aportraitofthecityasayoungman

[aportraitofthecityasayoungman]

Pt 3 day 12

For my final day I woke up for the sunrise to walk around the city without the crush of tourists and take my final pictures. I love walking alone, looking for as much beauty as I can find. It’s peaceful, meditative, profound, and my favorite way to learn a city. I enjoyed a breakfast with my traveling friends I met while diving and in Cartagena, before heading to the airport for my 24+ hours of prolonged travel back to Arizona. I’m greatly looking forward to my time with my family, but sad this trip will be over. It’s been a beautiful way to experience a new culture, and my first time being able to experience conversing in another language consistently. I’m still terrible and existed by the most basic of phrases, but it was amazing to see how in this very brief time how much progress I could make being comfortable hearing and recognizing terms, sentences, etc. Although cartegena has a very strong accent, so as soon as I arrived I went back to square one and could understand nothing. It was a huge stepping stone for me, but profoundly basic and silly for most others and the world. It finally feels like another language might be possible and I hope I can keep the impetus going moving forward. I hope to return to South America in the future, able to dance and communicate.

[aportraitofthecityasayoungman]

[aportraitofthecityasayoungman]

Pt 3 day 11

Today I took a walking tour of the Getsemani neighborhood. It’s the beautiful bohemian neighbor to the old town where the poor used to live. Now it is drastically under the influence of gentrification, and is covered in profoundly beautiful street art. There’s areas filled with hostels(including mine) and restaurants clearly for travelers but others retain their local beautiful feel. It’s an incredible area and the history is fascinating and filled with uprisings of the people and the fight against gentrification.

In the afternoon I ate incredible seafood and generally enjoyed remaining in the warmth for my last night. It’s a beautiful place to be and it’s very under appreciated to be able to be outside without any coverings, completely comfortable talking to your newfound friends.

[aportraitofthecityasayoungman]

[aportraitofthecityasayoungman]

Pt 3 day 10

Today started with a walking tour of the old town in Cartagena, the second oldest city in Colombia after Santa Marta. We traced the cities history as a massive slave market port importing over 1 million Africans to its independence from this horrid past and its focus on remembering these sins to prevent their future occurrences and providing healing(unlike America, as always). We learned the stories of the Palenques the African descendants who formed their own free colony outside of the city which still exists, and used to braid maps into their hair for escapes. And finally about San Pedro Claver who personally freed massive amounts of slaves(said to be 300k but that seems...impossible) who is heroized in the city. We also learned a local dance called Champeta which was a cross between miming cutting off your arm with a large knife, and doing the Gangnam style dance so it was pretty great to see tourists attempt it. The inner city is surrounded by walls where the rich lived inside protected from pirates. It has a beautiful Spanish influence with winding streets, but is also overrun with tourists and pushy salesmen. In my experience compared to New York it’s quite peaceful, and downright cordial compared to salespeople in Morocco so I was much less bothered than many other travelers.

In the evening I took a good tour which...left a lot to be desired. The guide basically walked us to small stalls and said “here is X food you can buy” without explanations of what it was, why it mattered, how it’s made, or cultural significance. Aka all the things that make food yours valuable. But it was tasty food regardless so it was enjoyable. In the evening into the night we went to a bougie cocktail bar called the alquimist fashioned after old fashioned pharmacies( much like one in New York) and then later to a rooftop bar which had some very beautiful views and live music. We witnessed quite an adorable display of a local kissing a girl while dancing and his entire friend group started yelling and cheering and even cheersing with us. I’ve never seen such wholesome supportiveness. Then thy had us join to dance for awhile before going to bed.

Sadly Cartagena is quite a sex tourism hub, and it’s legal so the main square at night is absolutely covered in prostitutes. It’s horridly distressing and some of them charge 30,000 pesos, about 10 USD. Westerners coming to places like this to exploit crushing issues that we’ve helped to create is despicable. I’m very in support of sex workers legality and rights, but that doesn’t make the people paying for them better. It’s nice to see that all over the city there’s signs talking about how they don’t support it and many will kick out patrons if they try to bring it into their establishment.

[aportraitofthecityasayoungman]

[aportraitofthecityasayoungman]

Pt 3 days 8 and 9

Both days were filled mostly with scuba exercises and dives. We were practicing more advanced techniques like taking off and swimming with your mask off underwater, taking off your gear underwater, and escapes for if you run out. This alternated with regular dives which were beyond profoundly beautiful. With more experience in the water it only feels more graceful and weightless. The breathing to control depth becomes more unconscious, and you’re floating through a magical world skating past beautiful creatures. The reefs are like fractals, beautiful from afar and as you get closer more miniature worlds and details jump out. It’s amazing down to the smallest fish skimming in and out of tiny gaps in the mesmerizing patterns up to giant mountains with huge schools zooming past. The amazing thing about being underwater too is that they largely ignore you. Unlike surface animals that run whenever a human comes at all close, fish are at a constant buzz of activity around each other and your presence so long as it’s not TOO close doesn’t interrupt that allowing you to truly witness how the world moves past without any human interaction. We got to see squid, and even an octopus tucked into a corner today. I’m incredibly sad to be done with this adventure already and can’t wait to witness more of the ocean in the future. In the afternoon of my third day once all my skills were completed I took a long 6 hour shuttle ride to Cartagena for my last location. On the way I watched the movie Birdman which had a very magical realism tone to it completely by chance which was a really nice surprise. Great film overall. And went to dinner at El Arsenal The Rum Box, an incredible seafood restaurant that greets you with rum and chocolate, and says goodbye with hugs(actually). The food was incredible and a great introduction to the city before more in depth exploring tomorrow.

[aportraitofthecityasayoungman]

Pt 3 day 7

I’m in Taganga to get my PADI scuba certificate, which will allow me to do basic open water dives anywhere in the world. This is one of the cheapest, most beautiful, and best places to learn. It was clearly represented today when we got into the water almost immediately and were instantaneously among beautiful corral reefs and saw lion fish, scorpion fish, eels, and all manner of other colorful unnameable fishes. It’s surreal to be floating through the water, and feels like being in a living episode of planet earth. I’m already obsessed and can’t get enough. There’s a huge focus on breathing, and you use it to control your buoyancy and therefore depth control. Small changes in lung volume change what depth you float at and it gives a very new relationship to breathing, and to thinking about your body in 3D space. Again the connections to mindfulness meditation were huge and helped to contribute so much to being absolutely present and experiencing the beauty around. In the afternoon I relaxed in a hammock and catching up again on reading Gabriel Garcia Marquez to soak up the Colombian culture as much as possible and my soul feels so rejuvenated and refreshed. I’m already stressed that my vacation is coming to a close and I’ll be missing so much of this beautiful country.

[aportraitofthecityasayoungman]

Pt 3 day 6

I was supposed to go on a walking tour today but sleeping in made that difficult. I lazed around and enjoyed my last day in Medellin drinking coffee and enjoying the food. In the afternoon was lucky enough to find another traveler on my exact same flight and shared a cab with him to the airport, and then from the airport we shared to our respective hostels which saved us a great deal. He’s also from Spain so I got to benefit from his much improved upon communication abilities. Finally ended up at my tiny hostel in a tiny beach town called Taganga. I get to relax and enjoy the warmth and sitting in a hammock which is perfect, but I am incredibly sad to say goodbye to Medellin, the city of eternal spring and an amazing representation of how profound a city can improve with beautiful human resilience, resources and a motivated political base. It’s a profound city I need to see again.

[aportraitofthecityasayoungman]

Pt 3 day 5

Woke up and went paragliding over the Medellin valley today. It was an absolutely surreal experience, we were 2500 meters above the valley starting from a mountain and the views standing were incredible, once we were up in the sky they were amplified infinitely. The mountains were beautiful and dotted with little cottages and cows. Floating through the sky with the birds was something that profoundly changed how I viewed the world.

In the afternoon we went on a food tour of local eats including sour mango, pork rice, desserts, and a tour of an ethical coffee company. Disappointingly most Colombians drink terrible coffee because they subsidize the crops and send the good stuff to rich countries so the coffee culture for locals is very different. Some companies are trying to change this and keep it in country and pay the farmers better which is beautiful. We also had a shot of the local liquor arguadiente or “guaro” which the government taxes to give money to schools and children’s programs so they call it “drinking for a good cause” which is cute. It was a very beautiful evening. It did raise one of my major pet peeves, when travelers insult traditions of a place they are in. You would never walk into someone’s home and tell them the food they made you was gross, wrong, or they decorated in an ugly way. But for some reason so many come and in plain hearing of a local guide will talk about how their use of cheese is “disgusting” or how they think the lights are ugly. It’s so stupid. It’s not there for you. Suck it up and view it through a different lens. So what if the lights would be viewed as tacky in Europe, here it’s the norm and it brings joy so you don’t have to like it but don’t insult it.

In the evening we had another salsa class with a competition for those who best followed “the most important rule” of salsa- to have fun. Me and my partner won, which was clearly a consolation type prize because we were profoundly bad but just shamelessly goofed regardless so an amusing memory. The night went forever, and we ended up going to a bar with a massive ball pit like a McDonald’s playpen which is a fantastic idea, and then to a local bar. Somehow we got invited to sit with locals and they were incredibly magnanimous. The New Yorker in me was incredibly stressed and suspicious of them giving us free drinks and asking “what do you want” but turns out they were just incredibly friendly. I could barely understand them but one kept telling me that the music was so good because it was “local and not from China” which I’m not sure if it’s a trumpesque comment but I appreciated his love of his home. We ended up getting back at 5:30AM which kind of messed with my plans for the next day

[aportraitofthecityasayoungman]

[aportraitofthecityasayoungman]

Pt 3 day 4

Today was a lazy day. I purposefully did almost nothing and sat around reading and reading up on what I’m going to do for the rest of my stay. It’s taking conscious effort not to actually plan it and let it take a natural course but also direct it to be an efficient and well used time. I really needed a day like today to not talk to people and read. Sitting in a hammock and letting the mind work is truly magical. I finished the portrait of Dorian grey and loved it. Very interesting piece and I have so many thoughts. First, it failed the bechdel test so hard. While it’s great it was from a persecuted gay author and that point of view, it was hugely problematic. As one review said ‘If the novel is homoerotic, it is also misogynistic’. But valuable in its own ways.

After an entire day I felt ready to adventure again and went on a nighttime bike tour of the city to see the Christmas lights. This included seeing a Christmas fair that was so corny it was precious. They had people dressed up as Santa Claus, Mickey Mouse and minions. Very corny lights, and so many merchants of cotton candy and other junk food in an area draped with bright lights. It was part Fourth of July, part Times Square. In it I felt like I could actually talk to people again easily without it being exhausting. I think it’s two parts; one being that I finally am recovering from the social fatigue of clinicals, and two being that there’s a skill to bantering that I lose over time. I forget how to talk about non medical things and after a few days it’s coming back. It feels good to feel reinvigorated to have my adventures moving forward.

“ the people who love only once in their lives are really the shallow people. What they call their loyalty, and their fidelity, I call either the lethargy or custom or their lack of imagination. Faithfulness is to the emotional life what consistency is to the life of the intellect-simply a confession of failure.”

“Romance lives by repetition, and repetition converts a appetite into an art. Besides, each time that one lives is the only time one has ever loved. Difference of object does not alter singleness of passion. It merely intensifies it. We can have in life but one great experience at best, and the secret of life is to reproduce that experience as often as possible. “

And it makes me think about how I fall in love with every place I travel to. Everything about the people I meet and the culture and the memories and the experience. We are only enriched by the more experiences and loves we have, and then we can share that with others. I certainly feel like a better more complex person after each and it’s so valuable to me.

[aportraitofthecityasayoungman]

[aportraitofthecityasayoungman]

Pt 3 day 3

"It's ludicrous that this place exists and everybody doesn't want to live here." 

Anthony Bourdain

I woke up early this morning to take a trip to Guatape, a small picturesque town two hours out from Medellin. The ride gave me so much time to think. It’s amazing how it feels to have time to sit and think now when I have nothing else I have to do. I get to be pensive and enjoy it instead of a crush of responsibilities back at home. I reflected a lot on how these pressures and my constant low level social anxiety can be relieved a bit in the freedom of traveling where everyone is trying to experience things for themselves. They are all friendly, but not invested and in the end you owe nothing to anyone. I get to experience myself in that. On the drive we stopped at Viejo Penol a small replica of an old city that was flooded. There was an energy crisis in Colombia and a massive hydroelectric Damn was built that supplies power for a third of the country, but in the process cities were destroyed. Now a small spire sticks out in remembrance and they’ve built a replica town square which is beautiful. They call the city the Phoenix of the water after being reborn.

We then explored Guatape itself which is one of the most picturesque places I’ve ever seen and largely void of tourists. It’s brightly colorful and beautiful frescoes line every building with motifs across them. Painfully photogenic. Then a boat ride in the river with swimming and rock jumping to be active, and a cooked buffet of incredibly delicious food. Amusingly most of my cohort were European and couldn’t handle a(mildly) spicy sausage in the slightest that I found amazing.

And finally we climbed La Piedra Del Peñol, a 200 meter tall volcanic rock that overlooks the entire valley. It now has a staircase with 650+ steps to the top and an incredible 360 degree view. One of the most amazing natural sights I’ve seen. On the way back we were treated to two interesting sights. One was 6 men all standing clustered on the tailgate of a pickup truck whipping down the road. The second was a cow running away from its leader down the road causing quite a ruckus.

In the evening I read in a hammock overlooking the city from the hostel, and then went out to eat at a ramen restaurant(classic I know) which was actually incredibly good.

“People are afraid of themselves, nowadays. They have forgotten the highest of all duties, the duty that one owes to one's self. Of course, they are charitable. They feed the hungry and clothe the beggar. But their own souls starve, and are naked.“-Dorian grey

[aportraitofthecityasayoungman]

[aportraitofthecityasayoungman]

Pt 3 day 2

I woke up to enjoy free delicious Colombian coffee while enjoying not being freezing in New York. Then I took a bike tour of the city which was beautiful. The city shuts down parts of the highways every Sunday as part of an effort to improve the quality of life and decrease pollution. The city was filled with bikers out to enjoy the day and we started by riding to a famous juice stand where they sell about a liter of every juice imaginable which was delicious. Then we rode to the Medellin river park where they’re building an expansive park system to run along the river with benches, a large amount of art displayed, and more to again improve quality of life. We rode around government buildings and generally learned about the history of the city and how profoundly the government is investing in education, healthcare, and other social programs to improve the life of its citizens which is profoundly beautiful and in stark contrast to the States. But the guide also brought up how violent of a history the city has been through, revolutions, dictatorships, and Pablo Escobar. The city has only had peace for a few decades and the powerful memory of what that did is a very large impetus for change and improvement. More and more I learn that change requires a massive catalyst like that, and that’s something more wealthy countries are lacking. The biggest catalyst is pushing them in the very wrong directions and there’s not threat of a full revolution to inspire governments to actually profoundly improve citizens lives.

I had an amazing MASSIVE classical lunch of bandeja paisa which is a pile of rice, meat, sausage, avocado and beans which even from an overpriced bougie restaurant was less then $10.

Then I went on a tour of the infamous Comunas 13 or the 13th district. Until quite recently it was the most violent neighborhood in South America, and up there in the world. It was terrorized by 8 different gangs/revolutionary groups as it was a key route into the city. A local guide with a profound amount of energy and personality took us through the rising streets covered in beautiful graffiti to tell us the history of how the government, but more so the people took back control and created a peace. Now it is covered in the most beautifully profound graffiti and street art all around by famous artists memorializing the people involved and the culture of the community, including hip hop and it’s role. We heard people free styling in the street, saw numerous dancers, and the place was dripping with art and creative energy. The view from the top took place in a profoundly hipster seeming bar with craft beer overlooking the entire valley and city. The neighborhood climbs the mountain in steep steps and overlooking the growth of houses on top of each other was profoundly amazing. The entire neighborhood was one of the coolest places I’ve ever been. It’s thrumming with personality, and the Colombian people are thrilled with life in a way that’s hard to describe. As an example the bus ride up was packed to the brim with people literally hanging out the door, including a little old lady who literally shoved her way into the doorway to hold on for dear life. The whole while everyone was laughing, smiling, and singing out loud as a group in joy. I’ve seen a lot of impoverished communities and this is profoundly that way, but there’s a vibrancy about the people that I haven’t seen anywhere else. They burst personality and joy throughout and the city and children feel much more content and clean than others I’ve seen. Getting back to the sad aspects, our guide still has to pay $100 US a month to gangs simply for existing(a huge sum in relation to their wages), but he’s still smiling and profoundly loves his community. He’s fluent in at least 2 languages and desperately trying to learn many more with an enthusiasm and skill I wish I had. This area also has the second ever built outdoors escalators, transforming a treck up the mountain that used to take 20+ minutes and was impossible for the elderly living there to an enjoyable and easy trip. It’s a very cool example again of investment in and regrowth of a community.

Traveling is really interesting because it makes you so aware of every moment. I’ve been practicing a lot of mindfulness meditation recently and realized both that they complement each other, but also it just kind of forces you to be mindful and present while in awe. Especially traveling alone is such a profoundly selfish and self fulfilling time and I’ve been contemplating a lot what that means and feels like, in terms of fulfilling expectations that are real or invented in my own mind. It’s just so far cry from my daily experience trying to cram information into my head and the bizarre chaos that is clinical rotations.

I’ve also gotten to play my favorite game of ��how disgusted and shocked do I make other people when we compare the price of my education versus theirs”. Always a fun reminder of how ‘America is great’

“Nothing can cure the soul but the senses, just as nothing can cure the senses but the soul”

And

“Pleasure is nature’s test, her sign of approval. When we are happy we are always good, but when we are good, we are not always happy”-portrait of Dorian gray

[aportraitofthecityasayoungman]