Magical Medellin

Plain and simple: Medellin is in a category separate from Colombia. 

It is magical. It is different. They are Paisas.

One of the first things that Kaley and I did was go to the Museo de Antioguia. It had 3 stories of art collections from all different periods & countries. The top floor was dedicated to Fernando Botero a Medellin native who has donated hundreds of his pieces to the museum and sculptures to the front plaza making this lovely garden.

"I have never created a fat person in my life, I paint people with volume. Art must be sensual I say."

Perspective shift: After being here in Medellin for a couple weeks I am inspired by how much change has occurred in the last 30 years. In 2000, Colombia had 50,000 visitors in 2016 it had 4 million. 

I was strongly considering some of the many "Pablo Escobar Tours." After hearing some of the "Piasas" (or locals) perspectives about the Pablo tourism my point of view has changed. It is interesting to think of what people will sell and what we will consume. I am guilty of excusing plenty of "guilty pleasures" as anyone... One tour guide said: "the way they are glorifying him and visiting his grave like it is a holy pilgrimage is disturbing" I am just as guilty - I ravenously watched Netflix's Narcos series as it glamorized his life & I found myself almost saddened at his death at the end of series 2.

In fact, I was really excited to see some of the taping of season 3 in Cartagena (in case you didn't know that is going to happen - it is.)




An artist at the Antioguia museo created an art instillation to pay tribute to all the people who had lost their lives in the conflict by creating these little pods with their personal belongings. It was an interesting way to mix art with the F.A.R.C. conflict and very powerful to say the least. 

Public transportation. 

Medellin has excellent subway, gondolas that connect the upper lower income barrios to the central city. Fun fact: 1 ticket costs 2,300 pesos (close to 80 cents) which will get you a 1 way subway/ gondola ride anywhere in the city. The trick for the tourists are they just don't get off & do a big loop. The locals use it frequently and it really appears to be bridging the gap and providing opportunities for lower income communities. 

Medellin is the only city in all of Colombia with livable, thriving public transport. 

U.S. not having public transport infrastructure

Nature & Higher Happiness in Urban Development

  

These pictures from the newest metro cable that was completed only 2 months ago. You can see they are still finishing up some of the passage ways below.

Encicla:

This is a completely free public bike system that lets people ride around town for an hour at a time. It started in 2011 and they are in the process of adding 50 new stations around town. This has definitely been one of my favorite things to do around town. 

Plaza de Los Luces: This plaza used to be an old market in the early 1900s. Over time it fell into disarray - you would have never been able to be in this area 20-30 years ago... Then a mathematician was elected into Government that was very influential in revamping this plaza and adding these light structures to make it a more desirable place to spend time.

2 Samuel 22:29 "You are my lamp, O LORD; the lord turns my darkness into light. 

Variations of limonada. This was there "herb" version. Colombia's most famous is limonada de coco which is kind of like a piña colada without the alcohol. 

Excellent provisions for the technology that runs our lives. 
1. Restaurants have devices that they bring to your table to charge your phones while you dine. 
2. Almost every public park in Medellin has FREE WIFI! (There are parks about every 10 blocks)

Interesting architecture. This particular building has a funny story. It was originally designed by a Belgiun architect. He got a lot of grief from the Colombians about the design & it taking so long. So he left midway to return back to Europe & told them they could finish it on their own. The problem was - they couldn't actually finish it on their own. 

Notice here the backside of the building. plain windows & basic white brick

Comuna 13 used to be one of the most dangerous barrios to live in. So they put escalators in as a sort an interesting attraction/ symbol to unify the community. Every corner is covered with really interesting street art/ graffiti. 

There were slides, nice vistas & lots of sections mini playgrounds for the kids to play in. 

Culture & free libraries (in the subway and all over town), & these opportunities feel distinctively different than Central America. When I left for Colombia, I think, I was preparing myself for a 3rd world experience and it is far from that. It has old European influence (because they were colonized by the Spaniards), but the soul of Latin America.

Vendedores

I have been captivated by the street vendor and the sanitation worker within Colombia. As a whole there is a lot of joy & pride in Colombia. Although to me those jobs would be burdensome there appears to be a complete different appreciation and quality of life. 

It's also fascinating how much cities can differ even within the same country. For instance, the tempo of Cartagena versus Medellin is completely different in the way that street vendors approach you. In Cartagena, they are really trying to sell their fruit, tour, coffee, etc. But here in Medellin it is way more tranquilo. 

Just notice all the hands at this food station. She was selling arepas (a very traditional maize meal.)

(Full disclosure: a few of the these pictures are actually from Guatemala.)

This man is primarily selling coffee. They have containers filled with sugar and without. Sometimes is is REAL coffee but others it is nescafe so it is wise to ask. They come in 2 sizes: 300 pesos (10 cents) & 1,000 pesos (35 cents). 

This is a station for "llamados" or telephone calls. People come to recharge their phone cards or if they don't have a phone they pay to use the vendors phone to make a call. 

Just a small example of some of the sanitation workers in Colombia. I have been astonished at how clean it is. I feel like at every corner you turn there is someone sweeping or cleaning. 

The whole country is very conscious of trash & recycling (usually separating your wast in 3 categories) which feels very different to Central America.