My Night in Havana

During the Summit of the Americas, held here in Cartagena last April, Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton visited this popular bar in the Getsemani neighborhood. I have been wanting to visit Club Havana since moving here a year ago. A few friends and I ventured out one Saturday night and here are some pictures of the club. 

Every wall is adorned with pictures of famous Cuban musicians. 

Club Havana features live music that is lively and fun. Most of the audience exuberantly sang along with the band.

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Club Havana has a casual atmosphere, so much so, that the beautiful lead singer pictured above did not wear shoes during her set. 

Back In Cartagena..

I am back in Cartagena after being in the States for seven weeks. I had a wonderful time while away visiting friends and family. I did miss my friends in Colombia and my lifestyle here (by lifestyle, I mean my housekeeper). One of the big differences in how I live in the two countries is that I drive every day in the States. Where I live in Cartagena, I can walk to the supermarket, doctor's offices, restaurants and the beach. I only need to get in my car if I am driving to my children's school.

I walk everywhere here for errands and for exercise. I love the walking path that is right in front of my apartment building. (Pictures of the path above) The path is around Cartagena Bay and people walk, run, bike and rollerblade in the early morning and evening. It is too hot to walk during the middle of the day.
The other huge part of my life that I missed is my housekeeper. It is hard for "average" income people in the United States to afford domestic help on a regular basis. Here help is extremely affordable. I have my housekeeper come three days a week, she cooks, cleans, does my laundry and she has also been helping me learn Spanish. She has become part of the family and we missed her while away.

Dinner at Tiger Mart

When I asked my neighbor recently where they were going for dinner  she said, “Tiger Mart.” I was more than a bit astonished. “I’m sorry, what? Did you say Tiger Mart? As in, the gas station?” Utterly perplexed, I waited to hear the correction and the name of a new restaurant that I hadn’t yet heard of. Instead she said, “Yes, Tiger Mart, at the gas station. They have really good hot dogs.” 

Recently, a friend of mine found out that Tiger Mart carries the largest selection of Amazon hot sauces in all of Cartagena. After hearing yet another friend compliment their prepared food, I decided that it was time I took a trip to Tiger Mart to explore their marketplace and to have a hot dog, of course.

The Tiger Market is its official name, locally it is called Tiger Mart.  It is located just outside of Boca Grande on the road to the Old City on the right. The gas station is popular and so parking can be a challenge if it is packed. I did get lucky the day I went and found parking immediately. While the space is not large, it is well stocked with interesting food items from all over the world.

I found fig cookies from Ireland, cookies from Italy, seasonings from the U.S. and yes, a large selection of Amazon products. (If you go, I highly recommend the Amazon Sweet Chili Pepper Sauce.) One can find pretzels, large bags of walnuts, almonds, large containers of spices and condiments, including mustard (both Dijon and whole seed), and even sprinkles! Also on hand, large jars of strawberry jam, specialty chips and an entire selection of sugar free cookies and treats. 

After taking a few minutes to peruse the shelves, I walked to the counter and asked for a hot dog, there are two ways to have the Perro Caliente, American style or wrapped in a pastry. I chose the American style, I put some mustard and potato crisps on the top and went to sit down. Tiger Mart has conveniently provided small tables with stools for people to sit and enjoy their meal. I found a table, but all the stools were taken. I started to eat standing up when a gentleman immediately offered me his stool, I thanked him profusely in both English and Spanish.  I got comfortable in my seat and took a bite,  it was in fact quite yummy. I was reminded of the kind of hot dogs you would get in a baseball stadium.  I did see other food offered, empanadas and I did see pizza boxes, but didn’t see anyone order a pizza.

I plan to return to Tiger Mart for more Amazon sauces and to try their empanadas, which my friend told me are also quite tasty.

Sex Ed and Religion in Colombia

"Mom, we learned about Internet porn in school today." This was my son's declaration one afternoon while I was hanging out with a friend. "What did you learn about Internet porn," I responded. "Not to do it," he said.
I knew that my son was taking a once a week sex ed class in his fifth grade class. The class was taught in Spanish and we had a notice come home asking permission for our child to participate. I signed without hesitation. The class met for a few weeks and Luke would tell me what they discussed.
Most of it was pretty standard and things that I want him to know and understand. The Internet porn thing though, had me wondering what else was discussed. I went to meet with the school psychologist, the woman who led the sex ed classes, to ask her more about what was covered. She explained to me that the program is comprehensive and starts in kindergarten. Each year the children are taught about their bodies and their sexuality. I was very impressed and told her that in the States the program that I know well that does this is part of my church, I have not seen many schools in this day and age give comprehensive sex ed in this way. She told me that in Colombia sex ed is mandated by law; every child in this country has to participate in sex ed classes.
I asked her then why we got a permission slip. She told me, "We only send the permission slips home to families from the U.S. we know that sometimes they don't want their children to participate."
Wow. I was a bit floored . One the one hand, pleasantly surprised at how progressive the Colombians are in this area and on the other, disappointed at the U.S. education system that, at times, is victim to the culture wars by denying our children a comprehensive and healthy learning of sexuality.
The other class that is mandated by Colombian law in all schools, public and private, is religion.
How intriguing. The two mandatory classes (along with reading, writing arithmetic etc.) are sex education and religion. The two classes are taught separately, for sure, however, I wonder if it wouldn't make more sense to teach them together at the same time.
In light of the gay marriage debate back in the States, it would be an interesting look at what religion teaches us about sexuality. In the case of Colombia, a predominantly Catholic country, sex would be seen through the lens of the Vatican. That would make for quite a thought provoking dialogue. Thankfully, the classes are not integrated and sex ed is taught, in what appears to be, a straightforward manner.
Granted, the views of sex here are still colored by the rigid dictates of the Catholic church. However, prostitution is legal here and same sex couples are permitted by law to register as de facto unions (uniones de hecho), which were previously available only to heterosexual couples and which provide all of the rights of marriage. According to the 1991 Constitution, "de facto unions" are legally equal to marriages. (italic passage from Wikipedia)
In essence, the entire country of Colombia provides more equal rights to its citizens than the majority of the United States. (Huh, and we like to call ourselves advanced.)
In a country where the Catholic church has such a strong influence, prostitution is legal and same sex couples who live together can be afforded the same rights as heterosexual couples. If this is the result of mandatory sex ed and religion in schools, maybe Colombia is on to something......

Where Are the Apples?

This post was written by my friend Fallon, who is also from the States.

The first time I went grocery shopping in Colombia I thought, “That’s weird… Where are the apples?”  I corrected myself as I processed this thought.  The absence of apples in the local market was not weird, just different than the life I was accustomed to living in the United States.  Over time, it became easier to adjust to cultural differences between Colombia and the U.S.  Perhaps I could not find apples, but I learned to love pittaya, maracuya, and mamones. 

Although my adjustment to eating Colombian fruits seems small, it represents an honest effort to understand and accept a culture different than my own.  In the past year, I have confronted and overcome biases I held about Colombians and gained knowledge about what it means to be Latino. 

Check, Please! Understanding Latin American Meals and Time

I sat chatting with my friend in a local restaurant after we finished our lunch. My food was gone, my water was gone, and my eyes darted around the room in search of the waiter so he could bring us the check. We waited for over 20 minutes, until I finally waved him down and asked for it. I paid the bill, annoyed, and left in a hurry. I decided that he was rude. In the United States, we are accustomed to eating a meal in a restaurant in under an hour. In Colombia, going out for lunch may take two and a half. The next time this occurred, my friend smiled and said, “Are you in a hurry?” I replied that I wasn’t, but that the waiter should bring the check once we are finished. She explained that in Colombia, wait staff assume you want to relax and enjoy conversation following a meal. This practice, a custom in many Latin countries, is known as sobremesa. In Colombia, it would be considered rude for the waiter to bring you the check, urging you to leave. Therefore, you must ask for the bill when you are ready. The emphasis is not on eating a meal, but on the opportunity you have to spend quality time with a friend or loved one. My assumption that I would receive a bill immediately following my meal affected my opinion of Colombians in a negative way. I also failed to recognize that the time I spent with my friend, deepening our relationship, was more important than paying the bill.

Another practice I noticed when I moved to Colombia was that everyone arrived late for every event, no matter what it was. I once attended a wedding where even the bride-to-be showed up an hour after the wedding was scheduled to begin. I found this custom irritating at first because in the United States we place an emphasis on arriving early. Lateness is frowned upon in most cases. Rather than be annoyed, I have embraced the fact that lateness is simply a part of the culture and not meant to be discourteous.

Tranquilo....

There is a distinct culture living on the coast of Colombia that differs from the one in Bogota. While I was in Bogota only one week, I experienced it as busy and crowded. I did enjoy listening to people speak Spanish there because it was slow and clear. Here in Cartagena, the city is not as crowded and the pace of life is slow, although the Spanish is not slow. It is fast and often words are cut off. For example, in Bogota, you will hear, "Buenas Dias," said clearly. In Cartagena, you will hear either, "Buenas," or "Buendia." I don't know enough Spanish to give more examples, you'll just have to trust me, it's fast and words are chopped.
There is one word that I hear all the time and that's "tranquilo." Literally, it means tranquil in English, but it's used here to mean, "hey, relax, it's all good." I love hearing it because it is a sweet way of communicating calm.
Recently, I was at the grocery store and as I turned away from perusing a shelf of spices, started pushing a cart. A woman walked quickly to me and said that I had taken her cart by mistake, I was flustered and apologized quickly and she said, "tranquilo," with a smile on her face. People say it when mistakes are made all the time or when someone is in a rush (usually it's someone from the States whose rushing to do something, in general, people here don't rush). Tranquilo. I love that it's part of the culture here. "Hey, relax. No worries. Life is short. Stay tranquil."

Easter Without The Bunny and Spring Without The Daffodils

Easter in Cartagena is celebrated without the  supermarket onslaught of peeps, chocolate bunnies and jelly beans. I actually never heard anyone say Easter in Spanish, everyone refers to the holiday by saying "Semana Santa," which is "Holy Week" in English. I asked people what the word for Easter is and more than one had to take a minute to think about it saying, "We don't really say, Easter, we always refer to the holiday in terms of the entire week." There are parades around the old city of people following statues of Jesus and/or Saints. Religious people will spend the week in contemplative prayer both at home and at church.
Leading up to the Easter holiday season, I expected the supermarkets to have candy displays and aisles of baskets and fake neon colored grass. None of this occurred. The reason I thought it would is that Christmas here has all the commercial trappings of the United States, including fake trees and Santas everywhere. Not so with Easter. The holiday is revered as one that is religious and not one of frivolity. I found it refreshing. Although, I have to admit that my children are not very young, so not searching for eggs or getting loads of candy was not something they particularly missed. Maybe if they were younger, I would feel a bit more nostalgic for these things.
What I did appreciate was the solemn focus of the holiday. After all, the Easter holiday celebrates what is considered the foundation of the Christian faith. If we are honest, we can acknowledge that Peter Cottontail was not in the empty tomb hiding plastic eggs filled with jelly beans. But I digress.
A non-candy filled Easter is not the only thing that struck me this spring. What I miss is seeing the daffodils coming out of the grass after a winter of cold weather and snow. It is the first time in my life that I don't have the feeling of being part of mother nature while she slowly transitions from the long  cold dark nights of winter into  long sunny days and warm nights. I didn't even realized  I was missing this until reading posts from friends on Facebook. They would comment on the signs of spring they saw in their yards, or the gardens they started planting.
While I am here, I will continue to appreciate the wonderful tropical weather that is here, while vicariously enjoying spring through Facebook.

Lessons from Cartagena Pizza

I've heard from some of my U.S. friends living here, "There is no good pizza here in Cartagena." I decided to try it anyway, and I love it, which made me realize two things; first, just because someone doesn't like something, doesn't mean it's bad, second, the pizza here is phenomenal, it is just not New York City style pizza. The pizza here is the same as Italian pizza from Italy.
I have had pizza both in NYC and in different cities in Italy. I enjoy both types of pizza, the thicker crust of the Italian-American pizza and the thin, lightly topped, Italian-from Italy-pizza.
This idea of whether Cartagena pizza is good or bad is a metaphor for how (some) people from the States react to things that are different.
The pizza, restaurants, malls, entertainment and whatever is being compared to the States, is what it is here in Cartagena. It is not meant to be exactly the same as it is in New Jersey, California or North Dakota. It is meant to be from Cartagena, Colombia.
I don't understand the idea that the entire world needs to be one way. The world is rich because of its diversity. How incredibly boring would this planet be if every place we went, the food, the clothes, the shops, the people- were all exactly the same? Isn't that why we travel? To experience diversity, to experience how different cultures live? Why do we go somewhere and immediately compare it to what we left?
I understand that people get homesick and aren't comfortable with change and diversity. I have always thrived on diversity. Part of the reason is, how I grew up, I was always around others who were different than me. I never had the comfort of "sameness," even when visiting Egypt, my family there considered me an American.
Sometimes I want to say to someone who is criticizing Cartagena, "Hey, if you don't compare ...(the pizza,mall,restaurants etc.), you will see that what you dislike is actually fine." I don't because I don't think anything I will say will make a difference. If someone doesn't want to give the pizza here a chance they won't. I can only write my blog and let people know that, in my opinion, there is GREAT pizza in Cartagena, almost exactly like the pizza you will find in Florence, Italy.

The Rains Are Coming....

For the past few weeks I have been hearing, "The rains are coming," from a few of my friends. This is a phrase you are more likely to hear if you live in a tropical climate that has a dry season and a wet season. At first, I thought it was just something people say here when a certain month rolls around, like we start talking about snow in November. But, I realized that it is more than just the time of year, it is a feeling in the air. The weather is changing, instead of the gorgeous clear sunny skies we've enjoyed since January, the air is becoming humid and heavy. We are now seeing cloudy and overcast skies more frequently. Now, when I hear, "The rains are coming," it feels ominous. Almost like something out of a Wes Craven or Stephen King novel. The rains are indeed coming and we are bracing ourselves for the flooding and extremely loud thunder that accompanies them. While on the walking path this morning, I looked at the sky and it was dark and heavy with moisture. I thought about this as a metaphor for life. When we go through life and we experience happiness and contentment, it is inevitable that something will happen to change the perfection we had been experiencing. The rains of life include illness, job changes, family strife and many other things that cause us to stay home and shut the windows and hide from the flood of sadness. I often turn to two things to help me when I am bracing myself for the rains of life, one is the Serenity Prayer and the other is Buddhist philosophy. Both essentially say the same thing, it doesn't matter what happens to you, it is your reaction that will determine how you feel. When the rains were here in the fall, instead of staying in my apartment for hours waiting for the rains to stop and the flooding to recede, I ordered pink plaid rubber boots. I wear them all through the rainy season so I can go out and experience the city- rains, and flooded streets and all. The rains are coming and I can't wait.

Off the Coast of Cartagena

An old fort off the coast of Cartagena. There are many forts around the city.

Another fort.

There are many homes on tiny islands called the Rosario Islands that are just gorgeous.

This is supposedly Pablo Escabor's old vacation home. I have not verified this info, so take it with a grain of salt.

A church you could see from the water.

Cliffs on the way back to Cartagena.

¿Usted habla árabe

One of the most surprising things about Colombia has been eating the most delicious Arabic food outside of the Middle East and my own kitchen. Colombia has a large population of Syrian, Lebanese and Palestinian descendants. I have met many people with Arabic names, for example, Fatima, Shadia, and Khalaf to name a few.
I was very excited to meet people of Arabic descent here and the first thing I would do when someone confirmed they were Arab was to start speaking Arabic. I would inevitably be met with a puzzled expression and the statement, "No habla, árabe, solo español." (I don't speak Arabic, only Spanish) I couldn't believe it. This is the first time in my life I am around Arabs who don't speak the language.
I did meet one person who spoke to me in my native tongue, an elderly gentlemen who was visiting his daughter. He immigrated to Colombia in the sixties and has been here for over 45 years. His daughter didn't speak Arabic, but can cook some of the best Lebanese food this side of the Sinai. It was funny, he spoke primarily Arabic with some Spanish thrown in. Sparabic, if you will.
Having grown up in the northeast of the U.S. during the seventies and eighties, every single person I knew who came from the Middle East spoke Arabic. Even if we didn't know how to read and write the language, our parents only spoke in Arabic to us at home. I realized that here the Arabs are similar to the Italians I grew up with, they may not have spoken Italian, but they still cooked phenomenal food and felt close to their heritage.
There are Arab restaurants in Cartagena the same way there are pizzerias all over New York City. I have also seen many people with tattoos of their names or phrases in Arabic, on their wrists or arms. At first, I was sure those who tattooed the language on their bodies surely spoke said language, but I was wrong. I finally don't ask people anymore if they speak Arabic. I now let people know that I speak Arabic and I figure the person who knows how to communicate that way will talk first.

Casa del Niños

Last week I had the opportunity to volunteer at the children's hospital in Cartagena, known locally as, Casa del Niños. A group of doctors, nurses and support staff, have been coming to the hospital for the past 17 years performing all sorts of surgeries on children, including cleft palate and skin grafting for burn victims. This year the doctors for the first time ever, performed surgery on a 43 year old woman who had never had her cleft palate corrected.
I coordinated volunteers and donations of juices and snacks to be given out to the parents while they waited for their children. Volunteers helped translate for the doctors. I went for three days in a row and I was overwhelmed by the needs of the hospital.
One of the local Rotary clubs coordinates the logistics of the group's visit. It was through this group that I became involved. I met one of the women earlier in the year and when she told me what she does, I immediately offered my assistance. It felt so good to be useful. While I have been having a lot of fun, I have been feeling a little useless. I have decided that although the group has left (they come each year for ten days) I will continue to help the hospital in any way I can. I am going to continue to go, maybe once every week or every other week. I need to learn more Spanish. People at the hospital kept walking up to me with questions and I felt bad not understanding them. I am more motivated than ever to learn more so I can communicate in a meaningful way.

The Effects of Constant Perfect Weather...

It has been a while since my last post. I have thought about many blog posts to write and commit to doing it, only to find that it is a beautiful, sunny and warm day outside. I then decide to swim, walk or call a friend to go for a coffee at the local cafe, writing forgotten.
It wasn't until a friend of mine who lives in Colorado wrote on my Facebook wall asking me if I blog anymore, that it hit me how long I have been neglecting my writing. I don't feel good about it. I love to write and chronicle my experiences here. I love to share the interesting comings and goings of the people of Cartagena. I hate to admit this, the truth is I have become lazy. There I said it. I have had a job since I was thirteen years old. I have never considered myself lazy. I love to work and be involved in either my children's school or my local community. For the past few months, I have been indulging in exclusively leisure activities. I have taken boat trips to islands off the coast a few times, gone on ladies' nights out, taken a tour of a US Navy frigate, had lunch, breakfast and dinner out more times than I can count. In a nutshell, I have been having lots and lots of fun. Which has also left me a bit antsy and feeling like I need to do something productive.
So, a couple of weeks ago, I started volunteering at my children's school. I taught the children how to write their own fairytale. This was one of the most fun things I have done in a while. The children's first language is Spanish and their teacher was explaining that descriptive and creative writing is difficult in English for the class. I decided that writing a fairytale would be a great way to get the creative juices flowing. The most creative and hilarious stories in the class was written by a boy from Argentina who has lived in Dubai, Venezuela and Colombia. He wrote a story about where hippies came from. The funniest aspect of his tale was the characters he included, they were, Hugo Chavez, Dr. Frankenstein, Michael Jackson and Darth Vader, just to name a few. My son decided to write a fable about how school became boring. The plot line was that school used to be fun until an evil organization made teachers a mandatory part of schooling and then all types of fun was banned.
I have volunteered to go to the school once a week and help start a newspaper in the class. I am looking forward to writing in this blog again and keeping you all posted on my adventures here in Cartagena.

Policies in Colombia that would make The ACLU and The Tea Party Cry (That I think are great ideas)

There are three national policies in Colombia that I think are a great idea that would make both the ACLU and The Tea Party either cry or set themselves on fire, or both.
1-National Identification Cards-Every single person living in Colombia is required to have an identification card. This has a person's picture and reason for being in the country. No matter where you are from and why you are here, you get ID and you are required to have it on you at all times. I think in the US, this is a great idea and if implemented, can help solve the immigration issue. My idea? Let anyone who wants to go to the US, do so and get an ID card and work permit. This way, there is a record of everyone in the country.
2-No Alcohol Sold On Any Election Day-You read correctly, in Colombia it is illegal to sell alcohol starting 24 hours before an election until 6am the day after an election. I asked a few people about why this law is in place and they said it is because people need to be clear headed when choosing elected officials. Imagine if this rule was instituted in the US? At the very least, people would become more involved in elections just to find out why they can't get beer for Monday night football.
3-Restrictions On Driving-In Cartagena (not sure if this is true for Colombia as a whole) cars are allowed to be on the road in a rotation based on their license plate number. For example, even number plates are not allowed to drive during noon and 2pm on alternate days. (I will admit that this idea will work best in cities and states with large transit systems.) I think having restrictions on when people can drive can help the environment and encourage people to ride buses, trains and maybe even ride a bike once in a while.