london
moved over to becks and fede’s!!! they moved only a month after i left barna so it’ll be good to catch up :) they live not too far from the tube and only 2 min from camden by bus so it’s also a great location to be.
apparently london’s become a bit dodgy because of the gang wars. people are getting mugged and stabbed…sounds a bit familiar to me :p although i never once felt threatened under any circumstances but i guess i usually feel alright. i can’t think of the last time i felt scared of a place.
besides gorging myself with food i felt i’ve missed, i went to a couple of good drinking spots. all bar one in covent garden and gordon’s wine bar in embankment are both chill spots. i went to gordon’s with lee (my good friend who i spent a couple of weeks with in el bolson) as a local’s recommendation. he apparently has been going there for the last 5+ years! it’s a really cool celler-like place with low ceilings and old furniture. just be sure to get there early! early is like17h in enlgnad….not 22h south american time.
london election party
a friend called down from bristol where he is studying to attend some election parties. with dan here and staying with us, we had a mini-barcelona reunion!
around midnight we went to the king’s college bar to partake in the festivities. geez i can’t believe how excited these kids were! SCREAMING at the television as results were displayed by counties. the huge room (which resembled an university common area/cafeteria with a huge bar) overlooking the thames river was decorated in flags of the united kingdom and upcoming world cup posters. not much else to it.
people were actually wearing the colors of their preferred party! every so often screaming would turn into chants, and then song. i think the brits have a song for everything. it’s like i was at a futbol match.
we went home because it was getting pretty ridiculous;at 3AM the results were still unclear. hung parliament it is.
london
i love london! real super markets once again. real as in american sized ones with proper aisles for everything; 20 kinds of bread; 50 kinds of crisps; 100 kinds of drink….you get the point. lots of cheap food at restaurants since many offer 2×1 deals for breakfast/lunch. oooh and sushi, how i missed you so. the take-away sushi places are my favorite! ok maybe i just missed food…
it’s so cold here! stupid me was ofcourse wearing flip flops since it was warm during the day. i forgot may is still cold in some countries.
stayed with a friend in THE DORMS of kings college over in finchley. these were supposed to be the crappy ones, but these students obviously hadn’t seen some of their american counterparts. her room WITH HER OWN SINK AND CLOSET was the same size as the ones my friends were squeezed into with 2 OTHER PEOPLE! maids once a week as well. geez.
buenos aires
back yet again! i actually had no choice since i have my roundtrips start/end here. my last minute roundtrip wasn’t so bad: $600 with LAN PERU for a roundtrip EZE-BOG (EZE->LIMA->BOG). considering how expensive the buses in argentina are, i think $300 each way is reasonable. i’m glad i didn’t have to do the 100hr+ bus journey that probably would’ve come to about the same price.
i do love it here tho, and is why i keep stopping over between trips. although after the tranquility of the patagonia region and countryside colombia, i did feel some underground stations and nearby streets were dodgy. so keep your eyes open and don’t flaunt your valuables!
i stayed in the san telmo district once again. i just really like the vibe and the proximity to its markets, although i admit many things are accessible with the metro. met up with my friends again….i love going out with locals because it for once puts the pressure off me to find somewhere to go ;)
bogota
if you’ve got the extra cash or just short on time, try looking for flights with aires.
www.aires.aero
$40 U.S. will get you from bogota to loads of destinations nationally and internationally. $200 will get you to new york!
this is also a great option if you are coming from the u.s. instead of booking a ticket to buenos aires, why not start in colombia and make your way south?
bogota
back in bogota! i really like the fact that it’s a big city, and like buenos aires and barcelona, it starts with a ‘b’. ok just kidding. i really like that all three cities have distinctive neighborhoods. makes it much more fun to explore. the candelaria area is great because it’s old town so it’s got character. it’s also a student area so there are cheap places to eat. the proximity to museums and plazas is undeniable as well!
we happend to arrive on 1 may, which is labour day. here the workers have a big parade that is regulated by the thousands of police to keep them in check. things only got a bit out of hand when the riots started in plaza bolivar. people were just throwing things from the crowd since you are not easily spotted. so, surrounded by the riot police, tanker bull dozer double the size of an ambulance, army guards, AND national police, the rioters were kept in the plaza by tear gas and threat of rubber bullets. nevermind how armed the police were! AK’s, gernades, and big, big guns. i have no idea why i ended up there except to get some photos…i did feel safe enough with the army boys right behind me though! the aftermath was a big mess of shrapnel/garbage/burnt articles and one damaged cathedral door. as naive tourists we were left excited and adrenaline-fueled standing in the plaza.
villa de leyva
the best lamb is supposedly served here. i don’t know why, but we’ve been following food around for a bit now….maybe it means we’re feeling deprived? the town is a good size and has massive cobble-stoned roads. a bit hard to walk around at first because you always have to watch out for loose/missing stones. getting hurt during a trip is definitely not what any of us are looking for!
its got a huge plaza that is 120×120 meters and one of the biggest in the americas. umm what else, what else??? a church, shops, and scenic hikes….i think i am starting to be unimpressed by the similarity of these towns.
however, WE WERE VERY MUCH IMPRESSED WITH THE LAMB!!! many restaurants serve it as a specialty and most probably won’t dissapoint. ours was the size of my thigh! get one to share…unless you plan on taking some home! if you go into the ‘centro de comercio quintero’ there are a couple to choose from. ’don quijote’ was recommended a few times.
barichara
it’s a short ride away to barichara from san gil, a perfect day trip. this town is famous for its colonial streets and overall aesthetic beauty that’s been preserved. we were told this is why a lot of films are still filmed here. it’s definitely pretty, but not exciting enough to merit a over night stay. our reason for coming was to see the village but more to try their delicacy: ants!
there was no way i was trying them since i despise them. that’s all. anyway, after lunch we asked the owner where to find some. OFCOURSE he had some and offered them to us as dessert. sick. these things were the color of red beans and the same size, if not bigger. after they were chewed a bit it didn’t look any better on everyone’s tongues. apparently they don’t taste so bad.
if you don’t have too much time for day trips, don’t worry about it. the whole santander region is famous for its ants. shops in san gil sell them as well.
san gil
one of my favorite villages :) popular with adventure seekers, it’s the interlaken of colombia. from white water rafting to rapelling, it’s all here! paragliding prices start at 60.000.
stay at el dorado hostel on calle 12, n.8-55. owned by the rios brothers, luis and miguel are heaps of help and fun!
we stopped off here so two of the boys could potentially go paragliding. i say potentially because they needed a good convincing! it would’ve been awesome to go again but funds are running low…2 more months to go.the taxi ride into town from the bus station is only 2500. the town is not very big so this price is pretty standard. don’t be ripped off for ‘extra persons’ or ‘extra bags.’ just make sure to have 2500 and don’t expect change…we’ve experienced that they simply refuse to give it back!
the climate is so much nicer here. inland and still surrounded by vegetation, it’s not as humid as the coast. food and drink is most definitely cheaper. whew! there are a couple of markets in town which are worth checking out like the fresh fruit juice and chicken ones…the poor chickens are in a crate next to the kitchen waiting to be eaten. never seen that before! you can also get big ants here (specialty of the santandar region). um, no gracias.
if you just want to relax, ask luis. he’ll recommend excellent places and even join you! he took us to a swimming hole just 5 mintutes outside town where you can go cliff jumping. follow him up as he shows you how to climb back up under the mini waterfall and bare-handed on the face of the rock. what a fantastic day!
el parque nacional tayrona
another park, another entry fee: 34.000 pesos for a 5 day permit. a bit steep but a must-do on my list of the coast! plastic bags are not allowed and neither is alcohol with high alcohol content. they search your bags at the entrance as you register. wine seemed to depend on the security staff and definitely NO LIQUOR UNLESS YOU BRIBE THE POLICEMAN! (a bit more later)
from the entrance you can pay another 2.000 for a lift to the start of the trails. cough it up and pay…it’s an uninteresting paved road. from here it’s a easy hike. there are a few places to stay…the first one (el paraiso) is really nice and cheap (about 15.000 for a hammock) WITH proper toilets/shower. however, the beach isn’t that great. walk another hour and you will reach el cabo. you can swim in the beaches here (it’s not allowed along the way due to strong currents) and the water is fantastic. aqua clear water with white sand and many nice coves. the hammocks start at 20.000 and the tents from 25.000. there is also a shite communal outdoor shower for the whole campground…food starts at about 8.000 for a pretty big meal and drink from 2.000 a can/bottle of water.
we didn’t see any police until this last campsite. as we were registering ourselves, he approached and asked to see our bags. we had 2 litres of rum hidden away but his search was thorough! apparently strong alcohol is not permitted because it “ruins the calm ambiance of the park.” understandable, right? but we are in colombia…and asking if we could bribe him isn’t technically bribing, is it? so we asked him if there was any was of getting them back and OFCOURSE he said “sure, at what price?” so after a little haggling, we paid him 30.000 pesos for both cartons. not bad considering the prices within the park for beer :p
enjoy your time here! there is endless jungle paradise waiting to be explored and a gorgeous beach to relax on when you get back. just bring lots of water, food and enough money!