A lovely way to say goodbye...

It's almost time to bring this blog to a close as my time in Colombia nears an end. Despite all the wedding planning, visa application processes, navigating through multiple permissions from the Catholic Church, and much much more besides, we hoped to be able to have some kind of little holiday in this part of Colombia. So a weekend away in the "Cabo De La Vella'

Four months in the north of the Colombia, close to the Venezualan border has been an adventure that has been exhilarating as much as it has been challenging. Dealing with +40 degree heat.

The Cabo De La Vella is a vast area of land at the top of Colombia, South America. A 4x4 car is needed to cross the approaching land, as you approach the area it looks very similar to the large salt flats on Bolivia / Peru border. You can literally see the heat in the air as it ripples in front of you, though it’s one distinguishing feature is the strong wind that blows almost constantly through the area.

As we approached what looked like a series of deserted settlements, small children appeared, when they heard the passing car, with their arms outstretched begging for money. As the settlements became more frequent, we entered a small village, which has a few buildings with the word ‘Café’ and ‘restaurant’, painted on the walls. The ocean was now just 50 meters away on the left, and the top of the land seemed close. The 4x4 drove around a corner and turned left into what looked like an empty yard full of sand, with some small buildings attached to it’s side.  It looked pretty deserted to me, so I was surprised to hear the words: “ok, we’re here!”

The Hotel...

Our 'room'

As the photo’s show it’s pretty sparse and you can see just how exposed we were to the ocean, which stands just 30 meters away from our totally open ‘room’ After we had ‘checked in’ I was shown how the shower and toilet systems work: - the toilet is a self flush – with a bucket of sea water, whilst the shower works on the same principle, only with fresh water. (I have to say that taking a shower that evening under the stars was a pretty awesome experience).

Our beach..

Day 1 – After a delicious lunch, we soon headed to the first beach and walk. We could see the few other tourists headed for the walk first, so we went straight to the beach to cool off with a swim in the ocean.

Vibi & Santi enjoying a swim

Afternoon swimming

After the swim we dried off with a little walk to the cliff edge for the typical holiday photo…

The next stop was literally just one mile away, up another little cliff face, with about 50 other people to watch the sunset. Any of you who know me well, know I love a good sunset photo, so you shouldn’t be surprised to see the next 3-4 photos…

Going...

Going...

Going....

Gone

After sunset...

We returned to our ‘hotel’, (hammock shack) for a starlight shower and dinner. With no electric supple other than a small light we amused ourselves with a game of sherades, before being asked to turn our light off at 10 o’clock.  Sleeping in a hammock just meters from the ocean sounds amazing, and it was. However, being woken by a snarling dog wandering through the hut, being unable to lie face down in the hammock, and having nothing to filter the morning light did not leave me feeling entirely rested in the morning. 

Despite the disturbances, I have to say that waking to a very real close-up view of the ocean was fantastic.

A nice breakfast had us ready for the next and last, stop of the tour: another beach and headland. My Camera unfortunately died before we reached the top of the headland, but I still got some nice views.

The place looks a little apocalyptic to me – reminding me of scenes from the old ‘Mad Max’ films.

Following another swim in the ocean and a walk up to the headland for some lovely views, it was time to head back home. The trip had been short and sweet, but it was a welcome change from living at the mine and a good opportunity to see a little bit more of this fascinating country in it’s rawest form.

Hope you enjoyed the reading...

Regards from Colombia:

Dan 

The Wedding.....

Hello Everybody!

I know many of you will have seen some of these pictures, but I thought I'd add a little commentary to the day to give you a more realistic flavor of the day.
My Family had arrived in Bogota and had been quick to find their feet and enjoy exploring the place, and enjoying the hospitality (including funky restaurant bibs - see below).

Emma & Steve loving the bibs!

Mum & Dad getting in on the act!

And of course catching up with the Copa America games.....

Me and my sister!

Me & Vibi

....and more restaurant bibs for my sister!

We'd even taken a trip to the quite amazing salt mines one hour outside Bogota, which was also quite impressive...

Salt Mine Church!

At the Salt mines

So the wedding day arrived and with a view of reducing any unnecessary stress for my parents and myself, the three of us were staying at the beautiful and tranquil Casa De Eventos. Not only was this the wedding reception venue, but it was a mere 2 minutes from the Chapel. This left us most of the morning to stroll around the grounds, and even better, play with the cats! 

Me relaxing on the wedding morning!

The place itself was beautiful, a wooden farmhouse with log fires, and a beautiful dinner (the previous night) and fruit cocktail breakfast – all prepared by our wedding organisers! 

Feeling far too relaxed for my wedding morning, I was waiting for something to go wrong. Luckily, the closet thing I got to a ‘hiccup’ was having a shockingly freezing shower (I’m not talking ‘cold’ – I’m talking glacial river water). The benefits of such a shock, moved me out of my all-too-relaxed state and 10 minutes later I was dressed.

Vibi had arrived on the grounds to get dressed, so I was locked away to ensure we didn’t see each other, and just as I was thinking I should ask someone to give me and my parents a lift to the chapel (because no one seemed to be bothered about such details before the day), the photographer arrived to do the ‘getting dressed’ photos.

My sister and Steve had arrived with a mini-bus full of guests from Bogota, via an unscheduled stop at a café in the quaint town centre of Sopo. So arriving at the Chapel meant that I was greeted by friendly faces of my family, and friend Mary – A friend of mine who is living in Bogota, and someone I have known since I was 16 years old! 

Has the bride arrived yet??

These smiling faces helped to keep me relaxed: and then I met the Priest – or Monsenior to give him his proper title. My wedding day was the first time I had met the guy, despite hearing many funny /pleasant stories about him from Vibi. He was pure comedy! All through the service, he joked, spoke fluently in English & Spanish, asked for several rounds of applause – and at one point requested a round of applause for himself (whilst holding Vibi’s bouquet). He invited my Sister and Steve to read a passage in English to compliment the Spanish readings and encouraged them to be witnesses, even though we had arranged this detail beforehand. The only way I could give you an accurate idea of the priest is to say – think of the movie – 3 men and a little lady – Think Ted Danson dressed up as a priest trying to delay the wedding at the end… add a Spanish accent – and you have our amazing Monsenior.

The service included music (as a wedding gift) from two of Vibi’s friends – who just happened to be recognised opera singers. My Personal favourites were the Spanish versions of “Hallelulla” and “Flying without wings”

The witnesses

In case you were wondering if I was tearful –well yes pretty much throughout the day! Seeing Vibi arriving started me off, then during the vows, and don’t get me started on the speeches! In my defense anytime I started thinking of my nanna (who passed away just over a year ago), and all the friends and family who couldn’t make it here for the wedding, I got tearful!

Following the ceremony, and a long (but very fun) hour with the photographer and his crew, we returned to the reception area to a lovely toast from everybody. 

The reception...

Some of the beautiful personal touches from the wedding organizers included two doors covered with photos from our relationship. I was even more touched by their willingness to accommodate my strangest request – that a beautiful giraffe statue from their own personal apartment, was involved in the wedding. Whilst I had had been half joking – half serious seeing the giraffe at the wedding made me smile.

My Giraffe....

A butterfly tree (allowing people to write little personal messages in the shape of butterflies), was brought out later on too.

Table settings....

The morning after...

Somewhat bizarrely, (and a surprise to me), was having to do a waltz as we walked into the reception: before dinner – though this was separate from our first official dance later…

The speeches were emotional, and my sister did an amazing job, and read out messages from my closest friends and family. I wailed on for a good 15 minutes (though I was speaking in English and Spanish), and even managed to get a joke in about Radamel Falcao in the context of English & Colombian relationships not always being easy (clever eh!?)  

My sister's speech

And then came the ‘carnival hour’. I had been told it was traditional in Colombian Weddings to have a ‘carnival hour’ where they play certain types of music and bring out silly hats, masks, glasses, etc – and so as the DJ had clearly been waiting long enough through my speech, the cake cutting was skipped,  (for the time being, or so I thought) and the music cranked up. I was ushered to the front of the crowd with Vibi and told to follow the DJ who seemed to be a big fan of Shakira style dance moves. To be totally honest it was very much like the warm up salsa classes I do on the Waterfront in Wellington (NZ). I didn’t embarrass myself too much and was pleased to see all my family donned in silly hats, masks and up on the dance floor – my dad included! 

Carnival time!

I’d honestly thought that the carnival hour might be a little tacky for my taste, but it was lots of fun and definitely added to the fun element of the day. 

(The official cutting of the cake event – never happened for two reasons. People were having too much fun dancing, and as time was getting on, we still had a small soup to serve before people left for the evening, so the cake was cut by  persons unknown, and passed out). This kind of gives you the idea of how the day truly was. There was a rough plan, but things moved as the mood of the celebration determined, and this was one of the things I loved most about the day…

The wedding night – well that obviously not something I’m going to write about, but I will show a quick photo of the beautiful room that was set out for us, and as for the rest – mind your own business! Lol.

I’d always said that I wanted a wedding day to be relaxed, (check), fun (check), and as long as the guests enjoyed themselves (Check) and we were married at the end of the day (check), then that would be the perfect day for me. So I slept so well as a very happy, tired and married man.

The next morning before we left, the weather was stunning so we took some photos for our own memory of the place, and I got to say goodbye to my cat…

I hope you’ve enjoyed the commentary. I have to say though that none of this would have been possible without so many people: the chapel, the wedding cars, the music, the comedy priest, family flying half way around the world, amazing wedding organizers AND ALL THOSE OF YOU that have been there for me during the course of this relationship in so many different ways. Family, friends and colleagues (from across the globe) have all helped to make this day happen. You know who you are, and a huge heartfelt and timeless thank you from me!

Regards from Colombia!
Dan

Weeks 10 - 12, School visits, Running Man & Wedding Preparation!

Hello Everybody,

I can`t quite believe that I am 4 days from my wedding, and that wedding will be in Bogota, Colombia. That`s quite a way from home town of Salford (Manchester) in the UK. I can`t quite believe my `current home` of 3 years has been in New Zealand, or that I`ve been blessed with life experiences across the globe, especially those in Romania and Vietnam that shaped me as much as any other. Generally speaking I`m sitting in the office of my brother-in-law to be, 3 hours from the arrival of my family to Colombia, and feeling pretty content with life.

That`s a lot of twists and turns in my life, some expected, some definitely unexpected and some were just downright bizarre! As I think back through the major events in my life I can see that many of the events and paths I have walked have been far more important in shaping my life than I ever realized at the time. Working in hospitals with seriously ill people, working at the Palace & Opera House Theatres, studying Occupational Therapy at Salford University, going to volunteer in Romania & Vietnam, past relationships - especially those big ones, the crazy random nights out with great mates or total strangers when traveling: are all experiences that have moved me.

One thing that has been constant in my life have been my great friends, both at home and across the globe - (you know who you are), and the support of my family to go and explore the world and the people in it. I talk about events and places shaping me, but that`s not a fair description of my world view. It has always been about the people, the good, the bad, and the sometimes the ugly`. (Its a quote so I`m not being mean when I write that). 

Therefore as I write this short post I just want to take a moment to recognize the role that everyone who I`ve ever spent some time with, for helping me get to this point... a big thank you!

In real life (currently living in the sweat box of Cerrejon), I have continued my running and swimming routines, much to the amazement of myself, and am enjoying the benefits of daily exercise and a good diet. Though running so much here comes at a cost.... I will add a picture below soon....

Even changing my running routine to the evening, I still can be covered in sweat after a run, even a slow and little run. Still, I am looking forward to running around the beautiful bays of Wellington again later in the year, instead of the dusty ground and dry land of this desert land.

I have enjoyed a return to the school on three occasions in the past 2-3 weeks, where by I was able to `help out` in two English classes, (one being about the school system in England). The visit was a presentation to a great class of kids who had previously questioned me about the weather in different parts of the world. I was able to entertain them for most of the hour with funny pictures of different weather and the primary topic of natural resources around the world. 

So as I am about to step into the latest, (and possibly biggest) adventure of my life, I am left hoping for as much fun, laughter and stimulation that my previous 35 years have included. More importantly I am hoping it will be filled with just as many amazing and interesting people that guide the next 35 years... 

Regards from Colombia...

Weeks 8/9 - In Serach of adventure, the big day pproaches, & giving speeches in Spanish!

Hi Everybody...

Well I'm hoping that this won't be a long blog today, and well to be honest, my daily life hasn't changed one bit in weeks, so it's not like I have a long list of adventure to share. I do however have some fab wildlife animal shots and some reflections of a different kind of adventure: my upcoming wedding and a continuation of life in a remote tiny mining compound. 

Having felt a bit claustrophobic and noticing that I was going a little bit stir-crazy whilst spending most of my days at home alone, cooking and doing house stuff, we took a little walk out of the compound for to do 'something different' and throughout the 'lush' desert known as 'The Cactus Track'....

As you can see from the photo - it was actually called the Cactus Track and not surprisingly there were a few Cacti along the walk. I was rather surprised at just how high they grew though. I guess I haven't really lived anywhere (before here) where there many cacti around to compare to! As you can see the land is pretty dry and lacking any real green colour. That's not surprising either as in the 6 weeks I have lived here so far, it hasn't rained properly once!

 I'm always on the lookout for different wildlife and through the trees (with my camera's zoom) I was able to pick out this little birdie, who looked like it had just flew through a rainbow - making it a little more easy to spot.

The next part of the walk is what I really wanted to share as I was told I had to be careful because there were ALLIGATORS around. Now being someone who grew up in a big UK city, seeing an Alligator is not an everyday experience, so I was getting quite excited about this. I did not imagine I'd get to see 5 Alligators of varying sizes just lounging about on the bank of a little man-made pond. The first one was quite a big one and I could see that it was a little photo shy - he was definitely keeping an eye on me though.....

 I love my camera (thanks mum & dad) and the zoom lets me get some great shots, but this is perhaps one of my favourite photos below - as this alligator was very aware of my presence by this point and keeping an eye on me!

 The next alligator was a far more willing model, and as you can see was posing nicely for a full-body shot!

 Another reasonably big one was also keeping a close eye on us as we tried to get a decent shot.

 This final alligator even took some direction (below) as I was instructing it  to ''show me some teeth'' and he was quick to oblige on the second shot!

After the excitement of alligator spotting we returned to the compound where I turned my attention to some of the less dangerous wildlife - the local cat population. You still need patience with this lot as they are quick to run anytime you get close.

PRE-WEDDING PARTY:

I don't want to use the blog to go on too much about weddings etc, but with my own being just 3 weeks away, it's an event that's having quite a big impact on my life at the moment as you can imagine! The highlights of last weekend was a wonderful fiesta (party) thrown by some of Vibi's friends and colleagues. I had been told it was a dinner at one of the 2 places to eat. I can honestly say I was pretty surprised to find a whole room of people, fancy dress, a poem/reading, gift, dancing and a quiz. Oh and a very nice meal too of course! 

What I really loved was the wedding 'photo-frame' and the "I Do" sign on the wall (see below)

 The photo frame was well used, for lots of photos, but for the sake of the blog it's easier to just show a couple of photos including the group one below. Probably my personal highlight was a crossword challenge made by one friend that had clues including the name of family members, the site of the proposal and place where we first met. -This was a lovely touch. A poem reading - in both Spanish and English was really touching too.

I was beginning to realize that I was going to need to give a speech of some description during the night, and this prospect was not one I was looking forward to. Whilst I have improved my Spanish speaking ability a little, trying to speak to a group of Vibi's close friends (many of whom not only speak good English but also are teachers) was making me feel pretty nervous. I was desperately trying to think of any jokes I could make out of my simple vocabulary - and prayed it would not be lost in translation and lead me to inadvertently offending anybody! 

Fortunately, people laughed in the right places and seemed to understand my sentiment, so I must have done a reasonable job. With the speech over I was happy to enjoy the remainder of the evening until the moment that I dread here most of all - dancing salsa in front of Colombians. This is a country where people are born dancing, knowing about 10 different styles of Latin music (of which I can only recognize three varieties). I like dancing, and luckily I like salsa (plus I can dance a little salsa too), but still dancing in front of a small group of Colombian's with everyone else watching is a nightmare I've had on a few occasions. (It'd be different in a club where people aren't all staring).
I've seen the video - which to my horror someone posted on fb - but I look much better than I thought I would, and my confidence shot up after being complimented on my salsa moves by said Colombians.

We were given a beautiful book of comments and quotes, plus this beautiful wine bottle/glass holder - in the style of Colombian artists. 

Wedding gift from Vibi's colleagues.

Regards from Colombia,

Dan