Like this flower child, we are getting back into our Colombian groove once again. Having visitors for the first few weeks set a very fun, yet different pace for us. We kept busy showing them all our favorite Medellín sights. This week we welcomed another friend named Dave to Paisa-land. He is staying with us for a month and, like us, is very interested in improving his Spanish through everyday interactions with the local Paisas. Because of this, we have found ourselves slowing down a little and showing him more of what we love about the ''tranquilo'' daily life in Colombia.
We are reminded of all the Amor and Pasión that surrounds us as we get back into our Colombian Groove once again!
We have embraced the Paisa philosophy that every great day should start out with café (coffee) and arepas. When we first tried them, we felt that the most popular type of arepa here (made of common cornmeal) was a bit bland. We found it quite comical that the Spanish word for ''bland'' is ''soso'' ... yes, they were quite so-so. But after discovering the arepas de chócolo, we are in arepa heaven ... united with our fellow Paisas in their LOVE of arepas!
Arepas de chócolo start with yellow corn that is ground up and mixed with butter, milk, and SUGAR! The corn is tasty, of course, but the added sugar makes this sweeter version of the traditional paisa arepa our new favorite. Serve this up with queso crema (spreadable cream cheese), fried plantains, and café, and you too will start to feel the Colombian groove.
Hearing the birds singing in the morning sun, Doug steps out on our patio to make his daily weather announcement. ''Wow, it's another nice day!'' Re-energized, we put on our walking shoes and plan our day.
If it's Sunday morning we prepare for an entertaining, people-watching extravaganza ... Ciclovia. Every Sunday, half of Poblado Avenue, the main north-south artery in Medellín, is closed to motorized vehicles from 7 am until 1 pm. Bicyclists, runners, and walkers of all ages claim the space as they celebrate another beautiful day. As we walk the route, talented musicians, cute kids, and adorable puppies keep us entertained. We usually walk about six miles down the Ciclovia route, grab lunch at the food court of one of Medellín's many malls, and hop on the Metro that brings us back home.
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| Doug's fav food court meal ... fish, pasta, salad, and mango juice for 23,000 cop ($6.75) at Montolivo. |
During the week, just a walk to the grocery store, fruit stand, Metro, or Mall easily gives us a step count of 10,000 or more. But more importantly, we easily discover new reasons to embrace this beautiful city.
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| Fútbol Stars meet Fútbol Hopefuls as they practice on the canchas de deportes (sports fields) that seem to be everywhere. |
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| Jungle meets Garden as we pass tall groves of bamboo trees and other greenery that line the streets. |
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| Country meets City as a herd of cows greet us a few blocks from our apartment. |
This year we are living in Envigado which is the town just south of Medellín. We continue to be pleasantly surprised at the differences between our current neighborhood and Poblado neighborhood where we lived last year. Poblado seemed very ''touristy'' while Envigado feels much more ''homey''. Smiles and ''buenos días'' replace hurried glances. Small grocers and fruit stands replace huge supermarkets. Family-run diners replace chain restaurants.
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| It is always a treat to find a ''menú del día'' special that many small neighborhood cafés serve up. For about 13,000 pesos ($3.80 usd), we are very satisfied and ready for our next activity. |
The afternoon sun can be very warm, so we usually return to our apartment for some Spanish studies... and possibly a siesta.
Doug has decided that listening to Spanish YouTube videos produces the best ''bang for the buck'' for him ... and I think (maybe) he might be right. His hours of listening practice has greatly improved his comprehension and speaking skills making him ''el experto'' when talking to waiters and taxi drivers.
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| But sometimes no amount of Spanish can help us figure out the confusing maps that show the many bus routes around town. |
My favorite way to learn Spanish is by speaking with locals and by helping them learn English. This method of learning Spanish helps fill our evenings up quite nicely. Once again, we are volunteer English teachers two afternoons a week at San Javier library in the under-served Comuna 13 neighborhood of Medellín. In order to teach English to these beginner students, I need to speak quite a bit of Spanish. The determination of these students to learn English in order to provide a better life for their family helps me to ''buckle down'' on my own studies.
So thankful that we can rely on the universal language of sharing a smile when the exact words may not yet be ''on the tip of our tongues''!
Many evenings we continue our language practice by attending ''language exchanges''. These usually take place in cafés, hostels, or language schools around town. Local Paisas wanting to speak English as well as visitors like us wanting to speak Spanish meet up to practice the new language as well as learn about each other. Last week I met and talked with a 20-year-old talented photographer and film maker who is going to start a three year program next September in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. While he was actually quite good with his English skills, he did appreciate me filling him in on the ''beauty'' of a northern winter. I give him a lot of credit ... the thought of possibly experiencing the point where Celsius and Fahrenheit meet at -40 degrees didn't seem to deter him (too) much!
While it is a joy to get to know new people all the time, it is also very special to reconnect with dear friends that we met last year. I appreciate being able to spend time once again with friends like Melissa. She helped me immensely this past year by texting back and forth in Spanish. Her huge hug and heartfelt, ''Bienvenidos, American Mom'' really made me feel like I had come back ''home'' again.
It sure is good to feel the love and passion of our paisa amigos as we get back in our Colombian Groove once again!
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