Random Things

I've mainly only been talking about school and my days there, but I haven't really talked about Colombia yet and what I've experienced in this country. So here goes my random cultural findings:
First I should say it's definitely a third world country. The proof is in everywhere I look. The streets are worse than any Chicago street (sorry to say). One day I took the public bus to school, and they get super busy like I have mentioned before, so you're standing right in front of someone sitting down holding on to the bar on the ceiling for dear life. There is one exceptionally bad street on the way to school and I promise, it took all of me to keep my feet on the ground as we drove down the street. It was like a really cheep roller coaster.
But besides that, as you drive down the street you see little shops and things that I can't explain and one day might take a picture of that show where the economy is at here.
Another thing, everything is 10x smaller. In the States one store could turn into 3 stores here. It's insane to me and my first day was a huge shock. Even the restaurants are unbelievable small. The problem is, I'm going to come back and be weirded out about how big everything is.
I need to correct my first post. I called it the AutoVista, it's actually the AutoPista (not technically capitalized, that's just for effect). But they pronounce it like a v so I got confused. Let me explain this autopista to you. Its 3-4 lanes each way, separated by a 5-lane-wide median of grass and trees (sometimes so thick you can't even see the other side). The way it works is one side goes north, the other goes south. BUT, there's no turning left. Si like on the way to school we take it north, and technically the street to get to school is on the left side. To get there, you take a u-turn called a Returno to start going south and then turn right into the street. That's just how it is. So you need to go north passed the street, take the next returno, start going south for a bit before you can turn into the street. And all along the autopista there are bridges over it for people to walk across. Which is helpful because after school the van drops us off on the other side from where I live, so I cross the bridge and walk along the sidewalk along the autopista until I get to my street. Something I've seen in the median is little tents where homeless people live. I've also noticed some construction or something involving digging in the middle but I haven't figured out what it is yet.
Another cultural thing is the way people speak. I don't want to generalize it but the Colombians I talk to in Spanish speak so fast and so quietly. I have to ask them to repeat themselves so many times its crazy because I really can't hear them and they are so fast.
I'm learning some of their customs though. When my host drove 2 boys home who live in our complex, that night one of their moms brought arepa (a bread type thing they eat for breakfast he was telling me about as he walked me home) as a thank you. This week, my host lent a student (possibly the same one) stuff he needed for his mission trip, so his mom brought a pound cake as a thanks.
Now I'm going to say something really fast about the food. Cakes are not good here, from what I've experienced. The pound cake was super dry. When my student's parents threw him a party, the parents served wine cake, which is a super common thing here. People like cook their cake in wine, but it was soggy. Almost like tres leches cake but such a weird flavor because its wine. I took two bites and could not finish. I guess they think the wine makes it more moist, but it's just weird. Otherwise, I've eaten lots of beans and rise and fruit. The juice is literally blended fruit, it's incredible. And obviously a lot of strong coffee.
There's probably more but that's all I got for now. The random things I've learned about Colombia so far.Read more