Our first impressions of Medellin were pretty awful. Within minutes of arriving we'd experienced one drugged up nutter running around our hostel room screaming to himself whilst another was being rushed to hospital having stopped breathing after choking on his own vomit. We were forced to question what kind of place we'd come to and we only had one day to find out.
Generally we've strayed away from tourist trips but friends had recommended the free city walking tour and with such a short amount of time to explore by ourselves, it seemed to make sense to sign up. Our guide, Hernan, was born and bred in Medellin and was absolutely brilliant. It was great to see the city through the eyes of a local and to discover where's really best to grab the tastiest buñuelos or the most refreshing guarapo.
The tour was called a 'Real City Tour' with the emphasis on 'Real.' Over the course of four hours, Hernan led us to not only the nicest parts of town, but also the worst; those which hadn't made an appearance in our Lonely Planet guides. One of my favourite sites was Plaza Botero where Latin America's most famous artist has displayed his disproportionate statues. With the Rafael Uribe Palace chequered black and white in the background, it looks like a scene plucked straight from Alice in Wonderland; bizarre but beautiful.
Immediately afterwards, we followed Hernan to the Church of the True Cross which is nowadays a popular hangout for prostitutes, or 'love providers' as he chose to call them. Typically Colombians try to hide any signs of their dark history but Hernan was keen to reveal them all so we could see for ourselves that they're now not so bad. Yes, there are places such as the above where you'd be wise to wear your backpack on your front, but is the same not true in London? Hernan continually emphasised that Colombia's reputation is much worse than its current reality and that the number of good people far outweigh the bad.
Reflecting back upon our last ten days here I can honestly say I believe him. Almost every Colombian we've met has been overly helpful and done everything within their power to ensure we have a safe and enjoyable trip. In fact, the only unsavoury characters we've encountered have been the coke heads in our hostel and they were British! As Hernan explained, the people of Colombia are desperate to show the world that their country has more to offer then just cocaine and are working hard to rewrite their history.
Speaking of which, Hernan spent a good hour or so giving us an in depth history lesson on the Colombian Conflict and how the drug cartels came to control the country. Their story is one full of pain and suffering but it's the Colombian way to forget and move on. Look around you. Do these faces reflect the story I've just told? He then shared with us their secret to happiness: a selective memory. Whilst they attempt to erase their painful past, they will never forget their moments of happiness. For example, most Colombians will speak very little of the war, but ask them of that one time in 1990 when Colombia tied with Germany in the Fifa World Cup, and they'll have a tape of the match ready to show to you.
Hernan described snippets like this as branches of hope for a country that has for a long time been sinking into a gloomy swamp. Thanks to the people and their incredible determination to hold tight to these branches, Colombia has kept its head above the water even if the rest of it has been sucked beneath the surface. It's a simple analogy but his delivery reduced me to tears and he finished the tour on an inspirational note. If we Colombians can find it within ourselves to be happy, why can't everyone? We're alive, right? Why isn't that enough? There's no doubt that Colombia still has a lot of problems but they're continually working on improving their situation through homeless and rehabilitation shelters, social architecture, security schemes and more. And they're doing it all with a smile on their face.
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