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!