Travel Stories: Colombia [NSR]

Retiree Living in Bogotá

.- May 2006
When I retired a few years ago I discovered that for the most part, old people in the US are forced into doing old people things, generally with other old people. I knew I wanted more than that.

I had lived for the previous 15 years on a beautifully wooded ranch in a pretty rural area near Houston in Texas, but by the time I stopped work, it was surrounded by upscale subdivisions, shopping malls and Walmart.

Prior to my retirement, I had travelled much of Europe, Central and South America, and was always evaluating potential retirement locations. When I realized that my Company was going to force me into retirement (I love them for it), I spent a great deal of time surfing the net, my favourite site being “escapeartist.com”, reading articles, and trying to determine the real cost of living in various countries. It really is impossible unless you actually go to these places, and stay for at least three weeks. I went to Panama, Chile, (I really liked Chile), Costa Rica, Mexico (the colonial towns), Guatamala (yuk!), Spain, and Canada. My eventual selection was based on family situation and climate. I am married to a Colombian and came to know Bogota really well through Christmas and other holiday visits. Although the city has a reputation for crime, drugs and violence, I felt that it was an exaggerated perception; there are many population centres in the United States that suffer just as much from these afflictions.

http://www.escapeartist.com/efam/80/Bogota_living.html

 

NOTE: Bryant is a gentleman that after making is first trip to Colombia wrote a great story with photos for our newsletter.

Why visit Bogota Colombia? Page 1

By: Bryant C. Hardee

Have you or are you considering a visit to Colombia? Well, there is plenty of good reasons to do so! I made a trip to Colombia last June and I must say that since then almost every day I have expressed to at least one person of how much I loved it there! There is so much to see and visit while in Colombia that is just beautiful and breathtaking. I spent 10 days there and in this article I would like to share my experience with all who read this. First, entry into Colombia. Maybe some of you world travelers have had all kinds of experiences both good and bad in your travels and those of you who have not traveled abroad always hear stories that make you think a lot before going anywhere. Well, simply said, I had no troubles whatsoever in my travels to and while in Colombia. There are many guides available by internet and other means that can help you plan a trip to Colombia that cover things such as maps, areas of interest, attractions, safety tips, and many other things you need to know before coming there.

As far as entry, on the plane you will be given a customs form that you must fill out as in any overseas trip you will make. Upon landing at Bogota, when you exit the plane, you will follow stairs down to immigration where you present your passport and they will check it and simply stamp it for entry. That’s it! From there, you go to claim your baggage which can take some time! After that you will proceed to customs, present your customs form (make sure it has your passport number on it!) And they will direct you to either check your baggage or clear you to proceed outside the terminal as they did with me. Once outside, there are plenty of taxi cabs available to take you almost anywhere in Bogota.

If possible, I would make prior arrangements for travel before arrival to Colombia. Once there, there is just so much to see and do. So, this is where I will share some of my excellent visits to various attractions in Colombia. On my first full day there, I went to the world famous Salt Cathedral in the town of Zipaquira just outside of Bogota. The locals call it simply "Salt Mine" which is actually what it is. It is a beautiful Christian Cathedral that was carved deep inside this old salt mine. Words simple cannot express what my eyes saw there! It is breathtakingly beautiful! It is in my opinion a must see. After the visit, I had lunch in the nearby town of Chia. This is where I will tell you that the food is great!!! I had the baby beef and to be honest, the beef I had in Colombia is better than any I have ever had in the states! The food in Colombia is superb! To put any fears to rest about food consumption, I had not one bit of trouble from eating anything there. As with going on any trip, just exercise normal caution as you would at home on eating certain things and you will be just fine.

As to other attractions I saw, in down town Bogota, you can walk around the center streets of the city and see the central plaza which is nice. Walking distance from there you can go to visit the gold museum which is a must see. Lots of open market shops all around the city where you can buy lots of nice hand made things of all types. Unfortunately I did not make it to any night spots while I was there but I understand there are lots of great places to go that are safe. But the place that I visited that moved me most was going high atop the mountains above Bogota to Montserrat. There is a very old Catholic church there that is simply beautiful to see! From this place, you can see all of Bogota and beyond. Trust me when I say, you will never forget your visit there!.

My suggestion to anybody planning on going to Bogota is to get a visitors guide to look as all the attractions that you can visit there in and around the city. After that, I flew to the coastal city of Cartagena. It is a great place to visit that has lots of history about it to see and feel. The city has a lot of beautiful old Spanish colonial style buildings as well as many modern structures set in old narrow European style streets. The city has a great night life and is mostly safe to walk around at night with lots of open air shops and vendors around with all in walking distance. There are also horse drawn carriages you can ride on around the streets there both day and night. As far as hotels are concerned, I arranged my trip through a travel agency that works with Avianca airlines. The rates vary but at the time I purchased a package deal for 5 days and 4 nights for a hotel( 2 meals a day included), the flights to and from Bogota, and transportation to and from the airport. Price, $545.00 US!!! Not too bad at all! The food at the hotel was a buffet style and was always very good. The hotel was well above my expectations and to me better than most I have ever spent time in here in the states. The beach was very nice except for my sunburn! Two pools, Jacuzzi, pool side bars, the whole nine yards! Of course there are lots of attractions in Cartagena to see. Too many to list here but once again, check any internet guides and other sources for touring information on Cartagena. I took a boat trip to one of the islands off the coast of Cartagena for the day. Cost; $35.00 US per person! There are lots of options for these trips and you will have a great time while there!

Well, that is my trip to beautiful Colombia in a nutshell. I want to add something more to this article that I feel very profoundly about in my heart. Colombia is a very beautiful place on this Earth with very wonderful people. In all my travels and dealings with all Colombians that I met, I was treated with total kindness and respect. You may always hear the bad things about other places or countries in this world. Personally, I feel much that has been said and written about Colombia is unfair. Especially to the people of that country who are much like the rest of us, good honest, hard working, law abiding people. I miss being there and cannot wait to return! My words to you are; Go and experience Colombia for yourself! You will not be disappointed!

Special thanks to the Colombian Service Group and all it’s employees for the wonderful job they all do and to Mr. Bob Summers for letting me share my Colombian experience with all of you.

Bryant C. Hardee
bryhardee@yahoo.com

http://bogotacolombialodging.com/testimonials-pages.htm