Medellin

View of the city from the balcony of the Museo De Arte Moderno 

Greetings from Medellin!  We have now been in our long term apartment for almost two weeks.  Perviously we stayed at a hostel, which was part of a yoga studio, for the first three days after our arrival.  Lance and I love Medellin.  According to Wikipedia, it is the second largest city in Colombia with an estimated urban population of 2.5 million as of 2017.  To put that into perspective, Cuenca, Ecuador, the city where we spent the last 3 years, has an urban population of about 400,000, and as of 2015 our hometown of Milwaukee had a population of more than 600,000.  Needless to say, this is a big city.  During the 1990's Medellin was considered to be one of the most dangerous cities in the world.  Today it is considered to be one of the best cities to live in South America, and was nominated for Most Innovative City of the Year in 2012.

The Metro system in Medellin is the pride of the city.  Although it was built 22 years ago it looks almost brand new.  You don't see any tagging on the building or vandalism on the train.  Lance and I live only 5 minutes from one of the stations and have taken full advantage of using it.  In fact...we are proud owners of a green Civica Card that allows us to load it with money and skip the long ticket lines.  We had to wait in line for an hour or more to obtain these cards...but it was well worth it.    

Of course, it wouldn't be a trip to another country for us without a medical emergency.  In Paris I fell shortly after arriving and broke an arm.  In Medellin, about the third day we were here, Lance experienced severe tooth pain and ended up at the emergency clinic...twice.  Luckily, we had read previously about an organization called Latin Hosts.  They provide all kinds of services for you for a small fee.  You contact them online...describe the help you need...they tell you how much the service will cost...and you can put the charge on your credit card.  When we wrote to them, the response was immediate.  They sent Ericka to pick us up within minutes.  She drove us to the clinic, and stayed five hours to interpret for us.  Ericka  was wonderful.  We weren't sure how long she was going to be needed so we had only booked for 2 hours.  However, she insisted on staying the remaining three hours for free.  After much negotiation, we convinced her to take a generous tip for her services.  Two days later...we requested help from Ericka again because Lance needed additional help.  He returned to the emergency clinic...this time to treat a different tooth.  Follow-up work for two root canals is being taken care of at a modern, English speaking clinic that was recommended by our Latin Host.  

We've also had some fun during our first two weeks here.  We visited Santa Fe Mall, which is one of the newest upscale malls in the city.  While there, we saw the movie The Greatest Showman (in English.)  We also toured Jardin Botanico, the Museo De Arte Moderno, and the Museo De Antioquia.  On the day that we visited the Modern Art Museum, we had lunch at Mercado Del Rio...which is a new gastronomic market located in a large warehouse type building.  The prices are reasonable, and you can find items ranging from $3.00 sangria's to a full gourmet meal for under $10.00.  Mercado Del Rio has nearly 40 small restaurants and bars located on two floors of the building.  Lance and I have eaten there twice and the food is delicious.  The second photo shows the inside.  What you can't see are the numerous tables available to sit at with your meal.    

Lance and I also participated in a free walking city tour.  There is no set price...you just tip the guide based on your experience.  This was an interesting tour because we were able to learn a lot about the history of Medellin, as well as what is happening today.  Our guide also took us into some areas that we would not want to venture alone due to safety issues.  It was surprising to see how few historic buildings remain in the city.  Most were torn down and replaced with just a few exceptions.  It made us appreciate even more how unique Cuenca is when it comes to preserving the past.  Below are a few of the rare exceptions that we saw when it comes to older historic buildings in the center of the city.

Plazoleta de los Esculturas

Above is a picture of the group that accompanied us on our City Tour

On the tour we saw a sign that sums up what one should think about when you are traveling around the world.  Even if you don't speak Spanish, I think you will understand the sentiment of what they are trying to say.








Below is a short slide show I created using pictures of some of the places that we visited.  Simply click on the arrow to advance the pictures.       

Next week we are traveling to Jardin, a small town located in the heart of coffee country.  We will be spending two days there...and plan to take a tour of a coffee farm.  Check back soon to hear all about our trip.

Goodbye Cuenca...Hello World!

It has been a little over three years since we have arrived in Cuenca, Ecuador.  Since that time, I have made many lovely friends, seen some of the sites in this great country, did some volunteer work at the local schools, practiced yoga and Pilate's, walked each week for the past year with the Cuenca Running and Walking group, and overall had a great time.  However, as much as we have enjoyed living here, Lance and I have decided that time is short and we need to move on if we intend to see the rest of the world.  (Below are a just a few pictures of some of the people we will miss.)

This is Nico...my Pilate's teacher...who patiently worked with me three days a week for the past eight months.  He is a good, encouraging teacher...and I will miss him.

Here is John, my all time favorite yoga teacher.  He taught me everything I know about yoga...but don't hold that against him.  He is a terrific teacher with a good sense of humor, and made yoga fun for me.  I saw him almost every Thursday and Saturday for the past year.   

And...this is Mike...my wonderful walking buddy.  He is kind, funny and an all around great guy.  We walked most Tuesdays in the Cuenca Running and Walking Group for the past year.  Sometimes we would do extra walks, just for fun.  I think I will miss my walks and talks with Mike most of all.   

  

Here is Lance and Lucia, our sweet landlady, who was very kind to us.  She had a special relationship with Lance and they would often sit and talk to each other over a cup of coffee when he would go to pay the rent.  They were very fond of each other.

Of course, we had many other wonderful friends, but these were people I saw weekly over the past year so I thought it would be fun to include their pictures in this post. 

Pasto

On January 3rd of 2018, we departed Cuenca to start slow traveling the world.  We began in Pasto, Colombia, where we celebrated the Carnaval de Negros y Blancos!  This event is one of the largest carnival celebrations in south Colombia according to Wikipedia.  During our visit we were lucky enough to see the Grand Parade.  It was an amazing site to behold.  For four to six months before the event the artisans from Pasto work on creating these wonderful floats, costumes, and head pieces.      The items appear to be made out of Styrofoam, bendable foam, and other light weight materials.  I  believe all of the moving parts on the floats and costumes are operated by hand.  The smaller floats  (20 x 40 feet long) are not motorized, but appear to be pushed by participants in the parade.  The larger floats (50 x 65 feet long) are motorized, and hold dozens of people, but the driver of the float has no way to see the road.  Instead, there are people with walkie talkies on the street guiding them down the narrow road.  Some of these floats are so large they barely make it past the barricades.  Along with these wonderful works of art, are musical bands, each with unique costumes and head pieces, and, lots of singing and dancing.  The crowd participates and cheers loudly for each creation.  This amazing extravaganza lasted for four hours on the day that we saw it.  It is hard to believe that all that artistic talent can reside in one small town in Colombia.    

This is a week long event with music on a large stage, dancing, and lots of drinking.  People will spray you with cans of foam, sprinkle flour on your head, and even put paint on your face.  So, if you go, you would be wise to wear old clothes.  Most people purchase inexpensive ponchos to protect their clothing.  Be sure to check out Wikipedia to learn more about this specular event.