After a very short break in Italy I was back to my travel.
I arrived to the Bogotà airport at evening, I felt very strong and I took a night bus to Cali.
I arrived to the capital of salsa in the morning, from the bus terminal I left who wanted to put my on a taxi and I followed a man that found a mini van full of funny lovely women, directed to the city center.
It was nice to share a small space in that way, with that people, listening to what they were talking about, surprised and excited for the unusual new entry.
I cannot find that kind of experiences in a taxi, its not so easy to explain that to the people that every-time search the best way to help me.
Once reached the center I left the car and the hilarious women, I started to search an accommodation.
The street was really full of traffic, it was not easy to cross, I was stocked…a man saw me in troubles and he came to me, he escorted me to a hostel just around the corner, I wanted to tell him I would have preferred something different, I don’t feel comfortable anymore in that kind of places, but I couldn’t complain and I paid fifteen dollars for only a bed…
There was a swimming pool! Great!
Every time I came to the garden and I walked close to the border several people screamed to me to be careful, my life was in danger, but nobody could explain me the reason… I was really thinking to wear a life vest to enter in the garden.
Anyway, the staff was friendly and I immediately met Carlos from Spain, very cool and easy going. He proposed me to have a lunch, I appreciated it.
During the afternoon I only had a rest, I couldn’t join the salsa lesson offered from the hostel because my sore knee.
At evening I went to the reception asking about what it was possible to do in that city, they told me I couldn’t do anything different from dancing salsa and go drinking at the club… I don’t think that is really the true but when I listen to this kind of answer I give up, I’m even more convinced that many hostels are just a commercial proposal to who don’t really know the reason of his visit.
I was a bit melancholy… a girl close to me heard the conversation and proposed me to join her with the friends for dinner, I obviously accepted.
It was a nice and quiet evening, thank you Ignee, Frank and Allison.
Back to the hostel I felt I was not in the right place and in the morning I left Cali to go to Pasto, another city recommended by many people.
I decided to take a local minibus, cheaper and slower, in fact I reached my destination at evening.
My luck was still running, once left the bus I heard the same people telling me the same story: I need a taxi, its dangerous for me to walk… I started to walk somewhere, as usual, and I found a man on the street that didn’t probably think I was risking my health walking, he found a good and cheap hotel and I thank you very much, my unknown friend.
I felt Pasto a really friendly city, the first morning I was walking to Nariño park and a nice old man accompanied me there by car; walking across the park I felt carefree and I was surrounded by helpful people.
I spent only two nights there and I relaxed myself, I couldn’t walk too much, so I explored only a couple of blocks around my hotel.
There is only one thing I couldn’t understand from some people, as taxi drivers or the receptionists: it seemed that there are only two kind of woman in Colombia, marrieds and prostitutes!
Maybe men are just jealous because they know well how beautiful are their women!
