island girl has left 197 comments

island girl comments on Basilea Restaurant - Santa Marta

Papi I was down in SVG working with several community arts events and the Indigenous movement down there - now back at school/work in Toronto waiting to go again in December. I see you going to Colombia, I hope in the future we will both be on the coast at the same time so we can meet each other. I hope all is well with your family and that you have a great trip, and how tings besides?

island girl comments on Basilea Restaurant - Santa Marta

Larry, I have got to say thanks for all of your useful tips and restaurant reviews, you have added tremdously to this site and I will probably add tremendously to my waistline when I next return to Colombia and visit all these restaurants !!! Thanks again for taking the time to post great info :)

island girl comments on Shakira on SNL

Yes Simon - I saw her too - WOW! I LOVE Shakira - and I think she is gorgeous and her dance moves are increible!

island girl comments on VISA info Bahamas for Colombiano citizen (Barbados info too)

True dat Papi! How you doin anyhow? Colombia treating you good? I had a chance to go back for work this summer (to BOG only though). I just love Colombia. I want to go back to the coast one day :)

island girl comments on VISA info Bahamas for Colombiano citizen (Barbados info too)

HEY! don't give up on St. Vincent and Bim (Barbados) - I am from SVG and have nuff fam over in Bim. Tobago crime problem is rampant right now as I hear it, trickling over from Trini (Gimme Dub gonna kill me :) Barbados is over touristed in my opinion but has a "first -world" lifestyle and amenitities if you can afford it. Excellent golf at Sandy Lane, Royal Westmoreland and new development called Apes Hill. The West coast (St James etc) is out unless you have like 10 Million US. I like the South coast, around Rockley (where there is a golf course too but a shitty one) and you can go to Accra Beach, a fave of mine. In St. Vincent, the Grenadines are beautiful, but NMGs need not apply - there are some great villas for sale at the Raffles devlopment. The mainland of St Vincent is gorgeous, we are just putting in our International Airport so you would have to transfer through another island. It is also a bit of a wild wild west and foreigners often get a HARD time unless they are linked up with locals in the know. I LOVE DOMINICA - it is truly a nature lovers paradise. I have never had the luck to go to St Kitts, but my dad goes there all the time and says it is his favourite Caribbean island (there you go Papi, gwaaaaaaaan bad Leeward Antilles :) Hey if you change your mind back to Barbados or SVG let me know. My Uncle sells Real Estate in Barbados.

island girl comments on Malaysia Trip Report

???? Not sure what you mean??? I am not sure that I am THAT fugly that I need a bag on my head at all times ... :-O

island girl comments on Analysis: Is Spirit's $9 Fare Club Worth the Cost? (smartertravel.com)

Thanks Whitey!! :) I guess the flight would have to be really cheap considering I would have to pay for hotel etc. given the time of departure. Well, I will keep Spirit as one of my possible options and consider these additional costs when comparing fares. Cheers!

island girl comments on Malaysia Trip Report

spelling mistake above - Baik is BATIK - the wax-dyed cloth. Ooops! There are probably more spelling mistakes up there, sorry, fast fingers and slow eyes when I am typing.

island girl comments on island girl

create your own visited country map

island girl comments on Analysis: Is Spirit's $9 Fare Club Worth the Cost? (smartertravel.com)

Babygirl - I live in TO and if Spirit really does have sick deals out of Detroit, I wouldn't be adverse to bussing it to Windsor and then hopping over to Dtroit. My question for you is, do you drive to the Detroit airport in your own car, or are you aware of any services like a shuttle or something that would take me from Windsor to the Detroit airport? I guess I would have to factor in all of these possible expenses (gas and parking, or a bus from TO to Windsor and then travel to Dtroit, etc etc.) to see if it would still be cheap. I guess if I got like a real deal on Spirit then it might be worth it? Thoughts? Thank you!

island girl comments on Artesenia, market places and craft shopping in Bogota - Where should I go?

gracias a ustedes, muy amable xo

island girl comments on La Macarena Bogota - restaurants?

gracias a todos y todas :) xo

island girl comments on HEMI Encuentro en Bogota - AND WHAT TO DO IN SPARE TIME???????

Well I had to be honest there Douglas. I am not one to judge and like my herbs, but I have some early morning appointments and performances to attend to. I must admit I had a bit of red wine last night at a performance at MAPA TEATRO (really cool space by the way.) I am going to write a post asking about where the best big market is to go to buy artesinia. some folks in my group want to go to buy some crafts. xo

island girl comments on HEMI Encuentro en Bogota - AND WHAT TO DO IN SPARE TIME???????

Awwww Azunoman that really is quite sweet of you to say :) Thank you. I was integrated into the Encuentro by some pretty cool Profs and folks that I have the pleasure of working and studying with and they are great people - as are the people we work with at the community level - indeed the latter are the real stars. Are you based in BOG? Does anyone know any cool stuff to do around the Universidad Nacional de Colombia BOG?

island girl comments on HEMI Encuentro en Bogota - AND WHAT TO DO IN SPARE TIME???????

http://hemisphericinstitute.org/eng/index.html maybe this link works? I know I can pick up a LP or there will be lots of Bogota folks there at the conference/performance but I want to hear what hte PBH massive recommends for me as well! Thank you guys so much! xo

island girl comments on Method Man and Redman take on Bogota

Woo! I love Red and Meth if I was in Bogota I would reach for sure ... Thanks for the video!

island girl comments on Juices, juices and more fruit juices

mmmmmmmmmmmmm que rico el jugo de uchuva ....

island girl comments on Juices, juices and more fruit juices

Yes I have eaten those Chontaduros! But in Costa Rica - and get ready for this - my friend's mom (a wonderful Tica from San Jose) ate them with Mayonaise. And yes, I did the same and remember the fruit itself being savoury and mayo not really being too bad with it! So if you cannot handle milk with fruit how about some fruit with egg and oil and lemon (which is essentially what mayo is, I think :) Yay for fruits and diverse tastes! In terms of staining clothes yes Mamoncillo (or Guinips as I know them in the Caribbean) are bad (and also easy to choke and die from) but also coconut - NOT the milk or coconut water but the liquid that comes out of the fibrous part (husk) when you chop the top off to be able to drink the coconut water.

island girl comments on Juices, juices and more fruit juices

Yes It is borojo! thanks for reminding me. I like it but was not particularly turned on after ingesting it. But I did get the looks as I ordered it with my boyfriend ... and the comments ... so yes I know its reputation. What is chontaduro?

island girl comments on Juices, juices and more fruit juices

Banano y Sapote con Leche! Nuff said you guys need to try this one as a breafast shake/drink. What's that one made from the red fruit that is made into pulp and the vendors store it in a string of "bolsos" on their carts/stalls ... I tried this one in Mompos. Good as well.

island girl comments on Escobar

Thanks Romy! It's time another Escobar got some space on this site... and this one (Arturo) is acutally a a pretty standout guy IMHO.

island girl comments on LOS PAISAS

Thanks so much for all the feedback and an especially big thank you to Rikito who called me a troll. I'll interpret your name-calling as such: That I managed to illicit enough ever-so-slightly controversial responses to my GENUINE question as to get your attention and your delighful comment. This has been a very enlightening post for me, as I am very interested in concepts and performances of "identity" in the Colombian context. Thanks Greg for your insight on the Turbo situation. My time in Colombia was an interesting foray into a very beautiful country with warm people and various complexities and I appreciate everyone's thoughts on the matter.

island girl comments on

:)

island girl comments on

elmo, as the official costeno rep on this site, how about the people from turbo in antioquia. now are they paisas or are they costenos. they are in antioquia but next to the sea just down the coast from curramba. People from turbo are paisas: myth or reality?

island girl comments on LOS PAISAS

Do people from coastal Antioquian places like Turbo identify as Costenos or as Paisas? Thanks to all and thanks Shazzam for some interesting info there :)

island girl comments on Escobar

http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=7sKfVbxqa-QC&oi=fnd&pg=PA196&dq=colombian pacific arturo escobar&ots=CHnZ7tlIcC&sig=Gdrf4OY7jtRvGU8Hbhg8l8g-3qg On the Colombian Pacific.

island girl comments on Escobar

http://www.uoregon.edu/~dgalvan/intl240-f08/escobar.pdf This is the intro of his book on development that I name above. Goodle Scholar should have links to some of his articles - he has been working in and on Choco since 1993. I like his Critical Development Studies approach and am looking into some of his papers on the Colombian Pacific.

island girl comments on Colombia in May

It will not be rainy season in San Andres and Providencia - that generally starts with the Hurricane season on June 1st. I was in San Andres and did not dive but heard it was great. It was the beginning of June and it rained a bit (hey its the tropics) but mostly sunshine. If I go back to San Andres I will hop on Satena and immediately go to Providencia (there are lots of cheap charter flights from Toronto to San Andres in High Season.) While I liked San Andres it was a bit commercial and I hear Providencia was quieter, more beautiful and better diving.

island girl comments on Delegative Democracy: The Case of Colombia

Desi you're wanted on the Escobar thread.

island girl comments on Escobar

Well it was titled Escobar - Arturo Escobar and it was not stirring up NADA. So I thought this title might get peeps to at least read it and find out about a VERY POSITIVE GOOD THING FOR COLOMBIA, another COLOMBIAN being successful and fighting for equality in Colombia. And there seem to be some people on here who a) are very knowledgable about ALL things Colombian and b) are pretty well read and c) exhibit a good mix of both a) and b). So I really wanted some opinions. Desi?

island girl comments on LOS PAISAS

Same here in Toronto CG. From "Arrieros" to "Mi Tierra" they are all basically Paisa restos. Before going to Colombia for the first time I thought Paisa culture and food WAS Colombian food and culture (as opposed to one - albeit a dominant one - in many). I was a bit shocked at my first few stops in-country: San Andres, Cartagena, Santa Marta and Mompos.

island girl comments on LOS PAISAS

Well that was a kind of cute comeback Simon. Ok let's be friends. And I do not expect you to be friends with my friend from the coast but hey, don't shoot the messenger!

island girl comments on LOS PAISAS

B_K: It's funny when someone (Simon) is critiquing a negative, sweeping generalization of people (in effect criticizing bigotry) by making negative, sweeping gneralizations (in effect being a bigot as well). I am glad the irony was not lost on you although I fear we may also be treading down the same path (although more carefully with use of the term "many").

island girl comments on LOS PAISAS

Thanks elsapo for perhaps clearing that up! Do you agree with my perception that Paisa culture is the most "exported" of Colombia's cultures and that they are a pretty "famous" peoples in the country? Do you know the history of this?

island girl comments on LOS PAISAS

OYE! Ok I used that one expample as THE ONLY example I have heard that did not make Paisas seem like THE Colombian people. When there are a myriad of cultures there. I DO NOT AGREE WITH MY FRIEND HE MADE A COMMENT AND IT WAS THE ONLY NEGATIVE ONE I HEARD THERE HERE OR ANYWHERE (Paisa stereotypes I heard IN GENERAL were about being salespeople, hardworking, family oriented and hospitable.) I am just interested in the history of the Paisas being such a dominant and FAMOUS GROUP IN COLOMBIA.

island girl comments on LOS PAISAS

Thanks Simon, I'll be sure to tell him an anonymous person on an internet forum has called him an ignorant bigot. I'm sure there are no negative stereotypes of Costenos being espoused by peoples from the interior either.

island girl comments on LOS PAISAS

Blessed are the one-eyed in the land of the blind? Care to elaborate in terms of this particular context?

island girl comments on Cartagena hotels

I have heard alot of good things about Hotel 3 Banderas, you can google that, they have a website. It is a smaller hotel within the old walled city, which is the part of Cartagena to stay IMO, and is affordable. I believe it has a no smoking and drinking policy within the hotel, so it apparently affords quiet surrounds. I personally stayed in the hotel Las Vegas in el Centro in the walled city. It is right across from the Juan Valdez cafe and upstairs from a fab bakery called La Esquina de Pan de Bono - and yes their pan de bono is divine in the mornings mmmm. It was 40 000 pesos per night per room, which were scant with rock hard beds - but with AC and cable TV though. I was on a tight budget and didn't spend too much time in the hotel anyway. I have not heard of Delirio. The Hilton is in the newer, high rise part of Cartagena, Boca Grande and Laguito. People go there mainly because of proximity to the beaches, but I do not find the beaches that spectacular at all and prefer the ambience of the walled city.

island girl comments on

thanks gator!! wow what a hailstorm that must have been!!!!!!!

island girl comments on

hey there huskie and co im a female ... i havent posted in a while but i comment from time to time ... you might hear my girly voice squeaking up once in a while in between all the testosterone-addled mumbo jumbo ... (just kidding guys, its not mumbo jumbo for the most part ...) xo

island girl comments on

Can anyone tell me what this "granizada" of 2007 was? It looks like the frickin arctic in the pic above ... like digging taxi cabs out of a glacier ... did not know it snowed in bogota ... what happened??

island girl comments on Cerros de Mavecure Trip Partner

Thanks Pimpinero too bad I cant make it or I would be there!! I always want to do adventurous shit like this but everyone I know, and other travellers I meet, always want to stick to the well worn gringo trail. sigh. PLEASE bless us with a trip report afterwards. Jonas - When next Im in Colombia I might have to PM you for some info in regards to this area of the country too - hope all is going well with the wheelchair campaign and on my next trip maybe I can bring somethng from Toronto. Cheers everyone!

island girl comments on Adding friends on PBH

Thanks njc ... I checked this out for the first time right now and I had a few pending friend requests that I had absolutely no idea about!! To those that added me ... Thank you! And sorry I did not respond sooner ... great to be here on PBH :) xoxo

island girl comments on Parque Tayrona, Magdalena, Colombia

sigh ... reminds me of all the fun i had there .... thanks for sharing great pics :)

island girl comments on MOMPOS TO TURBO

Could go to Sincalejo, easy to get to from Mompos, 2-3 hours ... THEN got to Tolu (I think another couple of hours) ... then toward Monteria and Turbo ... scenic route, road from Monteria apparently is dirt and takes long, have not done it personally, heard it was possible and that Tolu was a nice slice of the coast. Hey, I loved Mompos ... stayed at the Casa Amarilla and Richard was a great host in a great location!

island girl comments on Another Nuqui video clip. Amazing!

Thank you so much for posting this clip. This part of Choco looks amazing ... rugged and kinda mystical. Cheers to Colombia the beautiful, and to her beautiful people! I have heard that the Chocoanos are some of the country's kindest, most welcoming etc.

island girl comments on Vote for Colombia's Chicamocha Canyon as one of the new Seven Wonders of the World!

Hey, cool ... will make it there on my next trip to Colombia. Nice to have some exchanges on the site here ... been here for a while, lurking, posting, commenting ... only recently have i been engaged in some direct conversation type stuff so thanks everyone!

island girl comments on Vote for Colombia's Chicamocha Canyon as one of the new Seven Wonders of the World!

CT: Point understood, yes normally I would vote according to merit, and no I have not been to Chicamocha. But I have been to many parts of Colombia, and it is a stunningly beautiful country - and unfortunately it is usually smeared mercilessly in the media (and yes like every country, Colombia has problems, but like I said EVERY COUNTRY ... and Colombia gets an unfair amount of flack.) So, for quasi ethical reasons I would make this vote in favour of Colombia, in an effort to encourage the possibility of some positive media coverage!

island girl comments on Vote for Colombia's Chicamocha Canyon as one of the new Seven Wonders of the World!

and thanks for putting the post up ... cmon pbhers lets do something for colombia ...we all obviously are enamoured by her many charms (that's why we are on here) so lets give something positive back to COLOMBIA, nuestra tierra querida y linda.

island girl comments on Vote for Colombia's Chicamocha Canyon as one of the new Seven Wonders of the World!

cool. well i will vote for chicamocha cuz i LOVE Colombia. thanks for the clarification simon.