Sizing Up Bogota

Back in February (2008), I accompanied my husband for a week's visit to Bogotá, Colombia and LOVED it. I am more excited now than before for the big move there. I had a great time with my friend and her family doing everyday things. It was those everyday tasks and things that will help us better plan what we will and won't need in our move to Bogotá. I met some really great people as well.

Bogotá, Colombia is gorgeous. Clean and green. There's my hustle and bustle of traffic and people. Shops within walking distance as well as parks to wile away in. Restaurants, (Oh, my gosh!) there are plenty of them and all kinds - new wave, Italian, chains, etc! Individual portions easily fed four. Needless to say, I was too full to try the desserts but I'm sure they're as delectable as the main dishes.

No more freezing temperatures! Wear layers. Bogotá, Colombia has an ideal climate for a light jacket and be sure to carry an umbrella for the sporadic rainfalls. Bogotá can be cool in the morning as well as when it's overcast but when the sun shines, boy does it shine. The temperatures can shoot into the 80s or plunge to the 50s. It's easy to forget you're 8,000+ feet above sea level, which brings me to altitude sickness. I personally suffered no more than a slight headache when we arrived in Bogotá, Colombia. My husband, on the other hand, could barely fill out the hotel paperwork. He felt like passing out, however by the following morning he was fine (we arrived late in the evening). We're told drinking a lot of water before hand helps.

There are two areas where we can live in Bogotá - Los Altos and Los Planos. Los Altos is an area that is a bit newer where apartments are built upon the mountainside. Restaurants are nearby but most errands need to be fulfilled by taking transportation. Los Planos is the flatter area of Bogotá just before the mountainside commences. Living here allows you access to restaurants and stores within walking distance. I'd like us to be in Los Planos, of course.

I was invited to view three apartments. None of which will be ours as they are all occupied however their tenants were kind enough to allow me to view them. Layouts are pretty common with a living room, kitchen (maid's quarters off the kitchen), sitting room, fireplace, bedrooms (with full private baths attached or beside), general bath, and master suite. Differences were in flooring, woodwork and position of the layout. Folks, the sizes of these apartments were not smaller than the two-story single house we occupy now - wow! One apartment had a beautiful view overlooking the city of Bogotá, while another had beautiful vegetation outside the windows and the scent of eucalyptus trees in the air.

Finally, I end this blog with what seems to be the biggest question, preoccupation, deterrent when one thinks of Colombia - its violence. I'll begin with this question, considering moving there was totally optional for my husband; would we take our kids to a place which would put them in danger? Simply put, no. Bogotá has changed in the last 10 years for the better. We walked the streets, speaking English, and didn't feel threatened. On several occasions I spotted police patrolling the parks. This is a city, not the jungle, not the undeveloped area in the mountains, or a country filled with mud huts and straw rooftops but a city with characteristics of any other city; tall buildings, large population, traffic, good and bad areas. From native to visitor you have to be aware of your surroundings just like any urban area. Don't you think people in other countries view the United States as dangerous with its school shootings and 9/11 attacks? The highways of Southern Italy offer threats of danger if you drive at night but that's not what people think of when they reminisce of Italy, do they? Can you judge New York solely on the rumors we hear of Harlem or California by L.A. road rage? I rest my case. I am told (as well experienced it for myself) visitors leave Bogotá with an entirely new impression of the city; "humbled" by their experience.