Is buenaventura, Colombia a good place to live or visit?

jaramillo says on Feb 5, 2005, 17:25:

And now you know why.

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isaactraveler says on Feb 5, 2005, 21:55:

it isnt even a good place to drive through I cant say that I would recommend anyone go there, unless it is to take a boat to the islands near that region.

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Iain says on Feb 6, 2005, 02:00:

Buenaventura My wife's family and my wife tell me that it is an ugly place, very very hot, very very humid and very run down. They said the population is mostly black so if you are a blue eyed gringo you will sure attract a lot more attention than other places (which is a lot anyway). So all in its not on the "must visit" list.

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umm says on Feb 6, 2005, 02:39:

If you like to smuggle out drugs, then Buenaventura is great.
If you want your house to catch that nice decorative black mould, then Buenaventura is great.
If you like rain about every day, then Buenaventura is great.
....

UMM

My Forum

Desideria (Moderator) (Trustee board) says on Feb 6, 2005, 03:00:

how funny! See that reverse psychology is working again! Buenaventura is absolutely lovely and the morenitas from the puerto are very beautiful, graceful and just love gringos! Yes, it's hot and humid but not more so than Barranquilla or Cartagena. It's full of nice. pre-colonial mangrove architecture, the narrow streets have a lingering fragrance of livin' and lovin' until next rainstorm washes everything back to the gutter.
There's a song celebrating the beauty of Buenaventura..."bello puerto del mar mi Buenaventura. I would recommend the pearl of the Pacific, Bello Puerto Del Mar Mi Buenaventura to all gringos over 40 looking for teenage "novias" in Colombia to go to Buenaventura. Book in the Hotel, there's only one and it's kind of nice. Cali girls are too wordly, too plastic, too jaundiced compared to the serene, yellow-eyed porteñas.

Cheers, and have a good trip!!!!
Desi

"When shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightning, or in rain?"(First Witch in Macbeth)

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Atrevido (☼Travelguide writer) says on Feb 6, 2005, 04:18:

gorgonabob says on Feb 6, 2005, 08:39:

buenaventura is a shit hole, and that aint an exageration. ive been there several times..... why you ask.... only to go onwards to Isla Gorgona. buenaventura has no redeeming qualities apart from nice boat trips up the coast and the 12 hour trip to Isla Gorgona. avoid at all costs...

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Desideria (Moderator) (Trustee board) says on Feb 6, 2005, 09:05:

Bello puerto del mar... I've been in Buenaventura also, many many times. Yes, of course, it's not a tourist town except for the reasons already stated. It's hot, humid, evil-smelling in many areas, filthy and disorderly. If you go there get your malaria prophylaxis since the disease is endemic in the area.

"bello puerto del mar mi Buenaventura, donde la mierda le llega hasta la cintura..."

Cheers,
Desi
(still, I think it might be an interesting town for gringos to socialize with the young beauties on the waterfront;)

"When shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightning, or in rain?"(First Witch in Macbeth)

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santiBOG says on Feb 6, 2005, 10:15:

Sad but true *** SHITHOLE ALERT ***

STAY AWAY

ATTENTION *** SHITHOLE ALERT *** IS IN EFFECT FOR BUENAVENTURA

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Iain says on Feb 6, 2005, 10:39:

Asked my wife again And shes been there a good few times and she has just re-confirmed that it is a shithole. Mind you she wasn't wearing any rose tinted specs at the time that desi was!

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santiBOG says on Feb 6, 2005, 10:51:

Let this be proof that Colombians are objective when it comes to criticizing their own country. At least some of us are!

Hey, where are londonmale and GiB when you need them??

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Desideria (Moderator) (Trustee board) says on Feb 6, 2005, 10:55:

iain, I wasn't wearing any either. I was just kidding, hoping to get some of the frecuent visitors to Cali get interested in a different place. Well, Buenaventura is different, and you can say that the women are of the more "exotic" sort much preferred by many gringos. So. the whole post I made about Buenaventura was just a joke.
I lived in Cali for a great number of years and made many trips to Buenaventura. Not because it was/has ever been an attractive town, but to go to the beaches of Juanchaco and Ladrilleros, or just for the ride over the western cordillera (I love those mountains). We'd sometimes go as far as LoboGuerrero and take that road to Lago Calima instead of going all the way to Buenaventura.

Cheers,
Desi

"When shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightning, or in rain?"(First Witch in Macbeth)

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ColombianoX says on Feb 6, 2005, 11:02:

"Let this be proof that Colombians are objective when it comes to criticizing their own country. At least some of us are!




It one thing to "criticize", it's another thing to blatantly insult another colombian city by calling it a "shithole". Qué bonito! You should be proud of yourself!


ColombianoX

'Defensor de la Colombianidad'

ColombianoX 'Defensor de la Colombianidad'

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Gomezman5 says on Feb 6, 2005, 11:14:

Christianruben -- No No No Now what part of the above don't you understand?

Why in God's name would you want to live in Buenaaventura. I think Desi's above description was about right.

It's a pit,,,,,,there is no way to sugar coat this answer. That is one of the last places I would ever choose to live in.

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Tinto (Moderator) (Trustee board) says on Feb 6, 2005, 11:35:

But.... What if you were a drunken sailor and your two favorite things in life (after booze) were shooting giant wharf rats and sleeping with a different prostitute every night? Would Buenaventura be a good place, then? :-)

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Desideria (Moderator) (Trustee board) says on Feb 6, 2005, 11:42:

hmmm.. I wouldn't know, really, I can't stretch my imagination that far.You'd get tough competition, though, from the all-black stevedores at the harbor. They're supposed to earn good money loading the boats and are much in demand amongst the female population there.

Cheers,
Desi

"When shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightning, or in rain?"(First Witch in Macbeth)

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santiBOG says on Feb 6, 2005, 14:33:

You should be proud of yourself! My friend ColX: I don't think people come to this site for sugar-coated answers. They can go to a tourism site for that. People come here for STRAIGHT AND REAL answers and that's what I try to give. Otherwise, you'd be wasting everyone's time.

As evidenced by other posters above, Buenaventura is a shithole, there's no way around that. I have every right to say that because I am Colombian. I am sorry if you were offended by the term, but I can think of no better way to describe that city.

No other Colombians seems to be offended, why should you be?

Peace.

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ColombianoX says on Feb 6, 2005, 14:46:

"No other Colombians seems to be offended, why should you be? "


I wonder what the people of Buenaventura would say to that. Too bad we won't know because most of them don't know english or own a computer.


CX

ColombianoX 'Defensor de la Colombianidad'

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santiBOG says on Feb 6, 2005, 16:48:

Thanks for proving my point. Also, "I wonder what the people of Buenaventura would say to that."
They would probably agree with me (unless they're in denial like some people seem to be).

Saludos compatriota.

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jaramillo says on Feb 6, 2005, 19:13:

There is a foto of Buenaventura at:

http://www.fotopaises.com/foto/Colombia/Buenaventura/9275.html

But I hear it is a hell of lot worse than it looks...

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isaactraveler says on Feb 6, 2005, 19:31:

hahaha Desi I was pretty certain you were either kidding, or found a stash of wacky weed. I think that it is one of the GREAT obstacles for people daring to take the boat trip to Ladrilleros. that was probably the only place I kept one hand on my wallet pocket, and the other hand covering my huevos.

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gorgonabob says on Feb 6, 2005, 22:07:

colombainoX i called buenaventura a shithole and it is... no one loves colombia more than me.... i have been all over this country in three years travelling and living here.. it is a as i said a shithole... the four times i have been there have showed me this.. as i said i love colombia... i will be going back to buenaventura to go to Isla Gorgona for a 4th time shortly.

on a more positive note.... i love the below mentioned places a lot. i will put them in the opposite of shithole category

Bahia Solano, Nuqui, Gorgona, Capurgana, Arboletes, Tolu, Taganga, Bahia Concha, Cabo, Mompos, Santa Fe de Antioquia, Barichara, jardin, Santa Rosa de Cabal, Salento, Cocuy, Guican, Restrepo Los Llanos, Puerto Guican, Guatape, and of course Cartagena and Medellin

and i would say that while buenaventura is a shithole.... everyone should go there at some stage... its the best and cheapest way to get to Gorgona...
vic

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gabriel says on Feb 7, 2005, 00:03:

Porteñas are from buenos aires......Desi don't you ever get caught calling una negra de Buenaventura Colombia "porteña", the argentinian te sacan la mierda.......

Yerba mala nunca muere....

Yerba mala nunca muere....

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kat1 (Moderator) (Trustee board) says on Feb 7, 2005, 02:23:

gorgonabob i'm with you in los llanos. my favourite part of Colombia. you should go to san martin de los llanos. very colonial and pretty, used to be called territorio national san martin de los llanos before becoming departamento del meta. the people is super friendly. i've been in restrepo and cumaral too. they are nice places. have you been through the new tunel( Villavicencio-Bogota )is about 8km long I think.
chao

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Desideria (Moderator) (Trustee board) says on Feb 7, 2005, 10:26:

gabriel I knew that. People from Buenaventura are often called "porteños" in Cali. Argentina is far away, and frankly m'dear, we couldn't care less.

I also feel that calling Buenaventura a "shithole" is really quite offensive. Yes, it's not a pretty place, yes, some parts of it do smell rather evil, some areas are very dangerous, especially at night, lot's of it is run-down, dilapidated, moldy and unhealthy, yes there's garbage strewn around on the "streets", but it does have one nice hotel (forgot the name) and many porteños have escaped that place and got an education in Cali, Medellin and Bogotá. I know several good, sweet, decent people from B/ventura and on their behalf, I wouldn't call their town "a shithole". It's just one more of those many towns in Colombia that have been much neglected; which in case of Buenaventura is really a shame, being the major export port of Colombia, producing a lot of revenue for the country while it's humble folks are forced to live in filth and squalor.

Cheers,
Desi

"When shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightning, or in rain?"(First Witch in Macbeth)

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ColombianoX says on Feb 7, 2005, 11:39:

THANK YOU DESI Talk about a coincidence, but there's a segment on Caracol TV Internacional that travels to a different part of Colombia every week and guess where they are this week? Why in Buenaventura! I did see a few parts that looked quite fine, although a lot of it does look dirty and rundown. The hotels they showed were Hotel Las Estaciones, which is a lovely neoclassical building, and Hotel Los Delfines, and they both looked pretty nice.

Oh, and to answer a question posed in an old thread, they said that 55% of Colombia's foreign commerce goes through Buenaventura, so I guess it is the most important port in Colombia.


CX

ColombianoX 'Defensor de la Colombianidad'

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Tinto (Moderator) (Trustee board) says on Feb 7, 2005, 11:44:

that might be right for imports but I think exports would be different. From my recollection, most of the oil and coal leaves from Caribbean ports.

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Desideria (Moderator) (Trustee board) says on Feb 7, 2005, 11:47:

yes, Colx that was the hotel I mentioned, Las Estaciones. It's really quite nice from the outside, I've never been inside.
The whole Pacific coast is one of the neglected areas of Colombia. While B/tá is getting safer and finer all the time the coastal town of Guapi, Cauca was totally thrilled yesterday with it's first taxi in town! The people from the Pacific coast, all the way from Chocó to the hamlets and town on the Ecuadorian border are the home of the poorest, humblest and sweetest people (especially those from Tumaco) I've ever met.

Cheers,
Desi

"When shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightning, or in rain?"(First Witch in Macbeth)

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Desideria (Moderator) (Trustee board) says on Feb 7, 2005, 11:49:

check your info, tinto I'm pretty sure it's just the opposite...B/ventura is Colombia's major port for exportations, the Atlantic ports handle mostly importation.

Cheers,
Desi

"When shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightning, or in rain?"(First Witch in Macbeth)

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Desideria (Moderator) (Trustee board) says on Feb 7, 2005, 12:12:

Hotel Estación http://portal.unesco.org/ci/en/ev.php-URL_ID=6510&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html

"When shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightning, or in rain?"(First Witch in Macbeth)

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Desideria (Moderator) (Trustee board) says on Feb 7, 2005, 12:15:

a couple of links http://www.guiadelmundo.com/paises/colombia/localidades/buenaventura.html
http://www.sprbun.com/comercio_exterior/index.php
Cheers,
Desi

"When shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightning, or in rain?"(First Witch in Macbeth)

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Lionheart says on Feb 7, 2005, 12:21:

Railroads and ports It seems most of the coal and oil go to the Caribbean ports now. New railroad connectors from the mines are being built. But, most important, a connector line between North and South Railroad is being built, so that the coal trains can directly go to Buenaventura. From deciphering side notes, the main reason is that Buenaventura can handle ships with a higher tonnage, Carribbean ports only handle smaller ships and can't be dug out for larger ships.

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Tinto (Moderator) (Trustee board) says on Feb 7, 2005, 12:37:

a good pipeline map www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/cabs/images/colupipe.png



Once this is in your browser, it will expand to a fairly large map by clicking in the lower right hand corner of the image.



P.S. Pasto/Putumayo oil moves through Tumaco on the Pacific (I thought it might have moved through Buenaventura)

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paisa29 says on Feb 7, 2005, 13:02:

I didn´t like Buenaventura except for el hotel la Estación y la isla Bocana.

"Fill the earth with the light and warmth of hospitality" Conrad Hilton

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ColombianoX says on Feb 7, 2005, 13:07:

What a nice map! Thanks Tinto, gotta add that one to my collection!


CX

ColombianoX 'Defensor de la Colombianidad'

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Lionheart says on Feb 7, 2005, 13:24:

railroad maps Their website is currently down, but they have great maps too:

http://www.ferrovias.gov.co/webapp/display.jsp?idsite=2&idabbr=en&idlang=1&idC=93&idURL=1

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jaramillo says on Feb 7, 2005, 17:52:

Filth and squalor No one is forced to live in filth and squalor. We always have choices. For many in Buenaventura (or Tumaco) the choice seems to be rum.

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Lionheart says on Feb 7, 2005, 18:40:

I saved the RR map At least I saved the main one showing the current tracks. I could add the planned extensions from memory in a second map. PM me with an email address if you want it. It is 2MB large.

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gabriel says on Feb 7, 2005, 22:26:

Buenaventura..... Buenaventura seems to be quiet frankly just like a town we have in Panama "Colon", shit load of money goes throught that town "BILLIONS" from the free zone and the megaports but the people nor the city see much of the money, most business owners live in panama city.

Desi, your right about the people the nicest and proudest bunch of people I've met in colombia. The road that you take to go too calima is the same road that takes you into Buenaventura?

Yerba mala nunca muere....

Yerba mala nunca muere....

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Gator says on Feb 8, 2005, 07:44:

gabriel It is the same road (Via al Mar) but it "forks" just above Dagua. Go east (left) to head for Buenaventura. The crossing of the Farallones is worth the trip. To me Buenaventura is a typical major seaport but if you have never been I would go. BTW, the seafood is great. Try La Sombrita de Migual or Rico Marisco. Hotels? Don't really remember but I think we stayed at the Estacíon-OK but nothing outstanding.

BTW, the Via al Mar can get very crowded on Friday and through Sunday afternoon plus the damn trucks. Some great restaurant on Via el Mar one I can highly recommend is the Embajada de Ginebra (very crowded on the weekends.)

"Credidi pretio parvo emere et magno vendere tibi in animo fuisse!" .

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Desideria (Moderator) (Trustee board) says on Feb 8, 2005, 09:21:

road to calima There are actually two roads from Cali to Lago Calima, one goes via Buga and the other one is the Buenaventura road. It's a nice day trip round.
Cheers,
Desi

"When shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightning, or in rain?"(First Witch in Macbeth)

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gabriel says on Feb 8, 2005, 11:37:

Gator I've been to Buenaventura once on my way to juanchaco, I was confused because on are way to calima we first stop in buga. I was kind of dissapointed by juanchaco, the beaches weren't all that.

Yerba mala nunca muere....

Yerba mala nunca muere....

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meteoro says on Feb 8, 2005, 15:29:

Tinto Ferrovias (a government-owned co.) is being liquidated because the government granted a concession to 2 private companies to rehabilitate and make use of the railways.

Unfortunately, at least one of those private companies (Tren de Occidente) is being run by a bunch of corrupt businessmen that have taken millions of dollars that were meant for the rehabilitation of the railway and put it in their own bank accounts. I know many stories about them and it's sad how they manage that business and exploit the resources of the Colombian taxpayers for their own benefit.

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lmcm says on Apr 29, 2005, 23:08:

my thoughts on yours i was actually born in buenaventura and yes ***SOME*** parts aren't very nice, but there is being construction done like the pacific trade center (25 floors) for example which is an office and appartment building. by the way, there are 3 buildings higher than 20 floors; Concasa (bank), Can (gov. center), and the pacific trade center. anyway, many new houses and stores and service centers are being built because the city has a great income being the main colombian port for the pacific. if you go to rich neighborhoods you see really nice homes. its not shitty and that is dissing and making its people feel bad so, don't hate or be assholes.

P.S.- it's not a small town, it is a growing sub-urban city with 362,692 residents (2,005).

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Desideria (Moderator) (Trustee board) says on Apr 30, 2005, 00:33:

I'm glad this thread was brought up again. I agree with the previous poster, there are certainly some nice neighborhoods and construction going on. The main problem of B/ventura right now is the escalating violence in that port. There's a turf war between different groups of the Farc, AUC, drug mafia going on there.

Cheers,
Desi

"When shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightning, or in rain?"(First Witch in Macbeth)

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Desideria (Moderator) (Trustee board) says on Apr 30, 2005, 00:39:

Buenaventura "Pese a la racha criminal en el Puerto y a las amenazas que él mismo recibe, Saulo Quiñones dice que no se va de la Alcaldía.


El burgomaestre sostiene que los jóvenes en el Puerto tienen, como única alternativa de empleo, la guerrilla, el paramilitarimo, el narcotráfico y la prostitución."

http://elpais-cali.terra.com.co/paisonline/notas/Abril262005/D426N1.html

The mayor says that the only available positions for gainful employment for young men in Buenaventura are the guerrilla, the paramilitaries, the drug trafficking and the prostitution.

No cheers, only concern,
Desi

"When shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightning, or in rain?"(First Witch in Macbeth)

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MrOutis says on Dec 27, 2005, 06:57:

haha Every forum has someone like Desi, a little lady who doesn't like manly swear words and makes a big show of loving what everyone else knows to be crap. Such people often have last names like Goldmann and Goldfarb, and lament gringo prejudice for moving away from "increasingly diverse" neighborhoods in the U.S. Same for Buenaventura (which I have seen and live close to) -- shithole, shithole, shithole. Stay away unless you´re an American negro looking for...well, giant rats and "exotic" i.e. mulatto women. Now really, I don´t mean to knock either of those species; I´ll take a giant rat or a mulatta in my kitchen over, say, a Frenchman or a Canadian, any day of the week. Honestly. I just won't call them anything but a rat and a mulatta.

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Gator says on Dec 27, 2005, 07:23:

Same for Buenaventura (which I have seen and live close to If so why was your one other post asking about "hookers." If you live close to Buenaventura I assume you mean Cali????

"Credidi pretio parvo emere et magno vendere tibi in animo fuisse!" .

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MrOutis says on Dec 27, 2005, 07:46:

well The gals there just aren´t my type!

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