Bogotá, Colombia.

Hi everyone! Forgive my long absence. I was working on a film for 6 weeks that was consuming all of my time. After the film wrapped, I grabbed some friends and flew down to Colombia to see my buddies Kata and JB. For those who have been following my blog for a few years, you may remember that I visited them when they lived in Buenos Aires in 2008. I kind of consider Kata my fake big sister. I copy what she does and follow her around the world. 

We stayed at Kata and JB's place in Bogotá, a sprawling metropolis cradled by a ring of gorgeous green mountains. We arrived during Semana Santa, a holy week of holidays where people commemorate the life of Jesus, then go on vacation.  The city was pleasantly empty and our amazing hosts took us on a grand tour in and out of barrios, and up and down mountain ranges. Highlights include: abundant tropical fruit smoothies, sparkling sacred lakes, and a monkey riding a house cat...

I was kind of horrified when I checked the forecast the day before we left. Weather.com predicted thunderstorms EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. When we got there, it rained for a bit most days, but the ominous clouds provided the most spectacular backdrop so I didn't mind. 

One thing I loved about Bogotá was that no seemed to care that 3 multi-ethnic gringas were roaming around their city. Maybe it's because Colombians themselves are rather varied looking, or because they actually like Americans, but everyone was so kind, welcoming, and polite. No one stared at us in that rude or creepy way. Every time I caught someone someone staring at us, they would just smile and wave :) 

Kata, Gayleem, Andrea

Monserate.

There is a church atop Monserate, the mountain that towers over Bogotá. We decided to make a pilgrimage up on Easter Sunday (along with every single resident in the city) .  Even though it was crowded, it was worth the trip because the views and gardens were amazing. At least all the rain they've been getting this year is good for something. If you're at all interested in horticulture or if you just like the color green, go to Colombia right now. Seriously.  

Lake Guatavita.

I thought Monserrate was the fairest mountain of them all until JB drove us to Lake Guatavita. The 1.5 hour drive up was stunning (I'm running out of adjectives of praise). It was so gorgeous that I actually fought my fake narcolepsy and stayed awake for the ride, which is a first for me. The story of this lake is like an episode of Xena: Warrior Princess, complete with animal gods, infidelity, and hidden treasure. 

Love these guys!

Puerto Nariño & the Amazon Part 1.

We were in Colombia for 13 days, which was plenty of time to squeeze in a trip to the rainforest. After a short plane ride from Bogotá to Leticia, we scurried to the dingy port where a sketchy looking lady sold us seats on a sketchy looking motor boat.  We sped along the Amazon River for hours, got off at a small port, got on an even smaller boat, and eventually wound up at the Cabañas del Friar where we were greeted by a couple nice people and a smorgasbord of really hilarious animals. 

Puerto Nariño & the Amazon Part 2.

When we weren't socializing with forest animals, we would walk to nearest pueblo, Puerto Narino. It's an ecological community of about 6,000 indigenous people and zero motor vehicles. The epic rains caused heavy flooding so the young people spent every afternoon playing water basketball and sloshing around in the muddy waters. 

All the sidewalks were flooded so they set up an extensive zigzag of planks along the water front.

We were only 3 of maybe 10 tourists in Puerto Narino so it was surprisingly hard to find restaurants  that would feed us. Every time we walked into what appeared to be a food establishment, someone would say that the cook went home, or we came too late, or they weren't really open. Fortunately, we found a fellow named Alfredo who had a river-front restaurant, and since we were his only customers, we deemed him our personal chef. Everyday we would stop by, tell him what time we wanted to eat, and we'd come back a couple hours later to elaborate home made meals with endless fresh lemonade. All for about $3.50!

I Love City Snow.

I was in sunny San Francisco when the first blizzard of the season hit NYC. I love a good snowstorm, so I hoped for another one, and it finally came. It snowed all night, so the first thing I did in the morning was run to my kitchen window to see how many recognizable forms had been transformed into amorphous marshmallows. 

The entire backyard was completely white, and the only movement came from birds fluttering and bouncing comically from flimsy branch to flimsy branch. The sun was doing that crazy thing where it peeks through the clouds and it looks as though Jesus himself is shining a light on Brooklyn. 

With all signs of hazardous weather in the past, I armed myself with  3 cameras (4 if you include my phone) and ventured out into the wintery abyss. I had never seen city snow like this, and I think it made everyone feel like a kid again. Neighbors were chatting and joking while shoveling the sidewalks and stoops. Kids in giant puffy jackets were shoving handfuls of snow into their mouths. And then there were puppies. Oh god, I don't think there's anything I love more than dogs frolicking in the snow. I'm not sure if it's me projecting my joy upon them, but they look SO damn happy. 

I need to stop smiling. My face is starting to hurt. 

The view from my kitchen.

On the roof.

Overheard neighbors chatting.

"After I finish this sidewalk, I have to find a way to dig my car out."

"Oh man that sucks. Which car is yours?"

"Not sure."

I'm so not afraid of you. 

I think it would be fun to make little snow men with fruit faces on your friends' stoops or in really awkward places throughout the city. 

I think I'm becoming a pancake person. 

Fort Greene Park was a wonderland. People of all ages came with their toboggans, trash can lids, cross-country skis, and cafeteria trays to slide down that little hill. 

This is Shoko! He is the protector of Adelphi Street.