A front row seat to the collapse of Bogota’s healthcare system was not in my plans for the night. Of course neither was the emergency surgery the next morning. I will just use the word interesting (or maybe painful) for the event.
Category: Musings
As I write this we hit day 100 of confinement. Things have changed some from the beginning. More people are ignoring safety standards. Seems like most citizens and politicians are getting crazy in one way or another.
The government reports 88,591 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the country with new cases reported going up significantly on a daily basis. Bogota, with approximately 17% of the total population of the country, exceeds all other departments.
May 6, 2020By Michael One month and half into lockdown and it appears to be working in Bogotá. My home state of Michigan in the USA is currently at over 44,000 cases with the virus. Bogotá has approximately the same population as all of Michigan and is at under 4,000 cases. There are rules. Like […]
October 2016 Soiled hands grasp the ends of wooden 2X4’s rounded off for the purpose. A man wearing an old coat and stained wrinkled blue jeans leans forward. At the same time feet search for traction on the asphalt road. Slowly the car tires of a cart laden with cardboard, plastic and wood begins to […]
Michael: It is too early for Christmas. The above photo is a collage of photos taken at a Colombian store in early October 2016 Colombia, obviously, does not have Thanksgiving. They have no holiday that could mark the beginning of the Christmas season. Interesting though is that last year several stores advertised Black Friday. Yes, […]
July 2016 We believe the best way to present this unique and interesting flower is in the video below.
July 2016 She disappeared seemingly without a trace. Moksha Coffee Shop made our list for the top ten places to have coffee in Bogotá. In fact the shop held the number one spot. In our initial interview with owner, Thana Carvajal, she bubbled with enthusiasm over creating quality food and coffee. The former actress also […]
Colombia is home to the largest variety of curuba. Also know as the banana passion fruit it is loaded with antioxidants especially proanthocyanidins and catechin. It contains vitamin A and vitamin C as well as high amounts of phosphorous, niacin, calcium and iron. When the Spanish conquistadors arrived in the Bogotá area they found the […]
Junio 2016 Conseguir unas buenas fotos en sus viajes, requiere una càmara con algunas caracterìsticas especiales. Pero no siempre las que son usadas en glamour, naturaleza o noticias sirven para cuando usted viaja. Voy a compartir con ustedes lo que para mi es una foto de viaje. Para comenzar, en mi opinion, un fotògrafo que […]
By Michael June 2016 Getting quality travel photos requires a camera with certain features. What is good for glamour, nature or news will probably not be the best for getting those travel shots. I live by a couple thoughts about travel photos. To begin with, in my opinion, it is a poor photographer who blames […]
by Michael Can you really retire early in another country or constantly travel and have a better overall life? You may have heard or read the stories of those who quit the rat race, escaped the corporate cubicle and now enjoy life. For most people the logic makes no sense unless you have a ton […]
January 2016 Last year was great for us thanks to you, the readers. In the first six months our visitors and reads exceeded all of those in the previous 18 months. For the second year in a row our site was voted as one of the top five for blogs about Latin America. Michael was […]
Michael: He looked at me a little perplexed. Colombians are polite people when it comes to one on one interactions. They often consider our American frankness as impolite. Yet at the same time they believe that playing their music loud enough to have it reverberate throughout the entire neighborhood is a benefit to all. Finally […]
December 2015 Michael: Now that I live in South America you can forget the steak sauce. Just pass me the chimichurri. And don’t try to serve me any American beef. I can understand why residents of the USA and some other countries slather a piece of beef with a sauce loaded with strong tasting elements […]
October 2015 Michael: This is something I do not believe many of our readers in the USA have experienced. While yes, our water comes from the water company, it goes into a tank first before coming into the house. Most tanks are above the roof of the house to create sufficient pressure. But ours is […]
September 2015 Michael: Attitude shifts, coffee differences, diet changes and more came to light. It has been a few years since we visited The United States. After our ten days of experiences and talking with relatives, friends and people everywhere my wife and I discussed the changes we noticed. Colombia is seen differently now Graciela: […]
July 2015 Michael: Our friend finished her story about how onces came about in Colombia. I found it fascinating though doubting it’s authenticity. However with more thought and study of Colombia my position has shifted much. This could very well be how it happened. Graciela: First an explanation is in order. Colombia is the only […]
July 2015 Michael: My wife and I want to entice people to visit this interesting and exciting South American Country, plus get maximum enjoyment from your visit. Graciela: We know that a small problem can sometimes hurt an otherwise excellent trip. Therefore Michael and I came up with this list of things you should probably think […]
June 2015 Michael: The game on TV became the second most emotional soccer (called football or futbol in almost every other country of the world than the USA) match I have watched in my life. The first was my son’s high school team playing for the regional trophy. The way the players came together and […]
June 2015 Graciela: We were a group of all Colombians and my gringo husband discussing travel to other countries. I mentioned my experiences going to Italy, France, Spain, England, The United States and Mexico. That was during my early 20’s. My protective parents felt better when I took a group tour, which I did in […]