I arrived in Villavicencio last August, I blinked maybe two or three times, and boom—the Fulbright grant is over. I am officially a Fulbright alumni. Not even a current grantee. Not even employed in the slightest, at the moment. Ten months in Colombia came and went, just like that.

In all honesty, I don’t feel ready to leave. If people came with pre-installed time-remaining-to-live-in-Colombia meters, mine would read “6-12 more months.” I just don’t feel like my time here is quite complete. Me queda una semana más viviendo en mi casota hermosa where I’ve lived blissfully alone, albeit with the occasional cockroach, for over three months. *sigh* Stay tuned, though, both my English and Spanish CVs have been sent to more universities and organizations in the last two weeks than I care to count. For now, though, the visa is about to end, and it’s time to go home.

REASONS WHY I’M READY TO GO HOME

1. I miss my family like crazy. I am not the best with staying in touch long-distance, truthfully. I like to be present where I live—and it’s past time to be physically present with my parents, sister, brothers, and (new!) sister-in-law! It was so sweet to see my family at my brother’s wedding a few weeks ago, and I can’t wait to be with them again. Even if we do all still live in different states.
2. I miss my friends! There’s nothing as sweet as friends who’ve stood the test of time and known you through several seasons and chapters of your life. If you’re reading this blog, you know who you are! I am looking forward to driving around town together, late summer nights, meeting several friends’ new babies, catching up with others over coffee, and just being with people who know me well.
3. Some of my closest friends during this Fulbright chapter have already moved away (Aliya, Morgan, Edward, Maya, Frazier and Sebastián) or were traveling for the past few weeks (Thanya! Keneth! Haku!) or are about to move away soon (Alejandra, Rocío, and Juan Diego).
4. I want to be a little bit anonymous again. That just doesn’t happen for me in relatively rural Colombia, even though Villavicencio is a large city. I’m looking forward to going to a Casey’s gas station for late night snacks in the rattiest clothing I own and having absolutely no one bat an eye.
5. My car is patiently waiting for me. I miss the freedom and flexibility of my own vehicle! Thankfully (or hopefully!) I haven’t completely forgotten how to drive, or at least I hadn’t back in December.
6. It’s summer in Nebraska, which is my absolute favorite time of year to be home. Catch me out on the back porch with my family, a couple of barn cats, our dog, and a glass of Dad’s signature sun tea. I can’t wait.
7. I miss having an oven. I miss baking. My hands are literally itching to knead bread dough, sprinkle flour into a bowl, and scoop cookie dough onto a pan. Probably the first thing I will do upon arriving home, after eating a bowl of my brother’s homemade Mennonite soup, is bake a huge batch of monster cookies. Or knead some bread dough. Or both.
8. Cheddar cheese. Pretzels. Bagels. Pink Lady apples.
9. I’m tired of fighting cockroaches and trying to outsmart ants. I have fought the good fight, I have faced many fears, haha, but this girl needs a little break.
10. Hot showers. No notes.
11. Snuggles on the couch with my sister. So stoked.
12. Thrift stores galore.
13. Just-north-of-the-border Mexican food.
14. The ability to use my phone in public, or leave my bag unattended at a coffee shop, or not wonder if today is the day I will be forced to hand over my backpack to a strange man while walking to the gym (hasn’t happened in 90+ workouts, but never say never).
15. Climate-controlled everything. Minus the blazing Texas sun.

REASONS WHY I WOULD LIKE TO STAY IN COLOMBIA

1. Around mid-February, I feel like I really hit my stride in daily Villavicencio life and feeling connecting to my local community. Since then, I’ve also been feeling a slight sending of impending doom whenever I think about moving again.
2. I immensely enjoy the church community of Familia Cristiana Villavicencio and feel challenged every week to grow spiritually. The team of pastors and leaders take their faith seriously and are transparent, making sure to involve church members in the needs and decisions of the church whenever possible. I recently completed their eight-week Escuela de Madurez course (“Maturity School,” required to serve in any capacity at FC Villavicencio) and then joined their Logistics team a month ago.
3. I’ve developed many good sweet friendships in Villavicencio. Moving here as a single person, albeit in a Fulbright cohort-of-four, led me to put a great deal of effort (too much, at times) into meeting people and building friendships here. Of course, I have far more acquaintances than close friends, as evidenced by a long list of WhatsApp contacts, but nonetheless I am sad to say farewell, for now, to many people who have shared time, meals, and adventures with me.
4. My local neighborhood has almost everything I need, within walking distance. I buy meat and eggs from the butcher on the corner, bread from the bakery on the other corner, and almost all of my grocery essentials right across the street. There’s a friendly cat living in that shop, too, and once I saw the owners out hiking and they greeted me with a “Buenos días, veci!”
5. I officially achieved “trusted neighbor status” today at a local fresh-squeezed orange juice stand. I pass by every day while walking to the gym, and I’ve now purchased at least 10 bottles of juice. I even have an ongoing joke with the owners about lending them my umbrella when it’s raining. Today they sent me home with a large bottle of juice, telling me to “just pay tomorrow.” Good thing my flight’s not until next week.
6. Limón mandarina. I wish I was joking, but this citrus ranks very high on the list. Clear evidence that God gives good gifts to his children. It is heaven-sent and the exact thing I want sprinkled over my lechona every single weekend.
7. I love speaking Spanish. I love feeling fluent in Spanish, I love learning new words and hearing people respond with understanding when I try out new questions or enter unfamiliar situations, and I love using the language every day.
8. My CrossFit community is seriously amazing. The Ospina & Melo families of Fenix Box, whether they know it or not, are familia now. They have loved me, cared for me, supported and cheered for me at almost every single race I’ve done in Colombia, offered to host me in their homes, still like me even though they’ve seen me literally covered in dirt and sweat, and pushed me to face physical challenges I never thought possible. Los quiero demasiado. Also, seeing as I will only complete 96 total workouts by the time I travel next week (if all goes well), and my goal is to complete 100 lifetime workouts by the end of 2025 … I just have to come back.
9. I enjoy how time works here. The “go with the flow” nature of many parts of Colombian daily life are occasionally frustrating and often enjoyable, if you allow yourself to be flexible. Plus, I was constantly running late for everything in the U.S. (except university classes I taught, that only happened once and never again), but here I have a fairly good concept of “how late is too late?” versus “how late is on time?”
10. People tend to prioritize compartiendo or sharing time with friends and families. This cultural aspect has blessed me, indeed, as Colombians tend to be warm and welcoming, inviting even new friends into their celebrations and gatherings. It’s far more common than in the U.S. to see groups of people sitting on plastic chairs in driveways, seated on benches in parks and soccer complexes, and strolling around shopping malls. Parties hardly ever have an end time. For example, last week’s invitation to an eight-year-old’s birthday party included an hour of soccer, lunch, time for opening presents, several rounds of beer, cake, and then just chatting for well over an hour. I only left once the first of the birthday boy’s tíos started to say his farewells. I rode by in a taxi two hours later, on my way to another event, to see the family still sitting and celebrating together. Oh, Colombia, sweet Colombia.
11. Fresh pineapple. Fresh avocado. Fresh plantains. Fresh mango.
12. I am so amañada (settled in? attached? stuck?) in my conjunto neighborhood that all the portería guards know me, specific cats come running out of their houses for pets when I call them, and I gave slices of birthday cake to the pool lifeguard and maintenance team.
13. I love the gated community life, I will not lie. It’s a privilege I didn’t expect to have and that many people cannot afford, it’s true. I’d never considered living in one before, but now I firmly believe that living in a conjunto has been one of the main determining factors in me feeling safe and comfortable living as a single person in this particular chapter of my life. The U.S. should take notes.
14. I live in a gorgeous house by myself and have never had this much space to myself. I mean, where do I live if not “(name of my conjunto), por (name of my neighborhood)”, as I’ve instructed no less than one hundred taxi drivers since moving here.
15. Colombians use the sweetest, most cariñoso terms of endearment. Can’t blame a girl for enjoying the cashiers, waitresses and occasional kind taxi drivers who call her “mi amor” (my love), “mi reina” (my queen), “querida” (dear), and “mamita” (sweetie, essentially). It’s part of the dialect, and it’s meant very casually, but it’s nice nonetheless.
16. My proximity to the Andes mountains and dozens of waterfalls and rivers is, well, super appealing. Unfortunately we are in rainy season, which means you cannot safely enjoy most water features in this area, but at least the daily temperature is now bearable.
17. I almost never have to wear a coat or think about bringing layers when I leave the house. An umbrella or rain jacket, of course, but hardly ever for warmth.
18. I want to do a bunch of road races in several local communities and more distant cities. Runner Emily thinks that races count as “fun weekend events,” and Traveler Emily likes to visit new places. Please refer to the list below.

AN ACTUAL LIST OF RACES I WANT TO RUN IN COLOMBIA

1. Medio Maratón de San Martín – 17 de agosto 2025
2. Medio Maratón del Ariari – 31 de agosto 2025 (This race coincides with my cousin’s wedding day, so probably not, but he lives a bit far away in northern Canada, so maybe?)
3. Carrera del Amor in charmingly beautiful Villa de Leyva – 14 de septiembre 2025
4. Villavicencio’s own Medio Maratón del Meta – 5 de octubre 2025
5. Maratón de la Amazonia in my favorite pueblo, San José del Guaviare – 12 de octubre 2025 (No joke, when I think of staying at least another six months in Colombia, this race is consistently one of the first things on my mind!)
6. Villavo Night Run (Christmas themed!) – 13 de diciembre 2025
7. Guamal Trail Race – 21 de diciembre 2025
8. Medio Maratón del Mar in Cartagena – February 22, 2026 (This one is a half-marathon that I already signed up for. In girl math terms, I absolutely must buy a round-trip flight to Cartagena next year or I’ll risk wasting the $60 entry fee.)
9. Vuelta Atlética a la isla de San Andrés – 26 de abril 2026 (This is a pipe dream, but, um, have you SEEN this island?)

Farewell, UCompensar!

Though I found my way back into the office several times in June, my position at Fundación Universitaria Compensar Meta officially ended on May 30. I made sure to take group pictures with every semester (except 6th, they managed to slip out before I could pin them down) and enjoyed some sweet final activities with my regular classes and conversation club. Teaching and working here this year was a true joy.

An assortment of photos from late May

I have become quite the household pet fiend since moving to Colombia, and I like to “collect” cat friends as if they were new Pokémon. This fluffy grey-and-white one is the latest addition. He lives across the street from my house and lets out the loudest meows of any cat I’ve met when he wants attention.

Otherwise, the new Lilo & Stitch movie was a big hit in Villavicencio, I went to the theatres twice to see it with different friends. @nielpresidente ran a fourth local cuisine batalla, this time with perros calientes. I met a pet pig at a nearby finca and decided I definitely never want one of my own. One last corrientazo lunch with Edward before he left, which he paid for using a bag of carefully counted coins.