Con Mucho Gusto
When I told people of my travel plans and that Colombia was on my itinerary, they didn’t understand why I wanted to go to such a dangerous place; a place where its past haunts its every corner! It is true this country has been through an incredible amount. Its past is riddled with stories of death, pain, and blood. A place where the value of a life, for a very long time, was not important in the very least!
When you mention Colombia two things usually come to mind; cocaine and guerilla warfare…
Pablo Escobar, one of the most famous Colombian drug lords, ran the game of cocaine trafficking in Medellin for many years. At the height of his career, Escobar was smuggling 15 tons of cocaine a day; much of it headed towards the United States. His Medellin Cartel controlled 80% of the global cocaine market. Though his rule in the drug world was seen to many as a catch twenty-two–on the one hand he was a ruthless drug lord, killing anyone who crossed him; but to many he was a savior of sorts, pumping a significant amount of his drug money into the city of Medellin; much of it directed towards the poor. His reign ended when he was shot and killed on December 2, 1993.
I was warned not go to the surrounding areas outside of Bogotá, for fear that I would be kidnapped and held for ransom. This has been one of the tactics the FARC–Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia), has used to subsidize their guerilla outfit. They are a military wing that was established from the Partido Comunista Colombiano (Colombian Communist Party). It was created in response to what is known as La Violencia (The Violence). This was a decade of violence in which over 300,000 people were killed between the period of 1948 and 1959. Most of those who were killed were peasants and laborers of rural Colombia. The FARC state that they stand for the peasants, the poor people of rural Colombia; but from the very beginning the FARC was established as a terrorist group by many governments. To others they do not see them as terrorists, but rather a group that stands up for the voices of the pueblos. Even as I write this the FARC and the Colombian government are in a controversial negotiation for peace. Many in Colombia, hope peace will come, thus ending the reign of their violent past.
With a history of drugs and violence, you may wonder why in the hell did I want to come to such a place!? Even one of my Spanish friends warned me that still to this day it is a country plagued by their past; and told me if you cross a Colombian in the wrong way, they will not hesitate to kill you or have you killed. However true this may or may not be; this is not the Colombia I have experienced. Many will call me naïve in this way; but the Colombia I have been traveling through has been very different indeed! In fact, it has been filled con mucho gusto, roughly meaning, with much pleasure. This is what you will hear as you travel through this amazing land. It is a country that has risen above its dark, blood stained history and is now growing into a new Colombia. And I believe the only way this has been possible is by her people. They are not jaded by what was; they are a prideful, warm, and the most welcoming people I have met thus far in my travels. I have been offered to stay in homes after just a short five minute conversation; I have been given a tour of a city for the sole reason of wanting me to know it properly; I have shared a homemade meal with two girls I met not just two hours before, who were without a question the most kindhearted people; I have ridden in the back of a military truck from one town to the next because they saw we needed a ride; and I was hosted by an amazing family and their friends for a day and night that I will never forget! All of whom expected nothing from me!
I am not the sole person who has had these experiences while traveling here in Colombia. I have talked to many travelers who have very similar stories. It’s not a country that is ruled by its past anymore. They are moving forward despite where they came from, forging a path filled with hope for a future where when mentioned, it will not be thought of as drugs and wars, but Colombia will first be thought of for the character of her people. And for me–this is what Colombia is now.
If anyone is thinking of making the trek down to Colombia, I have nothing but praise to say. And without a doubt in my mind, her people will welcome you con mucho gusto!