exciting weekend in MEDELLIN!

Last weekend started normal enough, i had dinner with some friends, we went to a chinese restaurant in laurles near the exito. The food was good, the portion was generous, and the price was cheap, about 40k for 4. Then we head to a gay bar near cr 70, the bar scene in COL is a little different than in the states. People don´t hit on other people, guys just came into the bar to drink and talk, not dance or meet other people. I was suprise that no one wanted to dance! And they were blasting Donna Summer and ABBA! Where were the dancing queens?? My friend told me that in COL, gays dance at dance clubs not bars!

On saturday i went down to el centro because they had a big art fair in parque bolivar that happens only on the first sat of the month. While walking there, through a mall, we saw about 10 police escort a young girl out, she was caught stealing or shoplifting. Then we went to lunch in the food court in junin st, and my gringo buddy order the comida rapida, pollo. Well the chicken arrived and was undercooked, he sent it back, it came back STILL undercooked, he had to send it back a second time before they did it right.

we arrived at the art fair. Got some great cheap art stuff for christmas gift for my friends and family in the states. My friends and i(mostly gringos) ran into a gringa friend of one of my friend. She was in a daze, because she was just pickpoketed! She was very careless, she works for a company that brings expats with expat package, the company didn´t do a good job of giving a safety orientation about dos and donts. That´s what my gringo buddy said, who works for the same company. He thought the company could do better job on education their foreign staff. He´s lived in COL for a while so he knows how to take care of things.

But she was a newbie, only in country for 4 months. She was walking around a crowded area with her purse/wallet in her backpack that she wore on the back! And she would buy stuff and in plain view, open the backpack pull the purse out and pay, then put the purse back in the backpack, just like she would in the states! Well the thief simply walked up behind her in a crowd area, unzip the back and took the purse. she was really depressed and had to borrow 5 mil for taxi money back to her apartment, in poblado, to call all her credit card and bank company to cancel everything and re order everything. My friend is pissed, because he worries now that she will have negetive experience and will tell other about her bad experience in col.

By caslug on Dec 5, 2005, 08:38 in Friendly Talkzone.

caslug says on Dec 5, 2005, 08:52:

cont.. Later that night, i head to the parque llerles for the fashion show dianelpaisa posted. I arrived at 6:30 and it didn´t start yet. so i head to the casino next to ovieda mall to wait for my date. Played blackjack until 8pm and won 40k. My amiga arrived in a taxi. Something odd, my amiga is 35 yr, lawyer, lives and works in poblado, family lives in laurels, lives in her own apartment and has a car, describes herself as economically and emmociational independent. ie, she got money!

Well, i told her to take a taxi from her place to the casino to pick me up, then we head out together, that way she doesn´t have to pay for the taxi. She arrived at the casino and as i got into the taxi, she paid the fare from her apartment to the casino, about 4k. Instead of just letting the meter run while we go back to parque llerles, another 4k. I would´ve paid for the total fare anyway. I don´t know why she did that, i can only speculate that she thought, i might stiff her with a bigger taxi fare! weird, never had a girl do that, paid for the taxi while i GOT IN the taxi, to go with her to another place.

the next day(sunday), bunch of my friends and i went to museu castillo for the nativity exhibit, i got fotos i´ll post later. afterward we met up with viewpoint and his friend at centro commerical tesoro in poblado. it´s lot more different than the other ones. the people there were VERY beautiful and WHITER! It´s like being in a mall in Los Angeles, without the blacks and asians! Since it´s way up the hill, and not convient with the metro or bus, it´s not convient for us poor gringos or col folks! ja, ja.. Gotta admit, it was excellent eye candy, for BOTH sexes!

Later that night i had dinner back where the regular folks live, in estadio. Meet up with a gringo and his col buddy at picolo pizzaria on cr 70. He col guy told me that a year ago, he saw a patron at the place killed, 3 bullets to the face, the body was still there when the guy arrived. he suspect it was a drug hit, because the victim look like a trafficer. halfway thru dinner we witness a fight on the street, between two homeless guys! everyone ran out and stood around the street to witness the fight, but no one wanted to break it up or call the cops. Eventually it broked up by itself.

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caslug says on Dec 5, 2005, 09:02:

cont.. After dinner i walked back to my hotel, i was walking in on the main street in front of colegio san ignacio. As i was crossing the street a taxi was speeding towards me so i hurried across. But out of nowhere a motocylce hit the taxi and the motocycle driver FLEW 10 feet over the taxi and landed with a THUD next to the curb. This happen maybe 20 feet from me!

The TAXI swerve crazily towards me, but ran up the other sidwalk, ran over the wooden fences and HIT a tree! Just like in the movies the front of the taxi was smashed in. I was only person around, so i stood in shocked, looked first at the taxi then the motocycle guy, i figure he´s dead and was mentally preparing myself for the worse as i consider going helping the taxi or the motocycle guy. I decide to help the motocycle guy, but vision of splatter brain and broken limb at odd angle were in my head. As in ran over there i had my cell phone out to call for help. Then i realize, i didn´t know the 911 number in COL!

when i got over the him, he was lying on the ground, no blood or limbs at odd angles. i yelled out in my bad spanish, NECESSITO MEDICO?? but he shook his head and mumble NO, he started to get up started feeling all his limb and amazingly stood up! He got out without ANY blood OR broken bones! Lucky bastard, his helmet saved his brain from being on the pavement! Within 2 minutes people started running to the scene from everywhere, looking to help. The taxi driver and a passanger stumble out and the taxi guy was pissed. He was OK too, they were all shaken up but OK. He walked over and started yelling at the guy, not cursing. but just asking WTF were you thinking, etc., etc., I suspect the moto guy ran a light, because the taxi was driver on a street that normally has right of way, lights are green more. In COL people run lights ALL the time, so i gues this stuff happens more often.

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elmodefoque says on Dec 5, 2005, 09:04:

caslug, my young wife is in medellin right now, poblado, and was in parque lleras for that fashion event. If you see a girl with cartagenra face but with a cachaca accent, is her.

over 5 million colombianos in USA and only 27 barranquilleros, i'm one. CURRAMBA, EL MEJOR VIVIDERO DEL MUNDO!

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RUV says on Dec 5, 2005, 15:02:

Looks like you are having fun Caslug,

How long are you in Medellin? I am coming in the last part of December. Where are you staying at. I need to book a room.

El Mo, if your wife is at home who is keeping you warm at night? Mr. Ed? You going to visit your wife in Medellin?

Ruv

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elmodefoque says on Dec 5, 2005, 17:22:

mr ed, jijijij. i used to watch that show, i was crazy about the blonde, not the horse, the guy's wife or grilfriend that was always dressed in tight black blouse with big juicy mellons.
yeah, i'll be in medellin the first week of february.

over 5 million colombianos in USA and only 27 barranquilleros, i'm one. CURRAMBA, EL MEJOR VIVIDERO DEL MUNDO!

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utopiacowboy says on Dec 5, 2005, 22:21:

I always enjoy reading your trip reports, Caslug. I'll be dying to hear Elmo's reports in February.

Disclaimer: any comment I make is inane and is not to be taken seriously, and is so patently ridiculous that no one should take it seriously, even as an insult.

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RUV says on Dec 5, 2005, 22:24:

Umm Mellons
I know what you mean. Umm the mellons. I am in Medellin till the third of Febuary.

RUV

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elmodefoque says on Dec 6, 2005, 05:00:

i'll be a week in medellin, but to be honest i'll rather go straight to barranquilla. Medellin is nice for peace and quiet but i'm a modeofque that likes noise and lots of drunken loud people around.

over 5 million colombianos in USA and only 27 barranquilleros, i'm one. CURRAMBA, EL MEJOR VIVIDERO DEL MUNDO!

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elmodefoque says on Dec 6, 2005, 05:14:

another thing about medellin that bugs me, is that extreme polite shit. i'm not too much into the gracias, con mucho gusto, thing. and what's with the aguita de panelita, arepita, tragito, "choricito" everything ends with freaking "ta" or "to"

over 5 million colombianos in USA and only 27 barranquilleros, i'm one. CURRAMBA, EL MEJOR VIVIDERO DEL MUNDO!

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utopiacowboy says on Dec 6, 2005, 06:02:

My wife will stick a frigging ito or ita on anything. On the other hand when it comes to el chiquito I don't mind sticking it there.

Disclaimer: any comment I make is inane and is not to be taken seriously, and is so patently ridiculous that no one should take it seriously, even as an insult.

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caslug says on Dec 6, 2005, 06:12:

RUV.. i´m staying at.. Hotel balcones in estadio, it´s a nice area and safe, very close to the metro station. i´m paying 30k a night because i´m staying more than 3 weeks. THere´s TONS of hotel around estadio, especially on cr 70. Search the forum, there´s a list of hotels. But i don´t know about the scene in MED after christmas, i recommend you go to Cali for the Feria then return to MED after the new year.

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caslug says on Dec 6, 2005, 06:23:

i´ll posting fotos some fotos fr the fashion.. show later, i don´t have many of them because my crappy camera has problem taking moving shot a night. Sorry Elmo, i wont have too many model shots! LOL!

Also, tomorrow night is the start of the big xmas light parade, and thursday is a holiday, so everyone will be down in el centro starting after 6pm to catch the parade. I´ll takes some fotos too.

Yesterday, i went to uni of antiuqia to participate in a panel on racism in col that was part of a graduate class for future colombia teachers. I´ll post the observation in another thread.

Later i had a meeting with another COL teacher about teaching english in COL, she invited me back to eat lunch at her home with her parents. They live in a VERY good area of Envigado and had a VERY nice condo, both parents spoke decent english and they had their maid make lunch for the whole family. I have to say, COL home cooking is very good, the food has flavor, unlike most restaurant food. For once i didnt have to add aji(salsa de picante) in my food. I observe they treated their made very well, when my friend open her soda bottle and the fizz shot out and ran spilled on the table and floor, within seconds the maid was their to wipe the table and floor. Then the lunch continue!

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s_bla says on Jun 9, 2006, 20:25:

...chinese restaurant? :O Is there many chinese restaurant in Medellin? Are these cooks Chinese or Paisas? it's rare that chinese live in Medellin.

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