Feria de las Flores

The one month marker for my time in Medellin has come and gone and I’m beginning to develop a rhythm of life here. At first I was feeling a bit like a fish out of water, lonely and frustrated with how long things take, the complications of latin american bureaucracy, etc... but my wise old man once told me, “you’ll learn to just laugh at the process and stop fighting it”, and its very true (thanks pops). The US culture of instant satisfaction, immediate service, finger-snapping speediness - instilled in us straight out the womb and intensified by high-tech gadgets such as ipods, iphones, and facebook - just doesn’t make sense here. Time in general is a much more elastic and fluid concept. Things never really start “on time”. Students stroll into class 20 min late without even a blink of an eye from the professor. I remember first realizing how flexible time is when I showed up to take class with a folkloric dance group my second week here in Medellin. I was told to come at 4:00 and that afternoon I hustled to show up on time, walked in the door at 4:05 sweaty and disheveled, embarrassed to be late on my first day - only to find an empty studio. Folks started strolling in around 4:30, and it was only after about 15 minutes of hugging, kissing, saying hello and exchanging stories about the day that people changed into their dance clothes. Such is the pace of life around here. And I like it!

Medellin is a really interesting place. The people are super friendly, food muy delicioso, beers watery - but cold - so i can't complain. At every corner there are stands full of fresh pineapple, mango, watermelon, papaya, melon, banana and the list goes on. Music is always flowing out of cars, corner shops and apartment balconies and is a delicious mix of salsa, vallenato, cumbia, merengue. Colombians can really bump and grind, too. Last weekend I went to a club and was blown away by all the beautiful people. The women in particular are stunning, though I’ve never seen such massive amounts of plastic surgery. Esp in the booty. This place puts Maimi's South Beach to shame. Didnt even know it was possible to get butt-implants?

Im ready to explore the mountains and do some hiking. Saturday Im going camping 'cause its a 3 day weekend. Seems like Colombia is full of holidays, festivals, celebrations, and assorted fiestas... often giving tribute to a particular saint. Last week was the annual Feria de las Flores, a 7 day celebration in Medellin comprised of various concerts, festivals, and parades. Many of the mountainous regions surrounding Medellin are made up of communities whose primary economy is based on the cultivation and exportation of flowers. I took a day trip to Santa Elena, a little pueblo famous for its contribution to the Feria de Las Flores. On the last day of the festival, citizens of this tiny town marched through the city of Medellin carrying huge wooden baskets full of fresh cut roses, lillies, carnations, orchids, daisies and lots of other colorful, nice smelling plants.

Aside from the festivities, Medellin is full of energy because of a recent change in presidency. Conservative Juan Manuel Santos was inaugurated last week to replace his predecessor Alvaro Uribe. Uribe's administration (to which Santos belonged) was revered by many and famous for bringing a myriad of positive changes to the country particularly in regards to national security and the economy. Fifteen years ago this place was ridden with violence, largely isolated from the travelers that were coming to tour neighboring countries. Colombia in general is much safer today, though guerilla organizations (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC) and the Ejercito Popular de Liberacion (EPL) the big ones) are still alive and active. In fact a bomb just went off in Bogota on Thursday and it's suspected that the FARC is responsible. Yet despite occasional terrorist attacks, the country has a solid and growing economy and is beginning to bustle with tourists, backpackers, study abroad-ers, and foreign investers. Supporters of the new president seem confident that he will continue to make Colombia a safer place. Critics of Santos, however, peg him as an elitist whose focus is too much on economic policies that benefit the rich and not enough on social welfare, human rights issues, and the eradication of poverty. It’s still too early to tell how Santos’ term will play out but the gap between rich and poor here is staggering.

For those who may be interested, here’s a cool blog that offers interesting and relatively unbiased analysis of latin american politics:
http://www.joshuafrens-string.com/

Still trying to find my own apartment. More updates later!