sauce or something to throw on sandwiches down here.

Earlier this semester, I've also made stops at Papa John's and Friday's, whose menus are basically the same as the U.S.  At Friday's, they don't have as much of a variety, but it's expected that Colombians don't know about the 20 kinds of cheeseburgers and dozens of appetizers that you can get at a typical Friday's in the States.  Nonetheless, my burger was pretty good there.  Papa John's cheese pizza tastes almost exactly the same, too.

Value Your Drink

I always forget about refills in other countries, as opposed to the United States.  In most American restaurants, fountain drinks (sodas, iced tea, water) are bottomless... not the case here.  You finish your 12 oz. glass of Coca-Cola here, you're coughing up another buck each time you feel you need a new one.  It's probably one reason why wait staff doesn't start people off here with drinks and bring them a half hour before the food is served.  I've found that they come with the drinks just minutes before the food comes.  Beer is generally cheaper at these restaurants than in the States, and so usually I pay the extra $.50 to get a domestic beer to go with dinner here, unless it's a food I just never mix with beer.

Another note:  while I used to rave at length about how cheap alcohol could be in Brazil, you don't necessarily find the equivalent in Colombia.  You're still coughing up $5 for a six-pack of mediocre beer in Colombian supermarkets.  Bar prices seem to be about the same as in the States, unless (obviously) you find yourself in a craft beer place, and the house brews tend to be more.  Nonetheless, I haven't been drinking nearly as much as back home in Pittsburgh, so I still have some experience to gain if I want to comment at length on beer/alcohol here.  These are just preliminary notes/perspectives.

Anyways, I'll be doing school work all weekend and maybe enjoying myself a little a night, so I'll try to post something on Monday or Tuesday if something interesting happens.  Otherwise, hope everyone has a great weekend!  See you later.

Valledupar: Heat, Hanging Out with Priests, and A Journey

So this past weekend I decided to take a little journey outside of Bogotá.  I flew north to a small city called Valledupar, situated just a few hours southeast of the Caribbean coast.  It's a quiet city of about 350,000, spread out quite extensively, not so many tall buildings.  As it is in the north of the country, away from the Andes, it is a much warmer city than Bogotá, and that was one thing I certainly had to get used to.  I arrived Thursday night around 7:00pm, about an hour after sunset, so at the very least I wasn't dealing with an overpowering sun the moment I got off the plane.  Sure, the air was a bit muggy, but the trade-off was that it was much cleaner than the fumes I regularly inhale on a crowded Bogotá street.

My parish priest and a dear friend from home, Father Paul Fontanella, met me at the airport with a fellow priest from the Valledupar area, Padre Audrey.  Thursday night I had dinner with them and enjoyed company with a group of priests either affiliated with the parish next door or with the local seminary.  I also met the dog of the rectory, Toby, a Yellow Lab with about the same amount of energy as my Black Lab back home.  He had a good weekend gnawing on my arm every time I tried to pet him.  Father Paul, excellent cook that he is, made a pasta dish for the group, the first time I've had pasta since leaving the States... unfortunately, I did not take a picture.

On Friday, we made a trip just a few minutes south to a gated, upper-middle class community outside of Valledupar.  There we stayed the day with a couple and their kids, a family I learned was connected to the church.  After a three-course meal and some swimming, I was pretty spent.  This was the first day I experienced the Valledupar sun, and it didn't disappoint.  Though I didn't get burned, I felt an immediate connection to the sun I endured while living in São Luís, Maranhão, back in 2012.  There I also tried a whiskey native to Valledupar named Upar, after the tribal chief whose name works itself into the city's name (Valley of Upar).  I was impressed with the taste, and might have to bring a bottle home once June comes around.

When Saturday rolled around (and, for certain, more heat), I went on a short journey with Father Paul and Padre Audrey north of the city.  There, after driving through unpaved conditions and lots of small mountains, we made it to a small village called Atánquez.  Atánquez is a town of about 300, situated about 50 kilometers north of Valledupar (rough estimate).  There we walked around the main square of the village, talked to a few locals, saw the local church, and learned a bit about the area in general. The area, though not touched a whole lot by the local authorities, is absolutely beautiful, even in its dry season.  Lots of small creeks and rivers cover the landscape, and you can even see one of Colombia's tallest mountains in the distance, the Sierra Nevada.  Believe it or not, even in Colombia, you can even see snow at the top of that mountain.

That night I met my friend Liz and her friends and spent time with them.  Although it was an early bed time for me on Saturday night, it was still nice to touch base with someone who I met through teaching English.  I've helped Liz on and off with her English for the past couple months.  We dug into a massive plate called salchipapa, a heap of salad-like deliciousness complete with sausage, french fries, vegetables, cheese and sauce. I met up with them again on Sunday, but not long before I had to prepare to head back to Bogotá.  There we had a couple beers and talked a lot about my country, especially colleges and the food and such.

Sunday was also a day for some spiritual renewal.  Rising early as I've done the entire time in Colombia, I went next door to the church for 7:00am Mass.  I was there maybe ten minutes early:  by the time the Mass started, the place was jammed.  I was amazed that, as early as it was, half of the people in attendance were families with children.  In the States, usually early Mass is for the older folks and not well attended.  Anyways, I felt a very strong spirituality in attending a full church that early, and to me it reflected a commitment on the part of a community, something I had not seen much in Brazil or Colombia until now.

I'm very sorry for getting this up late.  I've been re-adjusting and busy the past couple days, so to finally be back in the saddle feels good.  I'll try to write again this week before reflecting on whatever I do this coming weekend.  Either way, I'll post pictures to show you all what I've been doing.  Have a great Wednesday!