Greetings
I have just returned from a Gate1 tour of Columbia for 10 days and I enjoyed it thoroughly. I took notes throughout the 4 city tour and want to share a little with you.
A little about the culture. The people are a wonderful mix of indigenous, European and African. There is no racism in Columbia but there is classism. The neighborhoods are divided into Tiers from 1, being the poorest, to 6, being the richest. Rents, water bills, electric, education and food is subsidized by the government for the residents of the lower tiers. Gun ownership is illegal except for law enforcement. Education is free and mandatory through high school but not enforced. So many poorer children go to work and not to school. Healthcare is available to all. There is no income tax but there is a 19% tax on food and goods. The mortgage rate is 12% as well as car loans so many Columbians are in debt. They do shy away from credit cards , preferring to use cash.
More than 1 million Venezuelans crossed into Colombia fleeing widespread food and medicine shortages and rampant hyperinflation . This coincided with USA sanctions on Venezuela. This, in turn, has put a great strain on the education and healthcare system.
Columbia has long held the reputation for its drug cartels and murder and disappearances Medellin was the most dangerous but it is now safe and its citizens are very proud of how far they have come. It recently won an award for the most innovative city.
https://www.andovar.com/medellin-most-innovative-city-of-the-world/
The Medellin transportation system is one to envy. It includes trams, subways, buses and taxis. Tickets can be purchased with plastic bottles.
Coca are still grown in Columbia but it is much undercover now. Also synthetic drugs are competing with the more laborious and timely cocaine.
I found Columbian food to be OK. It is high in sugar and fried foods. Market places teem with fresh fruit but not many vegetables. Unfortunately the US, and Israel are pushing Columbia into growing GMO corn. The farmers protested in great numbers and the GMO lobby was put on hold for a year.
The weather was lovely, around 80 every day but in the 90’s on the coast. I was there in December.
I did have a brief episode of altitude sickness, with rapid heart beat. This happens when I go up over 10,000 feet. Others were sick and some not. It resolves as one becomes acclimated.
From Bogota, we flew to Manizales, the coffee growing area. Coffee is very labor intensive in Columbia as the trees are planted on hillsides and each berry must be handpicked as they ripen at different times. We visited a reserve run by the Federation of coffee growers. There , under the guide o Yohany we saw birds and butterflies and hummingbirds in abundance. This attention to preserving native species is a goal of environmentalists and the government.
We visited gold museums in Bogota and Medellin. The Spanish Conquistadors took all the gold artifacts and mined gold that they could find. Fortunately, the excavated graves contained lots of gold artifacts so the Columbian people’s heritage was spared.
The trip ended in Cartegenia and we had 1 1/2 free days enjoying the northern city on the . Walking on the beach, swimming in the ocean and exploring the Old Walled city, and the neighborhood, Getsemane was a delight.
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