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."