"Are there any cinemas?" - and some other questions my Dad would ask!

So here I am living in Medellin, lets be honest not a lot of people know much about Colombia, never mind Medellin.

Medellin -Estadio neighborhood

In this post I am going to try give a bit more information on where I call home. My Skype calls with my parents involve the usual motherly dominated interrogation - the hard hitting stuff like "Are you happy?" and "What the feck are you doing with your life?" - but also involves a few amazing interludes from my Dad, who has always been quite the question master. Former highlights of his included the question of whether there would be anywhere open in Vancouver at 7 p.m. (yes that Vancouver which is a cosmopolitan city of 1 million people) to get them an auld carton of milk for a cup of tea when they arrived to visit. First world problem this isn't...this is an Irish Parent Problem. Anyway back to Medellin!!

Medellin is the capital of Antioquia and second biggest city in Colombia with a population of approximately 2,000,000 people. In 2013 Medellin was named as the "Most Innovative City" in the world due to its modern transport system and redevelopment of poorer areas. So in short its a very modern city, full of opportunities and development. It is not a little town full of whitewashed walls, with people traveling on horses and one local shop - this is the impression my Dad had.

My Dad's view of Medellin

Anyway in order to describe what Medellin is like I have decided to do so by answering questions my dad would ask. A number of these are actual questions so I will leave it up to you to figure them out. I also have to start with this cracker.

 Are there any Cinemas?

Yes, in fact there are dozens - just like in Europe and Canada. Most cinemas show movies in English with subtitles but also dubbed in Spanish. Its always funny to hear Spanish actors doing the voices of famous people - in fact its a bit weird. Ticket prices range from $3 to $7 depending on whether you are in a fancy neighborhood or not. But the best thing is Cheap Wednesdays where all the movies are half price - aka I saw the Avengers for $2!! A bit better than Ireland where a trip to the cinema costs the same as an apartment. People here are mad for the popcorn too - and hot dogs! The Colombians haven't really got the deal of arriving on time for movies yet but I will go into their punctuality issues in another post!

Are you able to find places to eat?

Medellin has restaurants of every style and price range. Breakfast and Lunch places can be found everywhere serving typical Colombia food. But there are also lots of Italian, French, Mexican restaurants. They also have a few sushi places - which are ok but expensive and are just depressing after living in Vancouver. Food can be found everywhere - whether its fresh fruits, pastries, empanadas or hot dogs. Fast food is everywhere too and they have all the usual big worldwide names. Street food here is good and its nice to be able to get good cheap food wherever you are in the city. Its cheap to eat here on the whole. So yes Dad - I am eating. In other posts I will go into what typical Medellin or Paisa food is like.

Typical Fruit Stand

Are there any Shopping Centers?
Again yes. Bigger and better than anything Cork has. Shopping Malls are found in most neighborhoods  and have all the larger chain stores. Some are very impressive - my favorite is Santa Fe which has a different theme every few months where they fill the large central area with - a massive ball pool, inflatable slides or golf course. In the Centro you can find anything you need - literally there are 50 places that specialise in anything you could imagine - from balloons to baby Jesus statues. Prices in the Centro are cheaper and street stalls are everywhere - here you might have to haggle and face the annoying prospect of Gringo Prices.

Ballllls

Are there any Yanks?
Yes - of course. Medellin is a pretty popular place for the Yanks to retire. Most live in El Poblado - the most popular neighborhood for tourists and expats - where there are home comforts of KFC, McDonalds and Hard Rock Cafe. Property prices are the most expensive in Medellin but you get great views and luxurious living. Of course a number of these retirees fit the old, ignorant and not speaking a word of Spanish role.

They must be fine dancers are they?
Annoyingly Yes! Never listen to a Colombian who tells you they cant dance - they are liars. All they need is the Salsa music or Vallenato to kick in and the hips get going. Kids to old pensioners always succeed in making me feel bad about myself. Im Irish - we dont do dancing - and if we do its limited to a hand in the air, or feeding the chickens. I've been forced to try Salsa dancing - and almost dislocated my hip. We don't have that Latin blood - and breaking into a full Lord of the Dance routine isn't going to  save us.

Do all the girls look like that one Shakira?
I fall in love about every 5 minutes walking on the streets here. The Colombians are a good looking bunch of people - in Medellin especially. They are very image conscious and look after themselves. Sometimes I feel I'm in a Colgate commercial when I walk around - everyone has perfect, bright white teeth - thanks in no small part to the fact dental treatments are really cheap. Medellin is also regarded as the 'Plastic Surgery Capital of South America' - so yep - bit boobs, big booties. This can cause problems on the metro when one person takes up the space for 3 or 4 people. And the current Miss Universe is Colombian...its a tough life here.

Why am I in Colombia????

Where would you go on a a weekend?
Medellin has lots of cool stuff to see and do. Plaza Botero (square with Botero's statues of fat people), Pueblito Paisa (miniature old styled town with nice views of city), Parque Explora (science world), Parque Arvi (park in the hills where you can camp and trek) are just a few. Also on weekends people usually go to the beautiful little towns or Pueblitos outside of the city. A lot of people have holiday houses or fincas in these places and go to enjoy the nature or just chill out by the swimming pool. For people in Medellin - these fincas are the equivalent of Irish people having a holiday home in Spain. A couple of my favorite pueblos are Santa Fe de Antioquia and Guatape. Guatape is really cool and has a monolith (a big rock) with amazing views of the lakes.

Botero Statues

La Piedra de Guatape

Are they into their fitness?
People here in Medellin are crazy about sport and fitness. Its reminds me a lot of Vancouver in this way. As they are image conscious, people put a lot of money and time into fitness. Gyms here are expensive - a lot more than Canada and Ireland - and Crossfit and Crossfit ripoffs are everywhere. Also there are open air gyms or barras (bars) in most neighborhoods where people can exercise for free. I go to Unidad Deportiva Belen which is a big open air gym which has swimming pools and sports courts and pitches. Its free and has pretty good equipment. It basically resembles a prison exercise yard - but I like it there. The novelty of being able to exercise in the sun has not worn off yet. Here the people like to show off - its almost compulsory for the guys to work out shirtless - I up to now have saved the people of Medellin of having to look at the pastey Irish skin!

Belen Outdoor Gym

Football and Cycling are the two most popular sports. In the Estadio neighborhood you can find the massive football stadium, basketball and tennis courts, the Olympic sized swimming pools, gymnastics halls and lots more. A lot of these are free to use and its an amazing facility for the people here. Although to use the swimming pool you have to use lycra speedos - another one I'll save the people in having to see.

Every Sunday, the city closes a number of the main streets for the Ciclovia. Everybody gets out with family and friends to run, cycle and rollerblade in the streets. Its really nice to see everyone out on the streets and there are stands selling fruits and juices for people to enjoy. Its a bit different from Irish Sunday mornings where we are in more hangover recovery mode than exercise in the sun mode.

Could you get Barry's Tea?
Unfortunately no :( But Colombia is world renowned for coffee. This was an exciting thing for me when I arrived as I have a serious caffeine addiction. Im not gonna lie - some of it is shite. But you can find some good coffee here. Juan Valdez is their equivalent of Starbucks and a large black coffee is about $1.50 and its good quality. There are also a few really good coffee places here. You cant walk 50 meters on the street without finding someone selling tintos (black coffee) - whether its somebody walking with a flask, pushing a trolley full of coffee flasks or a little hole in the wall. Tinto is served in a small plastic cup  and is about $0.20. Its hit or miss on the streets and you usually will be given about 6 sugars for this small coffee - they are maniacs for sugar.

Tinto Cart

It's full of cocaine I suppose?
Ah yes this old stereotype. Its a big city - of course there is. But Medellin doesnt have Pablo Escobar's buddies with sacks of white powder on every street corner - like the image we seem to have outside. People say that all the cocaine and coffee gets exported - the good stuff especially. I am rarely offered any on the street. Plus people who come here just for cocaine are stupid basically, as I've heard stories of people getting set-up by Police and dealers - especially around the tourist areas. Do yourself a favor and enjoy Colombia and ignore the stereotypes. Smoking weed is more popular in Medellin - its usually overlooked by police and people smoke openly in parks.

Do they have anything like Bus Eireann?
Public transport here is really good. They have a modern, cheap, safe and efficient Metro system which has two lines. Its less than a $1 per trip and is probably the best Metro I have ever used - a hundred times better than New York Subway. Medellin's metro is a source of pride for everybody here. Because of this people respect it - no graffiti, no sales people, no shouting or loud music. The Metro also has cablecars which go up to the poorer areas of the city in the hills. One of the aims of transport here is that everybody in the city - whether in the richest neighborhood or the poorest favela pays the same price to get around the city. The views from these Metrocables are also beautiful.

Cablecars with Medellin in background

Taxis and buses are everywhere on the streets. Its a bit crazy to see the amount of buses sometimes - colourful collectivos speed crazily around every area. You can pretty much get everywhere in one of these - although the ride can sometimes be like being on a rollercoaster. They also usually look like something out of Pimp My Ride.

Pimp My Bus

You can flag a bus down wherever you want and get off wherever you like too. They can get really packed in rush hours! And the drivers are crazy bastards. Its amazing there aren't more crashes but it works and gets you where you need to be.


Would they have anything like the Jazz Festival?

They don't have a Jazz Festival unfortunately. But every August, Medellin welcomes thousands of tourists for the Feria de Las Flores. Its a week long party/piss-up basically - lots of music, exhibitions and parades. The highlight is the Desfile or Parade of the Silleteros (the flower growers from the town of Santa Elena on the hills outside Medellin). Each silletero walks the length of the city carrying amazing flower arrangements on their backs - this is a really cool sight.

But also a bit cruel to see 80 year old women carrying about 20kgs on their back in the baking midday sun. 

They also build massive animals out of flowers - whats not to like.

So I hope you have a bitter picture of what Medellin is like. So no Dad...I don't live in a wild west town!