Monday 4/21/08 Santa Marta, Colombia
I don´t have much time left here in the internet cafe, but I wanted to post a few things:
1. The northern coastal areas of Colombia are hot. Really hot. I´ve been drinking around 6 liters of water a day and sweating all of it out on the roads. If you knew my scent and could somehow travel with your nose an inch from the pavement, you could track me down in Colombia with only your sense of smell.
2. I´m now riding with two Swiss guys. It´s nice having company. And drafting while riding is a pleasure. Check out their website (it´s in English).
3. The other day I learned that when someone turns 16 in Switzerland, if his/her parents are registered Catholics, that person is automatically registered as a Catholic as well and hence required to pay a type of ´Christian tax´ to the government. In order to be exempt from this, one must officially declare a reason for exemption and ask to be taken off of the government´s list of Catholic nationals.
4. People in northern Colombia have been amazing. So incredibly friendly. When we ride, people are always waving to us, honking and saying hello, riding next to us on their bikes, or trying to get us to stop and talk. As I expected to be the case, the Colombians I have met aren´t accurately represented by the media that Colombian rebel groups generate. Just like anywhere else, the people here, too, are people–they smile, they cook dinner with the radio on, they wake early to send their children to school, they adore their children, they laugh, they love music, and they work and rest each week. More to come as we move on down the road in Colombia.
5. Arepas, a type of dough pancake found in Colombia, are spectacular. Sometimes filled with egg or cheese, they are perfect for cyclists–cheap, fast, fatty, and yummy.
6. My laptop died. Uggggh. I know–lots of technology problems for me in the past few weeks. Such is life. I stopped at a Mac store in Baranquilla and dropped off the computer. They are going to do some tests on it, fix it, and then mail it to Bogota where I will pick it up in two weeks. Keep your fingers crossed.
7. I´m in Santa Marta now. We are staying just outside Santa Marta in a tiny village by the sea called Taganga. Tomorrow we´ll start heading south toward Bogota. It´ll be a long slog to the city, but one that promises some good scenery.
8. Thanks again to the students at Colegio Jorge Washington! Thank you for the comments. You guys are awesome!
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