Bogota 15/01 - 23/02

After collecting our luggage in the airport we were escorted to a local bus by a local girl we`d met at Puerto Nariño who was returning the same day to Bogota. Once on our way two things started to become apparent - 1. We were at altitude (of about 2600m) 2. The city`s air was astoundingly polluted. With a population of close to 9 million and again no train system, Bogota chokes under its omnipresent, poorly maintained and polluting diesel buses. To their credit they have installed the excellent express bus system Transmilenio that links main arteries around the city, but no matter how good buses will never replace a good train system. But Bogota is trying to improve things.

I had scoped a perfectly reviewed hostel in ultra-hip La Candelaria close to the centre called Cranky Croc; sure enough it`s run by an ex-pat Aussie who is obviously also an ex-backpacker. It is defintely the best backpackers Ive stayed at in South America, the highlight being pull-out lockable storage drawers under the bed with powerpoints inside them and wide innerspring mattresses. I was so glad of this haven as I was in a very poorly state the first night. Headaches, upset stomach and a super-dry throat all made for only a little low-quality sleep - it sure was hard to breathe¡ That evening I had found a funky little cafe/restaurant to eat some crepes and was just about to order when some locals spoke to me in English, asking the usual questions before inviting me to join them. Lino, Diana and Juan-Carlos were lovely and friendly locals who plied me with their sweet diluted version of mead while we interchanged between English and Spanish. Lino, an (aspiring?) professional tennis player was very keen to emmigrate to Melbourne, citing the college he wished to study English at - AMES or something - and asking questions about the viablility of tennis coaching in Australia, amongst a thousand other questions. Very nice night. Afterwards we made a date for the next Friday night to meet there and dance some salsa later. Heh, heh, salsa eh, Snicko¿ Those hours of lessons you gave me might just pay off¡¡

Bogota`s road system is numbered and not named eg. Calle 13, 8-56 - that`s the whole address, so if you get the calle (street) and carrera (road) numbers mixed up you`re up the proverbial. So the next day after going in completely the wrong direction for an hour I made it to the `electronic district`, where some very dodgy operators plied their trades and I was attempting to replace my camera charger and obtain a new battery. The place I had contacted from Iquitos said `sure, we`ve got them, that`ll be 170,000 please`. AU$100. I actually probably would have paid that if i`d had the efectivo on me, but I didn`t. On the way to get some cash I noticed a lot of other stores had Nikon products also - some quick questions, hard-nosed bartering (sort of) and two stores later I had my gear for 110,000. Much better. Happy.

The next day I bit the bullet and tried to find a doctor to sort out my ongoing Bali Belly issues. After asking a local shopowner if there was a doctor local, he responded by giving me an address well into the city proper, and then proceeded to put his name on the piece of paper so the doctor could know who had sent me. I smelt a rat - take note backpackers, tread with cautious when the `commission-hunters` give you advice. So I made it to a small local hospital instead and saw the English speaking doctor who eventually prescribed me with two type of antibiotics. Fun. That afternoon I hung out with a couple of Americans from the West Coast including Cynthia the nurse and Alex who regularly participates in Critical Mass San Franscisco, the birthplace of the Mass. We caught a cable-car up one of the small mountains surrounding Bogota to a funny mix of churches, Jesus`porn statues and ritzy restaurants. The view was underwhelming due to the smog, but it was divertingly fun enough. My jungle dreams had included both Thai and Mexican food (and crepes, and a thick steak, and pizza), so that night we all braved the indecipherable street system to find a great Mexican restaurante with fantastic food.

The next day Cynthia and I went to the Botero Museum that contained most of the works of Botero, a Columbian painter with a obsession with fat. It also contained some works of Picasso, Dali and the impressionists. After that we explored the Bank Museum next door with a tonne of religious idolatry and some interesting old machinery and stuff. Yeah, that one was a bit boring. We had decided to go to a movie - not as easy as it sounds as all of the local cinemas were showing films with Spanish dubbing and we had only one hour to arrive from La Candelaria¡ So more bewilderment in Bogota including passing a massive demonstration for a better health system (see photos) to finally get to a bus to the Centro Comercial Gran Estacion - essentially as developed and shiny and capitalist a shopping centre as you would find in any city of the world. We sat down to `The Wolf Man` literally as the opening images screened - awesome mission¡ Also a good film :)

On the Friday night I met my Bogota friends at the same cafe for a few drinks and some Colombian dancing. I was assigned a dance instructor for the evening - Jessica, a beautiful girl who sure did know how to dance sexy Latino-style¡ :) For a sober girl-shy techno raver from English heritage such as myself this up-close and personal mode of dance is a bit of a challenge but hey, I`m not complaining¡¡ I didn´t really learn too many actual steps but I was not the worst dancer on the floor (another gringo was)... I busted some moves too, don`t worry about that. It was a great night and I promised to connect with Lino (and possibly Juan-Carlos) when they come to Melbourne.

The next day I met Diana to go to a library that she frequents which often shows exhibitions and theatre and music for free. We saw the salsa band, Banda Conmocion, not to be confused with its namesake previously mentioned (I think) from Santiago. They were a excellent ten-piece salsa band who stopped to explain the history of salsa (orginally from the US) the origin of different rythyms such as Cuba, Puerto Rico and Colombia. While I wasn´t converted into a salsa-lover it was great to see an authentic salsa band live in action. Then Diana took myself and her friend Mariana on a tour of the library, pointing out all the great things about it with enthusiasm and gusto. It was heaps of fun. Later we walked a long way to find dinner but it was yummy - on the way Diana continued waxing lyrical about more Bogota landmarks, Colombian food and history and much more - a great tour guide¡ Then I caught the bus to back to the city - the onboard sound system was crystal clear playing such hits as The New Kids On The Block`s `I`ll Be Lovin` You Forever`, Roberta Flack`s `Killing Me Softly` and Roxette´s `Listen to Your Heart`. Que bueno :)

Sunday in Bogota is Cyclovia - they close off a whole main artery to all motorised traffic (except for cross-traffic at the lights) and people get out on their bikes, blades, scooters and feet in droves. Alex and I hired shitty bikes and took off to enjoy the sunny day. I was stopped in the city and interviewed for some tourist TV thing or research or something - they asked me about why I came to Bogota and what I enjoyed most about the city. Which reminds me, I must be getting a bit of an underground cult following here in Colombia because I was interviewed for TV or something (in both Spanish and English) in Puerto Nariño about the internet facilities there. After that Alex`s bike failed in some serious ways, I got a flat tyre after riding a long way from the city (Cyclovia was still going), my arms got seriously sunburnt and I managed to find a game of basketball (at last¡) with an Italian anthropologist/outside shooter on the way home. A tiring but fun day on a crappy bike but oh well, I guess riding something is better than nothing¿

I stayed another day at The Cranky Croc - I probably didn`t need to but I was having so much fun there and in La Candelaria in general. I fixed my sleeping mat and visited a great new restaurant just out the front of the hostel called Crazy Mongolian - you create your own meal from a great range of vegetables, fruit, meat, sauces, nuts and noodles and it is stiry-fried on a large hot plate in front of you. Fantastic. How much would you expect to pay for this¿ $15.... $10... No, it was $6. Even for Colombia that`s cheap. I don`t know how often in Melbourne Michelle and I had wished for a restaurant like this where you could choose how much of each ingredient goes in. Nyce - and so to the Caribbean.