Colorful Colombia Welcomes Us Back

In March of 2020, our winter adventure in Medellín, Colombia was cut short. With covid causing uncertainty throughout the world, we sadly and quickly said ''adiós'' to the dear friends who had warmly welcomed us to their beautiful country. While we were fortunate to be able to hang out in Florida last winter, visions of arepas, buñuelos, and abundant fresh fruit still danced in our heads. We continued to study our Spanish and stayed connected via the Internet with some of our Paisa amigos. These friendships grew stronger during the pandemic and made us vow to return when we were able. While there is still some uncertainty about international travel, we decided to return to a place and a people that we dearly love. We continue to be humbled and grateful as ...

Colorful Colombia Welcomes Us Back!!!!

Sabaneta, a small ''suburb'' just south of Medellin, is our home base for our first month here. During our previous visits, we were intrigued by its charming ''small town'' feel. The central town square is surrounded by a beautiful church and various shops and restaurants. The park is always alive with activity ... a welcoming gathering space for the town's people. Our AirBnB apartment is a five minute walk to this central park and an easy ten minute walk to the Metro station that quickly connects us to other destinations in Medellin.

While our new ''home'' is not super huge, it doesn't take much to improve on the space that we are used to in the van. Doug quickly stretched out and made himself comfortable. The owner of this apartment has connections with one of the neighborhood cervecerías, so we found the fridge filled with the local brews that we could purchase. Unfortunately, Colombia is not big on the IPAs, so Doug is OK with ignoring the Aquila (equivalent to an American Budweiser) and embracing the abundant fruit juices found at the local markets and restaurants instead.

The kitchen has everything I need to make Doug's favorite paisa breakfast consisting of arepas de chocolo con queso crema, plantanos fritos, and jugo de naranja.

For lunch, we quickly figured out that it is much easier and less expensive to visit one of the many local cafes for their ''menu del día'' specials then to buy the ingredients needed to cook this grand meal on our own. This traditional offering consists of soup, juice, arepas, rice, plantains, avocado, salad, an egg, and your choice of protein (chicken, beef, pork, sausage, or fish) ... all for a whooping $3.50 each (including tip).

I don't need any convincing to hang up my apron, especially since this tasty meal is usually all the food we need for the day ... although I can be talked into making a fruit smoothie for our Colombian version of ''Happy Hour''.

Abundant fresh fruit is available at any one of the many small family-run tiendas that line the streets of every neighborhood in town. Guanabana, mora, murrapo, mango, and lulo ... oh, how we missed you!

And we happily got reacquainted when we hopped on the metro to check out our friend, Juan Diego's ''frutas y verduras'' tienda which is located in a barrio north of us. It is a special gift to be welcomed back by friends like Juan Diego whom we got to know during our past visits. With language exchanges still closed down due to the pandemic, the ability to get together with our Paisa friends for our personal language exchange has become even more precious to us. 

James, pictured here with his family, became Doug's online Spanish ''profesor'' and friend during the past year. He helped Doug with the many Spanish verb tenses, while Doug helped him with the often difficult-to-pronounce English words. They also shared life experiences during their frequent video calls. What a joy to finally meet in person and share the international language of friendship!

Nurses need to stick together in good times and in bad, and I am happy that I was able to stay in touch with Somni, a nurse in Medellin, during the past year. It is very interesting to hear about her experiences in Colombia during the pandemic. She too is interested in learning another language, and like all skilled nurses, she is an excellent teacher as well. Since our apartment is very close to hers, we are enjoying the chance to get together for Spanish/English lessons while enjoying everyday Colombian activities. I was hoping that the sangria would make it easier for me to ''roll my Rs'', but sadly, I am going to need a lot more practice ... and a lot more sangria!

While excited to see the green mountains of Colombia once again, we ... well to be honest, mostly I wasn't sure how it would be traveling abroad while the pandemic is still a threat for many. But thankfully, we have found a place and a people who seem to have accepted the reality of the situation, yet continue to safely enjoy life. It is just second nature to don a mask whenever the Colombians go out in public. Vaccines are thought of as a part of their civic responsibility. Businesses welcomed back their customers by offering masks, hand sanitizer, and enhanced cleaning. Everyone seems to be working together to ensure that their community can remain safe, open,

... and ready for the month-long celebration of Christmas!

Colombians totally embrace the fiesta de la Navidad, and I know that we are in for a special treat as our Paisa amigos warmly welcome us back to join in the celebration!

Looking forward to sharing our special Christmas experiences with you in the coming weeks!

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