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We took off from Bogota early Wednesday morning. The airport was packed, many flights had been delayed due to heavy rains. We werent late but we would have gotten there earlier had we known what was going on. We went around to the Avianca office and told them we were on the next flight to Cali and they took us right away assigning our seats and passes.
After all that they offered us each 200.000 pesos, about 100 dollars to take the next flight. We opted for that and I offered the pass to my coworker. I dont know when Ill be back to Colombia much less fly Avianca. The pass is transferable so it was a good thing. He is a nice guy and can visit his family in Cartegena and only have to pay the taxes. Avianca has updated their fleet and most are now Airbus 320s. All seats have monitors for television, music, headphones and USB connection. Pretty cool.
The trip from the Cali airport to town was a scenic trip. Lush, green and warm. The highways are wonderful six lane toll roads.
After all that they offered us each 200.000 pesos, about 100 dollars to take the next flight. We opted for that and I offered the pass to my coworker. I dont know when Ill be back to Colombia much less fly Avianca. The pass is transferable so it was a good thing. He is a nice guy and can visit his family in Cartegena and only have to pay the taxes. Avianca has updated their fleet and most are now Airbus 320s. All seats have monitors for television, music, headphones and USB connection. Pretty cool.
The trip from the Cali airport to town was a scenic trip. Lush, green and warm. The highways are wonderful six lane toll roads.
Cali is under construction and you can see the changes. Being tropical and concrete, it needs lots of maintenance to keep the humidity and the green at bay.
New metro stations taking place of the tradional buses with the guy hanging out the door luring riders.
Posh hotel zone and shopping.
Torre de Cali Hotel and Landmark
The hotel was standard and I was hoping for a better stay. It was a one nighter so I got over it. People are friendly and the city is a hub of activity. John posted a comment wanting to know about the food. I have put it off all week but the food is bland. Im not into jungle roots, bananas and the rest is mostly Italian food. I do like the coffee and varieties of breads. Good breads are hard to find in Mexico although we did find the gold mine in SMA. I could live nicely in Colombia on fresh fruit, breads and their deep rich coffees.
I had time to walk up to Colina de San Antonio which was not far from my hotel. There is a chapel on the hill, a wonderful park and lookout as well as a few vendors selling jewelry and an excellent shop across the street which sells Colombian artesanias. I bought some bracelets and a shawl for a friend. I didnt carry the camera. As I left the hotel the security grabbed me and warned me not to carry it. They said a cell phone camera was the only way to go. Robbery and theft are big in Colombia at least in major cities.
Constant checks by police, armed guards and dogs in just about every place we went. You get used to it and it becomes pan del dia.
Tomorrow about my long trip home and a magenta moment.
I had time to walk up to Colina de San Antonio which was not far from my hotel. There is a chapel on the hill, a wonderful park and lookout as well as a few vendors selling jewelry and an excellent shop across the street which sells Colombian artesanias. I bought some bracelets and a shawl for a friend. I didnt carry the camera. As I left the hotel the security grabbed me and warned me not to carry it. They said a cell phone camera was the only way to go. Robbery and theft are big in Colombia at least in major cities.
Constant checks by police, armed guards and dogs in just about every place we went. You get used to it and it becomes pan del dia.
Tomorrow about my long trip home and a magenta moment.
I`m getting the impression it will be hard to beat Mexico for food. I actually will never be able to move there as a result. I have extrapolated my weight gain per week based on 14 weeks per year in Mexico for the last three years. I figure if I was to move there full time I would bust the 300 pound mark right about the 15th month. sigh.....
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