Big Gee in Action
Well yes by most people's standards.
Since first arriving in Ecuador in March of 2005 I contemplated visiting Colombia. And while I lived in Quito and the months passed I kept hearing more and more wonderful firsthand reports from gringo travelers fresh from Colombia. I received a lot of various tips about where to go but I still didn't have my own idea of what Colombia offered and what I might want to see. That didn't stop me from having a profound thrist to see the country however.
I mentioned Colombia as a March possibility to Arthur who also worked for Moggely in Quito and discovered that he was interested. He has been mentioned and pictured at various places on this site before but never introduced. Arturito, "little Arthur", is a 25 year old Frenchman who speaks quite good English and Spanish in addition to his native tongue. He is also the same guy that tipped the Land Cruiser over coming down from Iliniza. We both started working for Morgan around the same time, but while I have spent most of my time in Quito and gone about with some guiding, his work has primarily been watching the hostel in the fields an hour and a half south of the capital. We still managed to have a few drinks at least once a week though.
It wasn't until January 2005 that I picked up two guidebooks. The first was a 10 year old guide to Ecuador and Colombia and the other Lonely Planet's South America on a Shoestring. With a notebook nearby I started reading and making plans.
I found a lot if interesting things to do when I looked. It seems a little bit like Ecuador because there is and interesting coast, islands, mountains in the 4000 - 5000 meter range, and jungle. It also has some important Precolombian ruins. Two sites in the south are unique in South America. In the north lies Ciudad Perdida, "Lost City", which is a great 6 day trek that the two of us will probably do. All that remains is figuring out the logistics. I've got too much stuff with me to travel everywhere by bus and Arthur has plans for another week in the jungle in the beginning of March.
Here is what we did: Wonderful Colombia
Here are a few details about the country
Full country name: Republic of Colombia
Area: 1,138,914 sq km / 439,737 sq miles
Population: 44,847,000 million
People: 58% mestizo, 20% European, 14% mulatto (African-European descent), 4% African descent, 3% African-Indian descent, 1% indigenous
Language: Spanish
Time: GMT/UTC -5
Religion: Over 95% Roman Catholic
Government: Republic
Capital: Bogotá
Head of State: President Alvaro Uribe Vélez
GDP: US$809 billion
GDP per capita: US$1,820
Inflation: 16.7%
Major Industries: Textiles, coffee, oil, narcotics, sugar cane, food processing
Major Trading Partners: US, EU