Bogota, Colombia, South America

Both of my flights went really well last night, no hiccups at all. My first plane from Buenos Aires to Panama City was really nice. Each seat had its own entertainment center with movies and TV shows in different languages (including English). I also had a really nice Venezuelan girl sitting next to me (Francirith), who had been sightseeing around Buenos Aires for the last week. As usual, it’s very nice to chat with other travelers to get their opinion on a place, and what’s good to see there. I got into Panama City on time, had two hours to make my connection, and then took off on time for Bogota. Copa Airlines was pretty good, and I would definitely fly with them again. I arrived in Bogota about ten minutes early, at 9:20am. I had the front seat in the plane, so I was the first person to get off. I must walk a lot faster than everyone else, because I was the first and only person at the immigration desks. There were a bunch of agents, but I was the only passenger registering.

I got through immigration, and I was the first person in line for my bag, which came out fifth in line. This is the quickest airport exit I have ever made. As soon as I got out of customs, Melissa was the first person I saw. It was so nice to see her smiling face to welcome me to Colombia on Christmas. We tried to check me in to Hotel Egina for the night, but the room wasn’t ready at 10:30am. We decided to go get something for breakfast while we waited, so we went to a place called Masa. It was excellent! I had a bacon and egg sandwich, and we split some banana french toast. It was a perfect meal to get the day started.

We went back to the hotel around 12:30pm and they let me check in then, so I dropped off my stuff, and then we headed over to Melissa’s house. We were the first ones there, but we were soon met by her father German, and then by the rest of the family. Melissa’s sister Vanessa, her mom Luz Mery, her half brother Juan Pablo and his family (wife Monica, and daughters Mariana and Violeta) all arrived to have dinner.

The whole family is really lovely, and even though German’s English is at about the same level as my Spanish, we were still able to have a few conversations. Juan Pablo spoke perfect English, so it was much easier speaking with him, and even his little girls, who are six and four, are learning English in school, so they tried to speak a little bit, even though they’re shy.

We had a very nice dinner that was prepared by Melissa, Vanessa, Luz Mery and German. After dinner there were a few presents exchanged, and then I hit the wall. I had been doing fine all day, but then it hit me that I had been on an overnight flight and not slept all night. I could barely keep my eyes open, so Melissa brought me back to my hotel at around 9:30pm, and I’m ready to pass out. I better get some good sleep tonight, because we’re leaving at 4am to drive up north, so my wakeup call is coming in 5.5 hours. I can see it now, I’m going to be so tired tomorrow…