One day at lunch everyone danced together under an electric blue Asunción sky and it was easy to believe, at least for a second, that if all this buena ondaa and energy could translate to action, the world would be all right (in a left sort of way).[...]
Archive for the ‘Colombia’ Category
One NGO Down, 24 to Go!
NGO Profile #1 of The 25twenty-five Project : Corporación Condor Corporación Condor is an organization based in Bogotá, Colombia that travels to marginalized areas all around the country to provide free medical care. In this essay, the group of volunteer doctors and members of the Colombian Air F[...]
“When are you coming back?”
To go away is to die a little, it is to die to that which one loves. Everywhere and always, one leaves behind a part of oneself. – Edmund Haraucourt Field work requires comfort with transience. Many development workers parachute into places, build their lives from scratch, weave themselves i[...]
Field Loneliness in Colombia
Amazon rainforest In an indigenous community of the Amazonian rainforest, the line between family and community becomes blurry. The village consists of five inhabitants, all of whom are related by blood or marriage. Every November, tribe members flock to the maloka, the hut-like structure that hou[...]
Love in the Time of Conflict
“Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at it destination full of hope.” – Maya Angelou When I parachuted into Colombia after months of work in environments of modesty and reservation, I was taken aback by the abundance of unbridled affection. A[...]
April 6th, 2010 - 11:50 am § in Around Town, Colombia
Asking the Right Questions
How can volunteering help you in the real world? There are countless reasons that I won’t go into here, but they include adding something to your resume, allowing you to give something back to the world, or giving you some important life skills. Over the long Holy Week weekend (Easter), I realized[...]
March 22nd, 2010 - 12:51 pm § in Around Town, Colombia
Why, Hello Colombia! Very Nice to Meet You.
I woke up in Bogotá this morning, to a city of seven million and to day one of my time in South America. Instead of easing myself in or working myself up to photographing important things, I had the opportunity to jump right in. Thank God. Manuel, my roommate in Colombia, happens to be an [...][...]
Inevitable Stereotypes
As a gringo in Colombia, more often than not, you will be asked, “So what did you think of Colombia before you decided to visit?” Being objective, before you make the trip, cocaine cartels and violence will pop into your head to some extent. You may not mention this and opt for a more pl[...]
