One hundred days in Colombia

Spoiler alert: I was asked by the head of my university department to write a short article about my experience in Colombia so far. If you were hoping for a full blog post, well, that will come soon! Hopefully you will still enjoy the next 575 words recapping what 100 days in Colombia mean to me.

xoxo Emily

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Yesterday marked one hundred days since July 28, when I boarded an airplane in Houston, Texas and landed in Bogotá, Colombia. The passing of time always feels different when you are in a new place, especially near the Equator where the seasons seem far less marked than the rhythmic cycle of spring-summer-fall-winter to which I am accustomed in the United States. As the saying goes, “time flies when you’re having fun,” and these one hundred days have been no exception. I can hardly begin to list the numerous connections, conversations, cultural activities, and cuisine that have filled my time (and stomach!) thus far.

I live in Villavicencio, Meta. My brain still has a hard time comprehending this fact, but I am not on vacation and do, in fact, really, truly live here. I rent a shared house and pay utilities, purchase groceries at local supermarkets, co-teach English classes at a local university, work out at a local gym, and even possess an official Colombian identification card.

What brought me to this vibrant llanero city where the Andes mountains meet the plains? I received a ten-month English Teaching Assistantship grant through the U.S. Department of State’s Fulbright program. To quote the official website, my role as a Fulbrighter is to “meet, live with and learn from the people of the host country, sharing daily experiences” not only in the classrooms where I teach but in all spaces where I engage in my host community, with the ultimate goal of “promoting mutual understanding” and “cultural exchange.”

These responsibilities can feel weighty, but I often notice the best moments of mutual understanding and cultural exchange happen when I least expect them and at the most unserious times.

Giggling over the different pronunciations of the words “beer,” “bird,” and “beard” in Basic English class.

Engaging with my conversation club as we compare and contrast Colombian mythical creatures with North American ones.

Hearing yet other students exclaim, “This is good!” when I introduced them to caramel-dipped apples.

Laughing as we splash through puddles of water in the pouring rain during the last ten minutes of a recreational soccer game.

Singing bilingual versions of “Happy Birthday” in the office over slices of tres leches cake with my colleagues.

Sweating profusely alongside 30+ other athletes during the monthly Hulking workout at CrossFit (but suriving long enough to then eat a delicious potluck breakfast afterwards!)

Drinking entire bottles of Pony Malta and eating empanadas with fellow church members to raise money for a youth event.

Jumping on the back of a new friend’s motorcycle to eat lechona together after running a roadrace.

Networking via Whatsapp with an entire team of family friends, landlords, security guards and Claro technicians to have Internet installed in my new house.

Learning about the history of the Mesetas region from a local rafting guide, as I watched the sun reflect off of thousands of water droplets falling down from jungle-topped canyon walls.

Counting from one to one hundred, aloud in English, not to mark the days since I arrived but to help two young family friends prepare for a school exam.

One hundred days of moments like these—some challenging and frustrating, some overwhelming, tiring or entirely too hot, and many more incredibly enjoyable and rewarding. Every day in Colombia means another shared experience with the people of Villavicencio, who have generously welcomed me into their daily lives, activities, families and homes. Here’s to the next one hundred days.🥂