Scalestick has written 7 posts

Fair Trade Coffee

I hold in my hand one single green coffee bean and wonder if the person who picked it made enough to eat that day. I know little about coffee production except the beans are handpicked single handed as they must be judged if they are ripe or not and so cannot be simply knocked off a bush into a sack. This has to be incredibly hard and time consuming work. So my question is this: Does fair Trade Coffee programs actually work and how much does a coffee farmer/picker make in a day?

H ...

By Scalestick on 2005-05-04 20:11:25. 46 comments.

I find this hard to believe

Found this article in Topix.net under Colombian news, from yesterday. Seems like a bunch of bull to me, but for what it's worth, here it is...

Colombia coca crop spraying is 'not harmful'

April 23 2005 at 12:50PM

Bogota, Colombia - The largest scientific investigation yet into the health effects of Colombia's program of spraying illegal coca crops, the raw material for cocaine, has concluded that the chemicals used do not harm either humans o ...

By Scalestick on 2005-04-24 12:16:30. 15 comments.

Notarized document copies.

Whenever I've travelled before, I would simply carry copies of my passport and other documents for travel on me at all times. I have come to realize the added importance of having such documents on you while travelling through Colombia and have read about having these copies notarized. This makes sense but are people referring to having these copies notarized here at home before departing on your trip or in Colombia by a notary public there? If so, what are notary publics referred to as in Colom ...

By Scalestick on 2005-04-22 15:17:18. 15 comments.

Cedula?

Please excuse my ignorance but I've been coming across this mentioned in some postings regarding travelling through certain areas and to have one handy. (I certainly don't plan on entering any areas that may be considered dangerous at the time when I'm travelling through, I figure there will be enough to see as it is.) Is this some sort of ID required for travellers as well as Colombians? Just trying to get it right so I can be prepared. Could someone please shed some light on this matter for me ...

By Scalestick on 2005-04-16 21:14:36. 3 comments.

Re: Spanish translation post from a couple days ago.

Thanks agian to all who gave advice. I was away for a day and never got a chance to thank the later responses. They were all positive and that's great. On the same subject, I've downloaded a feed from a Colombian radio station via the internet to have español music and talk in the background when I'm kicking around the house. I think it will help me absorb the landguage a little better. I mentioned this to a friend at college yesterday and she said her mother, who will be travelling to Italy sh ...

By Scalestick on 2005-04-06 15:24:59. 9 comments.

Translation: which is right or closest

I am testing some free translators online to help me get a better grasp of Espanyol but I get various translations. For a simple sentence like "I will write to you when I arrive" I get "Le escribire cuando llego" or "Escribire a usted cuando llego" Could someone tell me which sentence is right,if any, por favor.
Gracias ...

By Scalestick on 2005-04-04 15:40:42. 22 comments.

Albergue Castilla

Hola.
Arriving in Bogota near the end of June for a six week back-packing trip through Colombia and laying a little ground work. Does anyone know anything about the Albergue Hotel (hostal?) in Bogota? Or any other affordable clean hotels/hostals in a safe area. I'm 50 years young and to be honest probably would not feel too comfortable in a hostal that catered to the younger partying crowd, although I see nothing wrong with that, being there once myself ~ a while back. Hey, who wants an o ...

By Scalestick on 2005-03-20 20:21:21. 0 comments.