Getting Started

We arrived in Bogota after a long plane flight, first to LA, then to Maimi, and finally to Bogota.
It was nice to arrive in the morning as we had the entire day to get settled. We took a small bus from the airport to the city center. The lack of street sugns made it difficult to know when to get off the bus. When we felt like we were getting close we got off and wandered around the city center. A few helpful Columbians later we had found out hostel and were settled.



We took a cable car ride to the top of a mountain overlooking the city. The church on top was unimpressive as the contruction seemed very new. Across a small saddle on the neighboring mountain top was a statue of Jesus with arms outstretched, he looked like the little brother of the one that overlooks Rio in Brasil. The veiw of Bogota was excellent, the city spreads out in a valley between two mountain ranges. Millions of people live in that valley and froma above the scale of the city is evident. My favorite part of the mountain top was in the church courtyard. Along a shadded wall dripping with water, gardeners had grown moss along the wall in the shape of the holy cross, very vibrant and creative.

We made an adventurous trip across town by bus in an attempt to get more pages added to my passport. As the bus pulled up to the U.S. embassy with the stars and stripes waving over head, the two lone Americans exited the bus, so much for blending in. Arriving at 1pm we were told that the service we required is only offered until noon. The woman at the hostel tried to encourage to call ahead and check their hours. However I wrongly assumed that an embassy would be open to help citizens whenever they arrived. The Embassy was a massive compound stretching for blocks and securely guarded, it served as a reminder of the power and influence of the US in Latin America.

Bogota is the center of Columbia economically and politically. Imagine if we could take LA, New York, and Washington D.C. and squeeze them into one city. A short walk from our hostel took us to a plaza, surrounding which were the Columbian congressional building, the supreme court building, and the city hall for Bogota. Directly behind the congressional building is the residence of the president of Columbia, Alvaro Uribe.

Two days of dodging cars and breathing diesel exuast and we were ready to leave Bogota. Two buses and 12 hours of travel have brought us Salento, from where I write this entry. The trip was only 340km, so do the math and figure out how fast we traveled, but to be fair we had to wait two hours in the terminal in bogota and another half hour in Armenia where we transfered buses. Salento is a quiet mountain town which receives a great deal of tourism on the weekends as Columbians make day trips here. We arrived at night in the rain with lightening and thunder. It was fun to awake to the town bathed in sun with blue skys above. We have a wonderful place to stay and can walk to all parts of the town. We have spent a good part of the day laying in hammocks, reading our books, and looking on the veiw of lush green mountains. the scene changes as clouds pass and the sun hit different ridges and valleys.

We have some adventures planned for tomorrow, hikes up a mountain valley and a hot spot for humming birds.

P.S. Anika looks cute in a hammock, right at home.