This past Sunday, I had the good fortune to see Pope Francis
in the flesh. I’m not Catholic, but I quite like Francisco; he’s far more
enlightened than many of the leaders in our government. Also, we must be
honest—Pope Francisco is one of the most important leaders on our planet, with
a huge amount of influence, if only as a figurehead.
Last week, the Pope spent 5 days in Colombia. For weeks
beforehand, we saw posters all over the city with the Pope in his robes taking
a step forward. That was the theme of his visit: Let us take the first step. “Demos
el primer paso.”
Let's take the first step
The purpose of his visit was clear: to bring a message of
forgiveness to Colombia, a country that has recently signed a peace accord with
the FARC guerillas, but still remains a nation wounded and divided by 50 years
of horrific conflict. For background, you should know that the peace accord was
brought to a public vote and the majority voted against signing the peace accord
with the FARC; many Colombians believe that it is wrong to help reestablish the
guerillas into civic life after all the violence and strife they have caused
since the mid-1960’s.
All of the speeches he gave had the same
message—forgiveness, reconciliation, and unity are possible. He met with both
sides of the conflict—people who had endured violence and those who had caused
it.
Video from Al Jazeera about the Pope's visit to Colombia
Colombia being quite a religious country, having the Pope visit
was a very big deal. The people of Cartagena were thrilled to have him end his
visit here and hold Sunday mass in their city, as well. It was a great honor to
host the pontiff, and several of my students were thrilled to have the chance
to sing in choirs that performed for him.
On Sunday morning, I waited alongside many Cartageneros to
see Mr. Pope pass by in his Papa-mobile. What a drive-by! You’ll see from the
video that it was very speedy passing. But it was also impressive how
impassioned people were to see him, even for a split second, many of them
holding up babies and rosaries to receive the Pope’s holy blessing as he
passed.
VIDEO
Afterwards, everyone rushed into the walled city to the
place where he would be doing the noon Angelus prayer, but we found that it was
accessible only for those with tickets. Luckily, though, the Pope was making
some rounds in the walled city so I got to see him a second time, this time
right in front of Norbert and my favorite gelato shop. I’m pretty sure that
makes the ice cream sacred now, right?
VIDEO
Later that afternoon, I watched the television coverage of
the rest of the Pope’s visit to Cartagena from my friend’s hospital room right
on the bay. He was taken by helicopter to fly over the harbor and bless the
statue of La Virgen del Carmen, and he flew right over us! There were many
boats anchored around the statue, trying to get a bit of the Pope’s blessing as
he passed overhead.
For the last event of the day, he presided over Sunday mass
at an enormous makeshift church that they created in Cartagena’s port. It was
funny to see all the Catholic symbols surrounded by massive cargo containers.
The crowd in attendance was gigantic and many had been waiting all day for this
opportunity to pray with the Pope. I watched his ceremony from the television
screen, and I was moved when he asked his fellow people to pray for him, while also praying for their loved ones at our home, Mother Earth.
Later on, while watching the TED talk he gave (See below), he ended his talk asking
the viewers to think of him with tenderness, and I think that’s a brave and
beautiful thing, to request love and blessings and tenderness from the world
around you.
Hello friends! Norbert and I just spent 4 days in a glorious place called San Andres Island, part of a Colombian archipelago in the Caribbean Sea around 230 miles off the coast of Nicaragua. From the air, Norbert and I gazed down at the crystalline blue waters and I thought--THIS is what the Caribbean looks like! I know Cartagena is on the Caribbean coast, but the gorgeous beaches and clear warm waters give Cartagena's coast a run for its money. (The sea in Cartagena is indeed warm, but it's color is more on the muddier side...)
The minute we landed, Norbert and I jumped into a taxi and headed for the marina where a boat was waiting to take us on a snorkeling tour around the island. And four the next 4 days, we only got out of the water to eat and sleep (in hammocks). Our first stop was a shallow sandbar that was teeming with sting rays that couldn't have cared less about our intrusive presence. While we gazed at them through our masked, they glided through the water like underwater birds and fought one another for food. I was in awe of their gracefulness and beauty, and I didn't want to get back onto the boat! (I was a bit more willing after seeing a GIANT barracuda nearby.)
Click PLAY to watch Norbert's awesome video!
The next stops were pretty cool: an underwater sculpture garden, a sunken ship, and a coral formation called The Pyramide where Norbert and I had a great time admiring a gorgeous spotted eagle ray.
Click on the Map for more info!
Back on land, we had a lunch of local specialties, including conch, which we later found out was in "veda," meaning restaurants aren't supposed to serve it because it's currently closed for the season to let the conch repopulate. We spent the rest of the afternoon wandering the island on a local bus, trying to make it to our apartment rental. We eventually made it and quickly found our way to the beach next door. From the shore, you can walk across a long sandbank and reach a tiny island called Rocky Cay, which was cool to explore. It was late afternoon and the only people on Rocky Cay besides us were 3 boys from the nearby village, fishing for the dinner. It's always impressive to see a child do something with such expertise--such as scaling a fish--that I wouldn't know how to do myself.
We woke up feeling very excited the following morning because WE WERE GOING DIVING! And Norbert and I love any opportunity to pretend we're little fishies that live under the sea. The first dive of the morning was a rather deep one (we went down to about 80 feet) along a wall of coral that dropped into the deep blue sea. We saw lots of amazing and colorful fish and coral, but the most interesting fish we came across was the bat fish--a fish with wings and HANDS! It was my first time getting acquainted with this strange species, and luckily, we saw several of them on all 4 dives, so I had lots of chances to admire them and their awesome strangeness.
The second dive was a bit shallower, and we actually started at the underwater statue garden that we'd seen the day before. On this dive, we saw another eagle ray (so majestic!) and swam through several caves. I can't even describe all the many species that we saw, but Norbert took many underwater videos to capture some of the magic.
That afternoon, we went back to Rocky Cay and saw several local boys jumping off a halfway submerged shipwreck in the distance. So of course, we had to swim over and explore for ourselves. I won't go to much into it because, again, my mother reads this blog, but suffice to say that exploring a half-submerged cargo ship that's been sitting in the surf for 45 years was insanely cool. I didn't jump from the highest deck like the local boys, but I did jump from the lower one! And watching the afternoon sun from the shipwreck as it set on the island was one of my favorite moments of all time, as well as swimming back to the shore with the nearly full moon rising behind us. What a magical afternoon! AND we saw a HUGE HUGE and I mean HUGE sting ray on the swim back! So big I thought it was a rock!
We awoke with excitement yet again the next day--MORE DIVING! We did two dives off a boat this time (the others had been from the shore), and the set up was somewhat similar to the day before. One deep dive and a shallower one. On the shallow dive, we went through many extensive cave systems (where you go in and come out the other side). Some of them were quite narrow so the Brazilian who was with us didn't make it through them all. At one point, we thought we'd lost him, which is a freaky feeling when you've got an oxygen tank strapped to you and 35 ft of water above your head. But our guide found our Brazilian friend and onward we went, exploring more gorgeous coral and admiring more magical sea life. Norbert saw a sea spider and caught it wriggling about on camera! We saw more bat fish (!!) and plenty of crazy colorful fishies that just make me smile. Of course, we saw a few more eagle rays along the way and I was content...
That afternoon, we headed back to the shipwreck, this time wielding our cameras to attempt to capture its awesomeness. (Yes, Norbert swam with our Canon SLR over his head--it was in a plastic bag, don't worry!) It was just as amazing as the previous day, and this time I was even able to jump off a higher deck! (but still not the highest.. I'm a chicken and I won't deny it!) I'm not sure if the photos can do this place justice, but we gave it a try. Something about that place really inspired me, and I'm already working on an essay about the experience. I'm a sucker for dilapidated, run-down places, what can I say.
The following day, we rented a scooter and went swimming at all the beaches we hadn't visited yet (because let's be honest, we were pretty obsessed with Rocky Cay). More snorkeling, more cool fish (and more bat fish!), and more good food. This place was a breadfruit paradise. If you're not familiar with it, you gotta try it! Soo delicious and nutritious!
We're definitely going to come back to San Andres Island for more exploring, but also to check out it's neighbor, Providencia, where we've heard the diving is even more spectacular! The locals were friendly and spoke a really interesting creole language that reminded me of Jamaican creole. We also witnessed a traditional funeral on our last day and learned about the islands connection to Mobile, Alabama.
View of San Andres on our way back home - it's just 8x2 miles!
I'm sure I'm missing a lot but that's all I've got for now. Also, if you can, please send prayers to my hometown of Miami and all the people being affected by Hurricane Irma. Here's hoping that everyone stays safe and dry.
You
might not know this about me but I used to be in a quasi-bike gang back in
Miami. Me, my friend Celia, and a group of wily fixie guys (guys who ride ‘fixie’
bikes and wear tight shorts and cycling caps) terrorized the streets of Miami
(meaning we met up late on Tuesday nights and stopped at a grocery to pick up
beers and sometimes ice cream on our way to a chosen park where we hung out for
a while). So, when my friend and co-English teaching assistant, Fiona from
Scotland, invited me to join her on a “recorrido,” or bike tour around the
city, I happily jumped at the chance. Norbert had just put together a bike for
me from various parts and I hadn’t yet given it a proper spin.
I
left my hotel/home and immediately ran into a group of bikers heading towards
the clock tower in the walled city, the starting place of the bike ride. Joining
them, I figured it was a good omen to make bike friends right outside my place
of residence.
At
the clock tower, I immediately lost my new friends and meandered around the
plaza looking for Fiona. The plaza was buzzing with bikers, and I realized with
a sinking heart that most of them were men, and most of them were wearing
spandex. Never a good sign. They looked like they meant business.
When I finally caught up with Fiona, she was
getting her tire pumped. Shockingly, the group left at 8 o’clock on the dot,
meaning we were left to scramble behind the peloton, trying desperately to
catch up (which we never really did). At a red light just a few blocks from my
house, we caught up with a group of male bikers who repeatedly asked us if we were
sure we wanted to do this. “It’s dangerous where we’re headed,” one of them
said. “You should never be alone on the road.” We heard mutterings about 60
kilometers and rateros, a slang name
given to people that live in shacks on the side of the main highway heading
north towards Barranquilla, likened to rats because of the gutter-like location
of their abodes. Fiona and I shared a look, shrugged our shoulders, and decided
to go for it. We could always turn back, right?
When
the light turned green, though, these guys were off like bullets, leaving Fiona
and I to scramble once again to keep up with their disappearing tail lights. I watched
as they wove in and out traffic without an ounce of fear about sharing the road
with this city’s crazy drivers. Meanwhile, I was quaking in my shoes. We passed
in front of my hotel/home, and I considered ducking out of the ride before it
even really started. But something pushed me to soldier on…
Well,
my friends, what we thought was going to be a “bike tour around the city”
turned out to be an intense, adrenaline-inducing obstacle course through the
dark outskirts of Cartagena.
One
by one, more and more bikers zoomed past me without a glance in my direction. The
first maneuver we made was to cross 5 lanes of traffic to enter a tunnel. Thankfully, it was very
well-lit. But still, a TUNNEL for god’s sake! From there, we hit one
construction site after another, meaning unpaved road, mud puddles, closed
lanes, traffic jams, and general mayhem. Once that was over, there was a huge
bridge, which I huffed and puffed over, flying down with a smile. I breathed a sigh
of relief to be on a paved road with little car circulation, but quickly
realized that this was the dangerous stretch they had warned us about. I’d lost
Fiona by then and was flying solo, as they had specifically warned us not to
do. Mind you, it’s nighttime and I have no front light, so deciphering where
the road ends and the gutter begins was quite difficult. (Good thing Norbert had bought me a helmet a few hours before the ride started!) There was supposed to
be a truck following the bikers with water and first aid, but I think I was too
slow for them, too. I considered turning around and heading back towards
Cartagena, but I figured I’d be even more alone going in the opposite direction
as all the bikers, so I pedaled on. Before long, a man rode up alongside me and,
instead of zooming past me, he slowed down.
“You’re
doing this ride on that bike?” he asked with a laugh.
I
kept huffing and puffing down the road, trying my hardest to focus on pedaling
as fast as possible, although there was zero chance of catching up with the
rest of the bikers. At this point, I couldn’t even see their tail lights in the
distance.
“I’m
actually surprised you made it this far without any gears!”
Now
it was my turn to laugh.
“Seriously,”
he went on, “you deserve a big kudos. You’re doing great.”
And
so, we continued onward together. He was a regular on the bike ride, so he
knew exactly how far we had left to go. When he told me we’d only gone halfway
to the first stopping point, I nearly fell off my bike! But I’m extremely lucky
that Jaime stuck around with me down this dark road, keeping me company and
riding in front of me to “break the wind,” which was a sweet gesture but it did
little to ease the pain all over my body.
Finally,
we made it to Barcelona, a town 18km outside of Cartagena. From here, most of
the bikers continued east for a long time before making another right turn to
return to Cartagena.
“Who
do I have to pay to get me home?” I joked with Jaime. I was willing to pay
whatever price to get my bike and my sore butt on a bus or taxi, but luckily,
there was a group of riders cutting the ride short and heading back to Cartagena
the way we came. I thanked Jaime for his kindness and rode across the street to
join the other slackers like me. Although, once again, I was congratulated for
having made it this far on my beach cruiser.
“I
thought this was a city tour!” I told them, making them all crack up. "This certainly is no simple paseo!" I’d even
brought my nice, big camera to take nighttime shots of the city. I told my new
friends about my bike gang back in Miami, and how we were nowhere near as
hardcore as this crew. This was off-roading and mountain-biking combined, with
an obstacle course thrown in for fun. I told them about Critical Mass, a
monthly ride in Miami where people decorate their bikes with lights and are in it for the
fun of the ride, not for putting 60km on their odometer! (But obviously, this sort of torture is fun for some people?!)
They
told me stories about motorcyclists and rateros
that I won’t repeat here because I know my mom’s reading this. The important
thing is, I survived! Although it did get dicey there for a while, I ended up
having a great time. And I did end up seeing a whole other side of Cartagena.
As
we rode back towards the city, I got excited as we neared the airport, knowing
I was nearly home. When we passed my hotel/home, I broke away from the group and waved goodnight.
“See
you Thursday!” they called out; I had to laugh. These Cartageneros are crazy!
Last weekend, Norbert and I had the opportunity to attend
Medellin’s largest festival, La Feria de las Flores. We’d heard so many good
things about Medellin so we were excited to check it out—and the city did not
disappoint!
Flying over the Andes
Antioquia below
We got there around mid-afternoon on Friday and found our way
easily to our AirBnB via the city’s excellent Metrorail system. Can I just say
that their public transport system easily puts most American cities to shame?
It’s efficient, clean, and extensive. It got us everywhere we needed to go!
After meeting our delightful AirBnB hosts, a family full of
Paisa hospitality (Paisa is what they call the culture in the province of
Antioquia, where Medellin is), we headed out to explore the city on foot.
Without meaning to, we covered about 10 kilometers that afternoon/evening. We
found our way to the top of a mini mountain in the middle of the city where
they have El Pueblito Paisa, a re-creation of an old Paisa village, complete
with cathedral in the center of a town square. We wasted no time trying the
region’s specialty, la bandeja Paisa, essentially a tray filled with rice,
beans, ground meat, scrambled egg, chorizo, morcilla (blood sausage), avocado,
patacones (fried plantains), arepa, and pork belly. Yeah, they don’t leave
anything out.
After dinner, we came across a fairground full of people
celebrating la Feria de las Flores. There was live music, dancing, and tents
showcasing some of the silletos, or flower arrangements, that are at the center
of this historical event. There was also an expo of all the nearby towns such
as Santa Elena and Campo Alegre with typical foods and products for sale.
It’s
the villagers from these villages that have been growing the famous flowers for
generations and making the trek down the mountain to the valley of Medellin to
sell their blossoms, oftentimes leaving at 1 in the morning to make it in time
to the morning market. It’s this trek that is honored in the Feria de las
Flores, and although villagers no longer carry and sell flowers like they used
to, once a year they honor the tradition by building enormous flower
arrangements and carrying them on their back like their ancestors did, this
time in a parade through the city. But that wouldn’t be for a few more days.
For now, the party continues!
We headed over to El Poblado, a super hip and happening
neighborhood, to meet up with some Fulbright folks for a drink. Tourists and
locals alike were out in full force and reggaetón was blaring from every bar
and restaurant. After ending up in a giant ball pit in the basement of a bar,
we decided we could call it a night.
Saturday morning was another beautiful Andean day. After a
typical Paisa breakfast of arepa and huevos with our hosts, Norbert and I
headed out to the botanical garden to check out a special expo of orchids,
flower arrangements, and artisanal products, another event in honor of La
Feria! Once again, we were amazed by the intricate floral designs.
lots of awesome street performers!
From there, we took the metro north to make the connection
to one of Medellin’s 3 “metrocables”, cable car lines that travel up the steep
mountain side where families live on incredible steep streets.
Once at the top,
we were able to hop on yet another cable car that travels over the mountain
into a national reserve called Parque Arvi. (The cable car was actually closed
to tourists but thanks to a call made by our host to his nephew who works
security at the park, we were able to get onboard! That’s what I call
hospitality!) At Parque Arvi, we tried another local delicacy, giant grilled
mushrooms, and then joined a guided nature tour with a great group of Colombian
and French tourists. It was much colder at the top than it had been down in the
city, but we kept warm on our hike and the guide did a great job telling us
about the local flora and fauna. Plus, the Colombian ladies had us laughing the
whole time.
From Parque Arvi, we took the metrocable out of the nature
reserve. From there, we decided to walk down rather than jump on the metrocable
line down to the valley. Life on the slope of the mountain was just as busy and
bustling as the city below. Although the narrow roads were nearly at 90-degree
angles, that didn’t stop buses from rushing or motorcyclists from speeding all
over the place. The weekend was in full swing; vendors hawked their wares, kids
flew kites, music blared, cervezas were consumed, and kids rode rides and
played games on a town square overlooking the valley.
being pragmatic about power ;)
Further down the
mountain, children stopped us to take their picture, just as enchanted to meet
faraway visitors on their own street as we were to meet them!
Norbert showing the girls where the US & Germany are on the map!
a salsa bar under a highway
Medellin & the full moon
Inside the metro
Our bustling metro stop, Estadio
That night, we went home with every intention of showering
and leaving again to go dancing, but a short nap turned into 12 hours of sleep,
which was probably necessary after the exciting day we’d had.
Since we awoke fresh-faced and bushy-tailed from our epic
night of sleep, we headed out first thing in the morning to catch an early tour
to Santa Elena, one of the most important villages during La Feria de las
Flores. After a steep and winding climb out of the valley, the tour stopped at
a hacienda or typical mountain lodge for a breakfast “de montaña”:
arepa, sausage, hot chocolate and queso freso.
From there, we continued to the
center of Santa Elena where they were having a fair in honor of la Feria (do
you see a trend??) and then to the main event: a visit to a finca de flores, a
flower farm! The family farm had been converted into a museum with great exhibits
on how mountain life used to be for los silleteros. We also learned more about
the flower arrangements themselves; there are several categories, and some only
use flowers native to their village itself while other categories allow
imported flowers to be used in the arrangements. Learning all about this got us
excited for the desfile or parade that was going to happen the next day.
Originally, we had planned on leaving that evening (Sunday) because we weren’t
aware that Monday was a holiday. But given how special the desfile de los
silleteros was, we felt it couldn’t be missed. So we skipped our flight and
bought bus tickets back to Cartagena for Monday evening instead.
Monday morning, we woke up bright and early to make our way
downtown to the parade route. Even though the parade didn’t start until 2, we’d
heard that some people staked out their spots the night before. Securing the
best viewing spot for the parade was clearly serious business. It was possible
to buy tickets to sit in bleachers, but we decided to risk it and see what we
could find on the street. Luckily, we found a spot on a sidewalk with a sweet
family. The father was a complete joker and had everyone around us cracking up
for hours as we waited for the parade to begin. Once it began, he and his daughters
whistled at all the passing parade people, urging them to give a “Vuelta” or a
turn—even the city workers picking up garbage. The parade didn’t only feature
the silleteros, or villagers carrying flowers on their back. It also featured
dance troops, live bands, clowns, military on horseback & police with their
dogs, city workers, etc. It was clear how much the people from Medellin love
their city and their heritage. I especially love how much everyone cheered when
the city’s recycling team walked down the parade route holding bouquets of flowers
fashioned from plastic bottles.
Waiting for the parade to start
The beloved recycling team
hiding from the sun
But the true heroes were the silleteros, the men, women, and
children carrying enormous floral arrangements on their backs—some up to 200
kilos! Some of the silletos had elaborate designs made from flowers with environmental
and cultural messages. It was the 60th anniversary of the Feria de
las Flores so los silleteros went all out! They loved showing off their hard
work, and the crowd responded in turn with whistles, screams, and chants of “Se lucio Santa Elena, se lucio!”
(Shine on, Santa Elena!) and “Cuando
pasa un silletero es Antioquia la que pasa” (When a silletero passes by, it’s Antioquia
that passes!)
Los pioneros silleteros - the pioneer silleteros
The amazing pioneer!
El ganador absoluto - The overall winner!!
VIDEOS!
Here are some more pictures, but most of them can be viewed in this digital photo album.
It was a very moving experience and I’m glad we decided not
to miss it. The parade was the crown jewel on an already glorious weekend exploring
a great city. We loved everything Paisa: the food, the flowers, and best of all
– the people! Antioquia—we’ll be back!
