2008: a backpack odyssey

The final night parade in Popayan was spectacular - the same delightful Jesuseses but without the crowds. (great for reminiscing about Jesus's journey on the cross)

Then, on to San Augustin - the site of some wierd funerary statues. (note photograph)

And now I'm in Medellin - a place where it may be possible to dance on Pablo Escobar's grave. But more importantly, it's the place where my backpack began its odyssey and I learned some valuable lessons in keeping a smile going. (note photograph again)

Lesson 1: There is no smell worse than a backpack soiled with fish juice - except maybe Bundaegi. (Korea's national hiking food)

Lesson 2: There is no pain more severe than picking up your freshly laundered backpack, only to discover that it still smells of fish - except maybe childbirth. (everyone wish Loni well)

Lesson 3: There is nothing worse than discovering that your backpack has been taken apart, and the straps sewn on backwards - except maybe death. (this is not my wisdom, but what the cleaner told me in order to put things into perspective)

So, my request is for everyone to pray to Baby Jesus for him to use his Baby Jesus Powers for me to find a place for me to re-repair my backpack. (Please do not pray to Ninja Fighting Jesus)

[Side note: whilst writing this, someone climbed the walls of the hostel and stole the VCR and DVD player. The police were here within about 2 minutes - now that's service!]

This Week in God Week

On today, Good Friday, I felt it wise to reflect on the state of global Messianisim.

No, not really. Instead, here's a brief review of my week.

Monday - took a day trip from Cali (Colombia's salsa capital) to San Cipriano - a small town that can be reached on foot, or by the remarkable moto-tren. This was my main reason for going to San Cipriano - and it was well worth it! -- a couple videos are up on youtube.

Then, Tuesday morning I headed to Silvia - as every Tuesday, the town hosts an indigenous market. I wasn't thrilled with the market, but the town was lovely, and on one part of my walk, I smelled the sweetest air ever. (It must be noted that 5 minutes later it was foul as foul can be)

Wednesday morning brought me to Popayan - where I am now, for (apparently) the world's second largest Easter celebration (after Sevilla, Spain). Daytime atmosphere is fantastic - evening atmosphere is soporific - and late night atmosphere is where you truly get close to Jesus - at a salsa bar.

Zoo Logic

I'm currently in Cali, Colombia, one of the world's foremost plastic surgery destinations - as evidenced by the thousands of silicone enhanced breasts that are simply everywhere. (Not to mention less evident surgeries).

Yesterday I went to the Zoologico, and as recommended, compared myself to a monkey. Clearly the monkey has slightly more hair, and I wear glasses. I have no doubt that there are subtler differences too.

It was strange being in a zoo after recently seeing some of the animals in the wild... On the plus side, I saw a few animals that were too reticent to come out when I was in their hood. On the negative side, as amazing as zoos are, it's not the same sort of experience.

This is also the first time in my life I've seen a complete Sunday shut-down - the only way I found an internet cafe was to accidently stumble upon the city bus terminal. It's wierd seeing a metropolis turn into a ghost town overnight.

Political note: Whilst in Bogota, I could have had my hair cut by the president's barber, but for some strange reason I didn't - yet another reason to always go for the gold.

A slice

Sometimes travelling gets difficult - so much so that it's possible to imagine jumping on a plane and returning to snow-filled Canada. In a way, this is even a good thing, because it makes you realize (even if you already knew it), that just like Dorothy said - ˝there's no place like home˝.

Anyhow, common sense has prevailed, and I'll stay on the road. But, just for y'all to know - it's not always easy!

My hosts in Bogota are a delightful Slovenian couple I met on the Ciudad Perdida trek. They've taught me a lot about Slovenia - for example, it's not in Eastern Europe, but in Central Europe; it has only 2 million citizens, and it's capital is very hard to spell. Also, they've requested that I reinforce that Colombia is an amazing place, generally safe and that they still like Slovenia better. In fact, they've just convinced me it would be amazing to visit one day!

Getting high in Colombia

I'm currently in San Gil, Santander, Colombia - an eco-adventure tourism town, that seems quite lovely. After a long bus ride last night, I decided to keep going (at 1 in the morning!) and continue on til here... Then, bright and early a decision to go for my first paragliding trip - quite an interesting experience - definitely cool, but not the adrenaline rush I was expecting - a couple of really cool videos are now up on youtube, so take a look.

And.. another tidbit on the military situation.

Apparently the Military (good guys) and the paramilitary (bad guys) have never been in an armed conflict. The paramilitary have been responsible for lots of ethnic cleansing - removing undesirables like homeless people and homosexuals.

The FARC (Guerrilas) apparently control about 30% of the drug trade - or a guesstimated $1 million per day, and the paramilitary the other 70%. CASH, CASH, CASH.

Lost and Found

I just finished a trek to Colombia´s famous lost city - called - Ciudad Perdida (Lots of new photos and videos). The ruins were stunning and the trek was relatively easy and uneventful - aside from fleas and ticks.

Notes of interest... The military pays low end soldiers $33 per month - this is to pay for essentials like soap, toothpaste, etc. The soldiers we met were constantly asking for cigarettes, because they couldn´t afford the $1 or so per pack they cost.

There are 3 main armed forces in Colombia
1) Army
2) Guerillas
3) Paramilitary (Professional soldiers for hire)

None of them get along.

Questions and answers

So, before coming to Colombia, I was urged not to talk politics with anyone, as the FARC is always listening...

So I waited a couple days before asking someone about the FARC - he absolutely refused to say anything, or comment on why he wouldn´t say anything. This is almost more telling than an actual conversation -- so anyhow, it´s serious business.

I asked about safety in the area, and was told that it was very safe, because the army has a base nearby and can have a plane in the air in 3 minutes -- interesting.

It´s wierd, because on the surface, so far the country seems like one of the safest I´ve visited - but scratch a little, and of course there´s a war in the background, and police corruption that sounds worse than Brasil.

Anyhow, this sounds a little sketchy, but at the same time, it seems like the country is remarkably stable and safe.