Medellin

Pic:Trains and Gondola of Medellin's Metro network (with a couple of Botero's "gordos" lurking).

Like many places in Colombia, Medellin is one of those that I'd heard was "dangerous". That it was full of mafia and guerillia groups like FARC as well as the drug cartels and the likes of Pablo Escobar. And so my preconceived images of Medellin were such that I thought it would be a city to avoid, but after arriving in Colombia and discovering for myself the situation here on the ground, all my notions of this country and what is dangerous was shattered. I was pretty sure that the same would be true for Medellin, and that it would as safe as anywhere else where there were relatively large groups of poor. The usual threats are all that remain, so outside of wandering in the poorest barrios at night I'd not encounter any other sort of danger. Medellin is an amazing city and I'd love to give it more time, but I just can't. I am beginning to feel that panic a traveler gets when the realization sets in that time is running short and running away from her.

Well, at one time it could have been dangerous and still could be if you are connected to the wrong crowd. The fact is that these groups are no longer, if they ever really were, interested in tourists. FARC and the other guerillas learned the hard way that trying to finance their campaigns and their lavish lifestyles (that would be the minority, as most guerillas live simple lives far out in the jungles) by way of kidnapping tourists wasn't in their best interests and so they've relied on cocaine and drug trafficing, and the odd abduction of rich Colombianoas. In fact, I met a woman as I sat at an outdoor cafe in Cali who'd been abducted and held for 6-months in the jungles. Its an interesting story and I wish I'd probed for more, but they took her from her remote jungle plantation and held her for ranson in full shackles. That was only a year ago. Her husband talked about his equestrian pursuits and by their dress it was obvious they were loaded. They bought me a coffee and my breakfast, by the way.

So yesterday after washing by hand the meager wardrobe that I wasn't wearing at the moment and setting them out to dry, I set out to see some of town. This is the only city with a metro system and its fantastic. For 50-cents you can ride until you exit the system, and yesterday I had one ride that lasted over an hour. I changed lines 3 times and one of those was this incredible gondola that connects the metro line with some very poor areas up on one of the surrounding hills that previously was unable to easily get into the city. This is a poor area, mind you, and I think this says a lot about this country and their forward thinking. There could be little economic kickback from these cable cars and as far as I've heard its just pure old fashioned altruism as this area is becoming slightly revitalized and the poor are now empowered to create change in their communities. Not to mention the forward thinking of building an expensive network of public transportation: if they can do it here, why can't we? Speaking of Seattle...


On the net yesterday I discovered some tragic news about a fellow bike racer and acquaintance in the Seattle area. Brad Lewis is my age and has been racing in the NW as long as I can remember, and on Monday he died during a race of an apparent heart attack. More info and details about a benefit ride on his behalf can be found at http://www.recycledcycles.com/racing/BradLewisMemorial.php.

The downtown area is vibrant and full of public art including many works from Medellin's very own, and Colombia's most famous contemporary artist, Fernando Botero. These are from his "los gordos" series.

And so to round out my day of culture I went to an evening concert in front of the Museo de Antioquia. A beautiful night setting and the crowd not the least bit dampened by the rain. It was dubbed spiritual music and some of the hostel-mates here made fun of me for going. I couldn't make out most of the lyrics anyway and the music was enchanting: a Spanish guitarist accompanied by two cellists. Really fantastic, a passionate and stirring performance perfectly suited for holy week.

Pic: An eveing Semana Santa-related concert on one of the main plazas of the city, free, paid for by the local goverment and sponsors... thats culture, no.