Week 2- Orientation

This week was busy, busy, busy. I pretty much dropped off the face of the earth in terms of communication with people outside Colombia because I had little internet access, my days began at 7 am, and they ended at the earliest at 11 pm.

The rest of the Fulbright ETAs to Colombia arrived in Bogota Sunday, July 24^th. It was SUCH a great feeling to have everyone all together again! Even though we’ve only technically known each other for a month and were only in the same place in the U.S. for a total of 4 days (teaching orientation in D.C.), the reunion was definitely a joyous affair....so joyous the hotel staff had to ask us to be quiet, oops! It really feels like I’ve known them much longer….

My typical orientation day consisted of breakfast, heading out as a group at 8 am by bus to the building where we had our orientation sessions, orientation until 6:30 pm, dinner, and then an evening activity (aka exploring the nightlife). It wasn’t a super strenuous schedule--we just got a lot of information and were kept busy. Orientation consisted of logistical and administrative tasks, as well as cultural education. On the logistical side, we opened up Colombian bank accounts, sorted out visas, discussed the aspects of our contracts, had a security briefing by a security officer from the US Embassy in Colombia, and were introduced to the Fulbright community in Colombia and key people we need to know. For the cultural education side, we had classes on the following:

• Colombian political history (REALLY interesting!)
  
• U.S.-Colombia Relations
• Colombian Music, Culture, and Diversity class
• Colombian Dance: a dance group came and performed for us and then taught us cumbia and Afro-Colombian dance moves (no surprise, my favorite class from the week)
  
• Civil Society in Colombia and the Roles of NGO’s (I got some great ideas about what types of orgs I want to get involved with)
  
• Culture Shock and Adjusting to Life in Colombia
• The National Bilingual Program and the Higher Education System

So basically, LOTS of information processing!! Our second to last day of orientation we had a 6-hour city tour in the afternoon and evening which was really cool. We went to the barrio La Candelaria, which is the historic center of Bogota. The city began in this neighborhood, which features cobblestone roads and many museums and tourist sites. In Candelaria, we visited el Museo de Oro, el Museo Botero, and La Casa de Moneda. My favorite part of the city tour, though, was when we went to Monserrate, a mountain that dominates the city center of Bogotá. We rode in a téléferico to the top (!!), which granted us the most amazing and beautiful views of Bogota! All of downtown Bogotá, south Bogotá and some sections of the north are visible facing west…if only we could have stayed for sunset.

All in all, a VERY successful week! Now off to my final destination: Cali.

Colombian Foods

From top to bottom:
1) Pollo- flavored chips. They actually taste just like chicken. Dislike.
2) Tamales Tolimenses
3) Fancy chicken in a sauce with rice.
4) The fruit lulo
5) The ingredients used to make the dessert oblea.
6) An oblea. #noms
7) Tilapia Frita.
8) My new favorite ice cream! It is homemade, the different flavors are different fruits, and it comes on a stick. I got maracuyá, Molly--the other Fulbright ETA in Cali-- got maní (peanut), Angie--my new Colombian friend-- got piña (pineapple), and David (an American teaching English at La Santiago for a month) got coco (coconut).
9) Champús: a very popular drink in Cali made from lulo, maize, and pineapple. It is sweetened with panela (unrefined whole cane sugar) and seasoned with cinnamon, cloves, and orange tree leaves.
10) The fruit granadilla/maracuya/passion fruit.
11) Papas Rellenas.
12) The inside of passion fruit.
13) Colombian empanadas.

Mini Attempt At A Food Blog

While Colombia isn’t particularly known for its food, I have found new foods I really like and I LOVE the fruit selection! Food varies based on what region you’re in, but no matter where you are the abundance of fresh fruit (most of which I’ve never heard of before) is overwhelming, in a good way. As I mentioned in my list of “Things I Now Know,” there are 150 types of fruits in Colombia. Literally everyday I am discovering a new fruit I didn’t know existed.

Lunch is the big meal of the deal here. It consists of a soup as the appetizer and then a meat option, rice, beans/French fries, and salad as the main dish. Best part: the entire meal (called Almuerzo Corrientes or Almuerzo Ejecutivo) is a set price of 5,000 pesos, which is $2.50 USD. Although dessert isn’t included, I’m usually too stuffed to want one anyway….that of course doesn’t stop me from finding a sweet snack later on in the day. The average temperature in Cali is 75˚ F, so ice cream and cholados (the Colombian version of a snow cone) are VERY popular. Why restrain myself when ice cream costs the equivalent of 50 cents....

Some of the typical foods:

-->Granadilla: also known as maracuyá or passion fruit

-->Papas rellenas: a ball of rice, potatoes, and ground beef that is then fried

-->Tamales: cooked corn dough filled with meat, chicken and vegetable wrapped in banana leaves; the one pictured above is Tolimenses: filled with chicken, pork, rice, potatoes, carrots, peas and spices

-->Empanadas: a savory stuffed pastry that is fried in Colombia instead of baked like the ones in Argentina; the Colombian empanadas are filled with beef or chicken, rice or potatoes, and/or cheese, and coriander.

-->Arepas: the basic side to any Colombian meal; it is a bread made from cornmeal and looks like a thick pancake....hit or miss in my book. Eaten plain, it is wayyy too starchy and bland for my liking. Definitely tastes better when served with additional ingredients like corn and cheese or mushrooms and cheese.

-->Obleas: a dessert that is two round wafers with arequipe (same as dulce de leche or caramel), cheese, condensed milk, and blackberry sauce in between. I know it sounds weird, but it’s surprisingly good.

WEEK 1

The adventure has begun. I’ve now been here a week and have already had the funniest and most random experiences. My Top 2:

1) Colombian Independence Day: Meg and I spent the day with Brian (her Colombian friend) and his friend Simon doing as the Colombians do. There were fireworks and a military parade in the morning downtown and Alimentarte (a food fair) all afternoon in a park uptown. Alimentarte was like a “Taste of [fill in U.S. city].” Great restaurants of all types had tents with food from their menu and you could find traditional Colombian food, Argentinean food, Peruvian food, Spanish food, etc. I felt like I had traveled around the world via delicious cuisine. I was flooded with nostalgia and memories of all the great places I’ve been the past 4 years and the foods I’ve eaten…I must say, though, I’ve found nothing that beats an empanada as best all-around snack. In addition to food, the fair featured steel drum bands, dancers, singers, street performers, and the Colombian U-20 national soccer team doing tricks with soccer balls.

In true Latin American form, the big event of the evening was the Copa América 2011 soccer match being played that night between Venezuela and Paraguay. Allegiance to celebrating their nation took a major backseat to Colombian’s allegiance to soccer. Personally, I didn’t care which team won, but I still really enjoyed watching the game and re-immersing myself in a soccer culture. I’m still amazed by the power of soccer to unify a people and completely stop all other activity in a nation. I love it. The FIFA U-20 World Cup is being held in Colombia and begins July 29^th. I cannot even begin to express how pumped I am. My current goal is to find a ticket to one of the games. Although the final rounds are being played in Bogota, there will be games in Cali leading up to it. The amount of publicity and excitement for this tournament is incredible! You wouldn’t even guess it was the Under-20 World Cup—Colombians are exhibiting just as much passion and pride as if this were the normal World Cup (memo: need to align my life plans with being in Brazil in 2014).

2) Night Out at Andrés D.C. (BEST club in Bogota): Continuing our decision to “do as the Colombians do,” Meg and I took her Colombian’s friend advice and went out Thursday night to a restaurant-club named Andrés D.C. It’s a restaurant that turns into a club around 11 pm. It has 5 floors, 3 of which feature different types of Latin music and are named heaven, hell, and purgatory; it was QUITE the fun experience (no worries, it’s in a safe, ritzy neighborhood). Meg and I had a delicious dinner around 10 pm, during which we were singled out by the restaurant’s traveling band (4 guys who travel between the floors performing and dancing) and forced to stand up and dance salsa with the lead guy in front of everyone. They put Colombian-colored sashes on us and crowned us, so I guess I’ve finally earned my princess title :P

Post-dinner, we went upstairs to Purgatory and fully immersed ourselves in Colombian culture. We ordered the local drinks and then spent the next 4 hours gaining first-hand experience with Colombian hospitality. We friended Colombians, Mexicans, and Brazilians and I, of course, spent the last 2 hours in bliss on the dance floor. I’m falling in love all over again with Hispanic culture: the people’s joy for life, their love of dancing (actual dance moves), and the omnipresence of salsa music….

Welcome to Colombia.

10 Things I Now Know About Colombia

1) You can buy pollo-flavored Margarita chips. Amazingly (and terrifyingly), they taste like chicken.

2) They sell Smirnoff Ice in a can for $1.40…I explained ice-ing to a Colombian and he thought it was hilarious and great

3) Jaywalking is a way of life…the existence of crosswalks is doubtful most times

4) The real reason behind always wearing boots or close-toed shoes in Bogota: walking on the “sidewalks” is like all-terrain hiking (#UNCpreparedmewell)

5) Colombians find it completely acceptable to stare. Even if you catch them at it and look at them, they won’t look away

6) Age is nothing but a number

7) The extent of Colombian hospitality, kindness, and generosity is endless. Upon meeting you, people will give you their phone number, address, email, and offer you a place to stay

8) Tell any Colombian male that you’re here for a year and they will most definitely inform you that you need to find a Colombian lover....and then not-so-subtly hint that they should be your lover

9) Caleños (people from Cali) love 2 things: enjoying life and salsa dancing

10) Colombia has 150 types of fruits and all the fruits come in different types…I will probably end up drinking more juice than water. My two new favorites: lulo and guanábana

ARRIVAL

My Fulbright orientation in Colombia officially began July 24th, but I arrived the night of July 19^th with my friend, Meg Frost, a fellow Fulbright ETA (English Teaching Assistant). We decided to come early in order to celebrate Colombian Independence Day, which was July 20^th.

In typical Emma style, Meg and I were late to board the plane in Miami—we were the last ones to get on and even had our names called on the loud speakers (we prioritized phone calls, what can we say). Shortly after I found my seat on the plane, a flight attendant came up and asked if I was Emma Din. I thought I was in trouble, but it turns out I was being given a free pass to anything on the plane :) Meg’s Colombian friend (Brian) had told his mom (who works for American Airlines) our flight information, and she had asked her friend on our flight to “take care of us.” What did this translate into: extra snacks, free white wine (put me to sleep every time), hilarious conversation, and consistent check-ups to make sure I was perfectly happy.

Second best part of the flight: Wonderfully Ridiculous Plane Friends. I sat next to Tony, a 52-year-old military contractor from the U.S. who had traveled all around the world through his job. Hearing about his experiences in Afghanistan, Iraq, Europe, and Colombia were phenomenal. Talk about being engaged in conversation. Next to Meg was Alfredo, a 50-year-old Venezuelan petrol man. His favorite topic: politics. He gave his opinion on all the recent U.S. presidents, Colombian presidents, and Venezuelan presidents. He is conservative and owns 2 homes in Venezuela and 2 in Colombia…needless to say, he wasn’t a big fan of Chavez. Thanks to Alfredo, Meg and I landed an invitation to a polo match, an invitation to Uribe’s finca (country house-type farm) outside Medellin, and an invitation to utilize his personal driver.

Best Flight Ever.