This was the last action-packed week for a while. Carnaval came to an end, as did the crazy hectic birthday season. We're all adjusting back to a slower, less-costly lifestyle, answering e-mails and overdue Whatsapp messages, sleeping more than 5 hours a night, and walking around without a constant fear of being squirted with shaving cream. I'm happy to be slowing down, but definitely enjoyed the chaos.
We started the week on the beach, relaxing and spending some quality time with our Argentinian friend Maca who would soon return home. The sun here is so strong that every ten minutes, we had to back our chairs up another foot into the shade to prevent burning or melting (or both). We enjoyed the great views, decent mix of music playing around us, and homemade sandwiches, courtesy of my friend Amell (in the picture below).
We started the week on the beach, relaxing and spending some quality time with our Argentinian friend Maca who would soon return home. The sun here is so strong that every ten minutes, we had to back our chairs up another foot into the shade to prevent burning or melting (or both). We enjoyed the great views, decent mix of music playing around us, and homemade sandwiches, courtesy of my friend Amell (in the picture below).
The week flew by, as will this whole experience, and I found myself doing a lot of the same; showing up to class on time and waiting 20 minutes for everyone else to show, choosing where to hang out based on how much they blast the air conditioner, drinking twice the recommended amount of daily water consumption, and every day, at least once a day, seeing a perfect photo-op without my camera in my posession.
Though life here is exciting, I needed to get back to my happy place - anywhere that I can be creative. Chris and I hopped on a bus, went to the mall and went through a whole Spanglish consultation process in order for him to invest in superglue and fix his watch and for me to invest in markers for doodling. I don't know how Chris' watch turned out, but my class notes and my friends with birthdays are definitely benefiting from my markers.
Though life here is exciting, I needed to get back to my happy place - anywhere that I can be creative. Chris and I hopped on a bus, went to the mall and went through a whole Spanglish consultation process in order for him to invest in superglue and fix his watch and for me to invest in markers for doodling. I don't know how Chris' watch turned out, but my class notes and my friends with birthdays are definitely benefiting from my markers.
FRIDAY-
The week quickly came to an end and my weekend started with an ISA Cultural Activity: Dance class. We covered salsa, merengue, and bachata. We took a bus into the heart of the city, to a really cool dance studio with old-time floors and lots of detailing. Our instructor was a charismatic, middle aged woman with lots of spunk and a great body. Her assistant was a younger guy, closer to my age, with a Colombia beanie and butterflies painted on his big toes - an artist? We spent two hours blowing through the material and really impressing her with our previous knowledge of the styles of dance. Special shoutout to all the free dance classes through UniNorte and all the dance clubs we've visited since being here.
The week quickly came to an end and my weekend started with an ISA Cultural Activity: Dance class. We covered salsa, merengue, and bachata. We took a bus into the heart of the city, to a really cool dance studio with old-time floors and lots of detailing. Our instructor was a charismatic, middle aged woman with lots of spunk and a great body. Her assistant was a younger guy, closer to my age, with a Colombia beanie and butterflies painted on his big toes - an artist? We spent two hours blowing through the material and really impressing her with our previous knowledge of the styles of dance. Special shoutout to all the free dance classes through UniNorte and all the dance clubs we've visited since being here.
The only tough part was that Colombians start on a different foot. Whenever we had partner sessions, Alex (Puerto Rican, featured above) and I would pair up so we can start on the other foot, the same way we both learned. All in all, a great class and a great workout. We're looking into coming back for some dance classes in the future to learn the real deal Colombian styles of dance - Cumbia, Champeta, Vallenato, and more.
SATURDAY-
I went to the beach with a few friends planning to meet up there with Julia, as I'd be staying with her for the remainder of the weekend. As usual around here, the casual lifestyle put a backup in the plan and she told me to meet them at this place called "La Ruta Verde" in Puerto Colombia. It's far off the map, definitely unreachable with a GPS, but very rustic and full of character.
SATURDAY-
I went to the beach with a few friends planning to meet up there with Julia, as I'd be staying with her for the remainder of the weekend. As usual around here, the casual lifestyle put a backup in the plan and she told me to meet them at this place called "La Ruta Verde" in Puerto Colombia. It's far off the map, definitely unreachable with a GPS, but very rustic and full of character.
I loved this place. At first it seemed quite sketchy, but after a while of hanging out and realizing it's harmless, you start to see how authentically people are living life there. They don't need more than good conversation, a series of white plastic chairs, a nice view of the ocean and a cold beer. When you realize that, you never again want to be the person walking in, saying hello, and immediately asking for the wifi password. Instead, you want to be that one American with an outrageous amount of curiosity, a dire need to experience the world around them, and a sense of approachability that lets you get close enough to take beautiful pictures like the one below.
I asked him if I could take his picture, in Spanish of course, and he looked entirely confused. I was confused too, as to why he had no family with him. No adults around watching him, just his dog friend.
I asked him if I could take his picture, in Spanish of course, and he looked entirely confused. I was confused too, as to why he had no family with him. No adults around watching him, just his dog friend.
I said goodbye to my timid little friend and hopped on a bus home. We showered up and went to fulfill our promise to our friend, Manuel, the owner of the pizza shack near Julia's house. We ordered the same pizzas and the same drinks, but this time, got to know a very different side of him. He was really vulnerable with us, telling us how his life and his heart is empty. How he was born into money and lost it all, married into a great family, made a great family of his own, and lost it all. He has 6 kids and 13 grandkids and barely knows any details of their lives. Julia and I encouraged him, from the perspective of the kids, to reach out. To call once a week, and let 10.. 20 .. 52 weeks pass by without them answering, because all 52 weeks of phone calls communicate a message of care, and one week, they'll answer. We made a deal with him that we'll keep coming back for pizza if he keeps calling his kids. Do we know for a fact that he's doing it? Of course not, but a piece of me really trusts that he is.
After our heart-to-heart with the pizza guy, we headed back to Julia's house to get ready for the last consecutive rounds of birthday celebrations. As always, there were countries from all around the world represented, birthday songs sung in every language, and lots of great pictures taken.
After our heart-to-heart with the pizza guy, we headed back to Julia's house to get ready for the last consecutive rounds of birthday celebrations. As always, there were countries from all around the world represented, birthday songs sung in every language, and lots of great pictures taken.
Perhaps the most exciting part was when I walked out of my door (actually Naomi's door) and saw my two German friends from Carnaval that I thought I'd never see again. They were standing there drinking a beer, just as I'd left them a week before. We had a great round 2 of "Germans in Colombia" that night, and all the next day. I'd planned on going home Sunday morning, but with the long lost Germans back in town, it didn't feel like an option.
Sunday morning, I took the place of Naomi for the opening brunch for her student residence halls. I learned all about the rules and regs which don't really apply to me, but enjoyed all the free, fried breakfast food they provided us with. Delicious. After, we went to a post-Carnaval fair with all the best souvenirs and no money in our pockets. I asked around for some free gifts, but no one was interested. On the way home, we stopped at Olimpica, the most famous supermarket around here, and bought some food to make a nice dinner, some sweets to complement all the walking/sweating we'd been doing, and some ice cream... because, why not? We passed a park on the way there that wasn't too lively, but on the way home was crowded beyond belief. As we kept walking, we saw a public church service going on, and then a playground packed with happy kids, and then a basketball training for a team of players in wheel chairs. We took the opportunity to just sit down in the middle of it all and observe. We saw a boy, probably 4 or 5 years old, walking in circles, crying, holding a skateboard as tall as him. With my limited knowledge of Spanish, I asked him what happened, assuming he was lost. I couldn't understand him through his tears, but I asked if he knew where his mom was and he said no. We helped him to safety and a state of happiness, and were so incredibly happy that we had the instinct to stop in the first place. Turning around to leave, I saw the most precious site in the world; a chubby little 2 year old with a mohawk, shirtless, sitting on a plastic tricycle, ice cream cone in hand, smiling from ear to ear with a face covered in melted ice cream. He raised one hand and waved at me. I was so devastated that I couldn't capture that moment on camera, but with no options, I waved goodbye to him and asked a local if the park is like that every Sunday evening. She said yes. We'll definitely return in the near future.
We spent the night on the famous STUDBAQ stairs, eating left over salads and talking politics, laughing our lives away and soaking up every last second, knowing that this time, the Germans were ACTUALLY going home. One thing I've learned so far throughout this experience is how temporary life is. You have no time or reason to think of things as permanent, which is exactly why it's important to enjoy the good things and brush off the bad things, take life with a grain of salt and take every new day as just that - a new day.
Sunday morning, I took the place of Naomi for the opening brunch for her student residence halls. I learned all about the rules and regs which don't really apply to me, but enjoyed all the free, fried breakfast food they provided us with. Delicious. After, we went to a post-Carnaval fair with all the best souvenirs and no money in our pockets. I asked around for some free gifts, but no one was interested. On the way home, we stopped at Olimpica, the most famous supermarket around here, and bought some food to make a nice dinner, some sweets to complement all the walking/sweating we'd been doing, and some ice cream... because, why not? We passed a park on the way there that wasn't too lively, but on the way home was crowded beyond belief. As we kept walking, we saw a public church service going on, and then a playground packed with happy kids, and then a basketball training for a team of players in wheel chairs. We took the opportunity to just sit down in the middle of it all and observe. We saw a boy, probably 4 or 5 years old, walking in circles, crying, holding a skateboard as tall as him. With my limited knowledge of Spanish, I asked him what happened, assuming he was lost. I couldn't understand him through his tears, but I asked if he knew where his mom was and he said no. We helped him to safety and a state of happiness, and were so incredibly happy that we had the instinct to stop in the first place. Turning around to leave, I saw the most precious site in the world; a chubby little 2 year old with a mohawk, shirtless, sitting on a plastic tricycle, ice cream cone in hand, smiling from ear to ear with a face covered in melted ice cream. He raised one hand and waved at me. I was so devastated that I couldn't capture that moment on camera, but with no options, I waved goodbye to him and asked a local if the park is like that every Sunday evening. She said yes. We'll definitely return in the near future.
We spent the night on the famous STUDBAQ stairs, eating left over salads and talking politics, laughing our lives away and soaking up every last second, knowing that this time, the Germans were ACTUALLY going home. One thing I've learned so far throughout this experience is how temporary life is. You have no time or reason to think of things as permanent, which is exactly why it's important to enjoy the good things and brush off the bad things, take life with a grain of salt and take every new day as just that - a new day.
And one last thing. The study abroad office warned us about "FOMO" - the Fear Of Missing Out, something that often affects students abroad who are overly concerned about missing out on life back home. While I'm not experiencing FOMO all too badly, I do want to acknowledge a couple of things going on back home.
First, congratulations to all of the Bentley sophomores who have received their acceptance letters to Study Abroad! You can't even begin to comprehend the value of the experiences to come!
Secondly, congratulations to the Beta Zeta pledge class in my beloved Lambda Tau Chapter of Delta Sigma Pi! And a special congratulations to my (Colombian) little, Juan, and my (non-Colombian, but just as awesome) grand-little Shannon on expanding the family and always keeping it classy. I'm there in spirit!
First, congratulations to all of the Bentley sophomores who have received their acceptance letters to Study Abroad! You can't even begin to comprehend the value of the experiences to come!
Secondly, congratulations to the Beta Zeta pledge class in my beloved Lambda Tau Chapter of Delta Sigma Pi! And a special congratulations to my (Colombian) little, Juan, and my (non-Colombian, but just as awesome) grand-little Shannon on expanding the family and always keeping it classy. I'm there in spirit!
And lastly, to all those supporting me from back home, financially, emotionally, or via social media, a huge thank you for keeping up with me and helping me to enjoy this adventure! And for all the birthdays I've missed, happy birthday! And all the WhatsApp messages I've read and forgotten to answer, I'll get there!