Let’s call her Whitney. And maybe she’ll grow up to save the world one English lesson at a time…..
My parents had no idea of the road I’d take them on over the years on as I’ve grown, changed, made 1000 mistakes, needed help, changed my mind, explored new roads, stayed on some of the same roads, changed my mind again.. and so far have not produced any grandkids for them. But can any parent fathom the twists and turns and depth of the journey they’ll be on when they have a child??
Speaking of names, let me explain Mona and Papa. I’ve actually always called my dad “Papa”, it’s the name we used for him since we were little. It’s a more typically-hispanic/latino title than “dad”. Honestly I used to be a little self-conscious of it when I had friends over when I was young, because some of my them called their grandfathers Papa. As I grew, it didn’t bother me until I actually preferred it. My mom has always been Mom, but upon moving to Bogotá I learned that the term “mona” means blond so it really fit to call my blond Mama “Mona” when she arrived here!
To my delight and pride, Nancie & Jerry expressed interest in coming to visit me in Colombia months before I had even moved to Bogotá. They had plenty of doubts and concerns about the decision to uproot my life and move to a country whose history includes notoriety for drugs and corruption, and a still currently-dubious impression by much of the world. But, I’ve received so much support and love from them since the day I mentioned my dreams to do this.
So on August 7, they landed in Bogotá International Airport and we embarked on a 2-week wonderful visit with new experiences for all of us.
I continued to work some during the first week of their visit, which gave us a little healthy time apart as well. We stayed together in a lovely Air BnB only about 8 blocks from my apartment. Part of their visit was to see my life, my neighborhood, my transportation, and even attend two of my English classes in which they participated in the students’ lessons.
Bogotá is diverse, interesting, international, and gritty. It was good for them to see some of the challenges and the joys I experience regularly. Some of the city highlights included:
The Gold Museum/El Museo del Oro is one of the most visited touristic highlights in the country, receiving around 500,000 tourists per year. The museum contains the largest collection of gold artifacts in the world (according to Wikipedia).
Plaza Bolívar – The first building on the square, a primitive cathedral, was constructed in 1539, a year after the foundation of the Colombian capital. During the Spanish colonial period, Bolívar Square was the stage for circus acts, public markets and bullfights. The square is surrounded by historical buildings, and is currently the site for various manifestations and protests. (Wikipedia)
La Candelaria area – La Candelaria is the historic center of Bogotá and the city’s principal destination for tourists. Within it can be found the city’s top museums, government palaces, and old colonial buildings along narrow cobblestone streets.
Graffiti Tour – I went on this 3-hour walking tour when I first moved here, and loved it so I sent my parents on the experience one day while I was working. It’s full of information about Bogotá’s history and politics in addition to the street-art and murals.
Menu del Dias – everywhere you go there is a “Menu of the Day” which offer fairly large portions of local dishes for a very small price. Sometimes you get a choice for parts of the meal, sometimes it’s whatever the chef decides to put on your plate!
Juan Valdez – my mom was delighted to see this icon and his widespread chain of cafes here in Colombia. Juan Valdez’ fictional character was created in 1958 to represent the typical Colombian coffee farmer.
Colpatria Tower – this 50-story skyscraper is well-known in Colombia; it’s the second-tallest building in the country, and the fifth-tallest in South America (according to my good friend Wikipedia). Since 1998 the Colpatria Tower has been illuminated every night with a color-changingLED lights system. Additionally, people can pay a small fee (less than $3US) to take an elevator up 46 floors and go out onto a walkway that surrounds the tower for an amazing view of the city. I happen to have an English student who works for Colpatria on the 26th floor. Hers was one of the classes my parents attended, and she surprised us with security clearance to go past the 46-story viewing point all the way to the helicopter-landing pad on the very top of the building for the best view of Bogotá one could get. We were graced with an exceptionally beautiful sunny afternoon that day; the experience couldn’t have been more perfect.
One Saturday we went with my housemates, all whose company I really enjoy, to a well-known Colombian restaurant up in the surrounding mountains called El Tambor. It’s a lovely outdoor setting (a great get-away from the city, even though it’s not far at all), and they serve typical food called “picada” (the word means “chopped”) which you eat with your hands. Two huge basket-plate-things of food (loads of meat, fried things, and cheese), and a handful of napkins. An adventure with sticky fingers!
Ciclovia – I had to take Mona and Papa on my favorite weekly activity: riding around the city on closed roads was a must-do and we had a blast together!
Besides these attractions and a few more I haven’t listed, I think my favorite parts of their visit were the in-between times like waking up and going into the living room where my early-riser father was reading his book, and my later-riser mother (more like me) and I would then make coffee and talk about whatever…on the days I didn’t have to leave early to teach. Breakfasts and dinners in our vacation apartment were so enjoyable, as were the nightly “communication hours” where we would sit and share photos, recount the day, and send updates to our family.
Exploring the neighborhoods for panaderias (bakeries) was an almost-daily event with the padres. This is not hard to do because bakeries are on every corner and most of them offer the same products. It’s so funny to me…not many really specialize in anything. It’s not very entrepreneurial but it sure is convenient for patrons who don’t want to take more than 50 steps to find their favorite carbohydrate — everyone is making it!
After 8 days in Bogotá, we all took a very short flight to Pereira which is south and a bit west of Bogotá. It’s the capital city in the district which is home to the well-known coffee region of Colombia. We wanted to do a little exploring and see some amazingly green landscape. Pereira is still a pretty big city, but in comparison to Bogotá it’s like a small town! An English student from one of the Boulder classes in which I volunteered before moving to Colombia is from Pereira, and she and I had gotten in touch via email after I moved here. She was coming to visit her hometown in August, so I coordinated my parents’ visit with getting to see her and meet her father. One evening we all met up at a big outdoor concert in a main downtown square; it was so much fun!
One day we went on a 2.5-hour tour of the botanical garden associated with one of the universities in Pereira. It was not the expected well-groomed and pristinely-presented botanic garden experience; it was way more Colombian! One thing for which this country is known is the wide variety of flora and fauna, and this garden was rich in both as well as a very educational tour.
On a Friday, we paid for a driver to give us a less-than-an-hour ride to the nearby small, relaxed town of Salento which is in the middle of coffee country. We stayed in a sweet little inn which included a homemade breakfast each morning. We took a tour of a local coffee farm called Ocaso (very worthwhile and inexpensive) and tasted some different local beans. At night, we ate the well-known local favorite dish of trout (“trucha”) served on a huge, flat, fried plantain. !Rico! (this word is used sooo much here to describe anything that tastes delicious)
The next day, we hopped a 25-minute Jeep ride to the Valle de Cocora where we did a short hike and took in the view of the fascinatingly tall wax palms. I overheard a guide saying that some are around 60 meters high and 250 years old!
We left Salento and had a driver take us back to Pereira where we would fly back to Bogotá the next day. Regarding transportation in Colombia, it is best to build in extra time in case (“in case means” almost always) of delays. Our last night’s lodging was our least-favorite but the redeeming factor was the couple who owned the apartment. They were the epitome of hospitality, and ended up taking us out on a tour some areas just outside of Pereira. This included a lookout along a beautiful, windy pass where we witnesses tens of dozens of kites being flown – so many people in one spot (typical of South America; close quarters seems within their comfort zone) flying kites, it was inevitable that some became tangled and we saw a couple people lose grip on their handles and said “bye bye” to their kite as it flew independently into the wide open sky. Within this big crowd and with all the criss-crossing kite strings, no one was getting angry or defensive. It was a good illustration of the Colombian patient way of dealing with other people.
Our last stop was a lovely little town with one of the prettiest squares I’ve seen here so far, and a light local dinner of arepa and chorizo santarosario.
We spent about 4 hours with our hosts, speaking and listening only in Spanish the entire time! My parents really hung in there; it’s tiring for me to spend that much concentrated time communicating only in Spanish but I’m getting more and more used to it. They were open-minded and did a great job of communicating as best they could. I was impressed with both of their levels of understanding and speaking.
It was tough to say goodbye, even though hostessing can be exhausting. Albeit heavy, my heart was full as I waved goodbye with teary eyes the night my parents drove away via taxi to the airport. We made some wonderful memories together, we learned a lot about new cities and about ourselves.
The world is a big place but it’s only getting smaller. It’s valuable to see at least a couple new locations of which you maybe never considered visiting until another person gives you a reason to go, or something unexpected opens a door for you. I believe it’s worth peeking inside, if not stepping through and opening yourself up to something that could truly change your life for the better or at the very least help mold you into a more open-minded, accepting and flexible person.
