Colombia: Bogota Beckons

Mexico City
March 9, 2015

It's always good have a few good surprises thrown your way every now and then. And thus it was that last January, when I was surfing Interjet's “outlet” sales I came across a fare to Bogota, Colombia that was just too good to pass up. $240.00 roundtrip Mexico City—Bogota--Mexico City.

Why not, I thought. I certainly had the time and this year I promised myself that I would not be enslaved to either The Casa or to CAFEMIN. Three days a week and no more..and not even a true three days a week. Three afternoons a week and that was it.

So I booked the fight. 5:40 pm. March 9^th Six full days in Bogota and its environs.

And today I'm off. The first time back to South America since 2010 when my time there was very, very different.

It was the year my mother died. She'd been well when I left in January, but went into a sudden decline just as I was about to leave Chile to round Cape Horn on a two week cruise from Valparaiso to Buenos Aires.

By mid March it was clear I had to go home. God's Spirit had been speaking to me for a few weeks. So I made my way to Lima, caught an Avianca flight to Bogota and Air Canada to Toronto then on to Montreal.

My mom had been waiting for me. When I got home she stopped eating and was dead less than three weeks later.

So this visit will be far less stressful, although even getting out of Mexico city, with my far less cluttered life, was a challenge.

Many weeks ago I wrote the only two people I know in Colombia—Sandra whom I'd met in a hot springs swimming pool in Dayman, Uruguay six years ago, and John who I know from the island of San Andres. Both encouraged me to come.

What I did not expect was Sandra's invitation to take six days off from work and be my guide. She needed a vacation, too, she said. This was an offer almost too good to turn down, although I'm really not sure how it's going to be spending so much time with someone I really don't know.

We will see.

For now it's on to Bogota, on to South America and back to the Andes!