WE HERE

Hola desde Medellín, amigos!

My inaugural post from Colombia will be short and sweet.   The desire to write something profound and engaging has hindered my posting consistency in the past, so I’m actively striving for quantity over quality.  Expect some typos.

Dara found us an awesome room on Airbnb to spend our first few days before we move in with our homestay family.  It’s in El Poblado, the trendy section of the city which includes Parque Lleras.  Check out this eye sore we’ve been forced to look at daily:

Photo cred to Dara; goddamn that’s a hot view.  Looking out of our apartment in El Poblado, Medellín.

Holy Jeebus I can get used to this weather.  It’s been gorgeous so far, SIMPLY GAW-JUSS; 80’s all day and 70’s all night. And of course, every weather site on the interwebs calls for daily rain and temperatures dropping into the 50’s… WHAT THE HELL INTERNET, I TRUSTED YOU.  I think this future snowbird (jewbird??) just found his new retirement destination.  Wait a minute, does talking about your retirement necessitate having a job?  If only daydreaming contributed to my 401k…

But this city has much more to offer than just remarkable vistas and beautiful weather.  Each Colombian we’ve encountered has been incredibly friendly, which has made our assimilation very smooth.  Everyone has been eager to converse, learn about us, and help out when necessary.  A cab driver suggested we walk somewhere and made sure we knew where we were going before letting us leave.  Strangers give recommendations in addition to directions.  Every interaction is followed with “con gusto.”  The beauty and generosity of this city is readily apparent, it’s hard to believe that just a few years ago it would have been unthinkable to visit.

Also it’s very affordable and teams of people walk through Parque Lleras on Saturday handing out free shots. ¡VAMOS COLOMBIA!

Yesterday Dara and I started our classes and moved in with our homestay family:

Marcella, Martha and Santiago

I am sure the homestay will provide no shortage of material, but I’ll save that for the next entry.  I’ll leave you with our new view:

Photo cred to Dara, view from our new apartment in Envigado.

Stay tuned for more of your favorite adult, contemporary jams.  Smooth jazz, CD 101.9.

Word(s) of the day: ¿Que mas? – “What’s good?” Derived from the vernacular of Señor Elliot Steinbaum, when said to locals with the proper accent, they will start speaking to you at an incomprehensible speed.  Typically followed by nodding my head “sí” and smiling.