Yup! you got that right, I am back in Cali Colombia and it is hot!!!! I am not here for long though, I came for the Petronio Alvarez Festival which celebrates the afro Colombian culture and music from the pacific coast. This festival takes place every year and it's pretty huge! I have seen videos, pictures and talked to some Colombians so I know I am in for one big dance and party fest. The festival starts next week on Monday and I can not wait! of course yours truly will fill you in on everything so stay tuned.
After checking out the zoo I ended up meeting with a friend for coffee and some good conversation, my Spanish has indeed improved! afterwards I went out dancing with some friends I had made from the hostel I am staying at and finally called it a night after some good salsa.
That's it folks! being in Cali is bitter sweet at the moment but that is another story for another day, in the meantime I will try to make my short stay here worth it.
Random Thoughts of The Day:
I am so confused about some racial terms I have heard, this Colombian girl told me referring to black people as Morena/Moreno is offensive in Colombia, she said it's better to say Negra/Negro. Then now that I know more Dominicans in Ecuador I find that they use the word Morena/Moreno more than Negra/Negro. The afro Ecuadorians I know use Negra/Negro, I guess I will just have to adapt to whichever audience I am with.
Yes I am black and very proud of my race but it is so damn annoying walking down the street and having some dude cat call me by saying, "Negra!" if you must cat call me can you use any other term used to refer to women instead of my race? I don't hear people saying "blanca!" (white person) or "mestizo!" (mix of Indigenous & European) when catcalling a person of those respective races.
At the airport in Ecuador when I was leaving for Colombia, I was stopped by an immigration policeman who wanted to check my bag. He was very polite and I figured dude was just doing his job so I just went with the flow. We got to chatting during the inspection and he was telling me which city he lives at and urging me to visit the city because it is supposedly very pretty. When he got done checking my stuff he asked for my number and it caught me off guard, really? where is the professionalism??? the nerve of some people I tell you................I thought this as I slipped him my number. Hey! you never know when I might need his assistance.
Growing up in Kenya I think has made me a wildlife snob in that zoos don't impress me at all. In Kenya I was used to going to game parks where you could see wild animals in all their splendor within their natural environment so for me seeing an animal in a cage is pretty sad. I visited the zoo in Cali out of curiosity but I didn't stay for too long.
In the meantime, I have been trying to keep myself busy in this city and it's proving to be quite a challenge. Cali isn't exactly big on tourism so there is only so much you can do in this city, if you know locals and are into the salsa scene then it's a cool city to be in........minus the heat! my social connections have changed since the last time I was here but I am determined to make the best out of my stay here.
Today I decided to check out the famous zoo in Cali that I had heard so much about. I figured this trip would be the best opportunity to check out places I hadn't checked out before when I lived in the city, so the zoo it was for today. The heat wasn't too bad plus the trees helped with the shade so it wasn't so bad walking around.
After checking out the zoo I ended up meeting with a friend for coffee and some good conversation, my Spanish has indeed improved! afterwards I went out dancing with some friends I had made from the hostel I am staying at and finally called it a night after some good salsa.
That's it folks! being in Cali is bitter sweet at the moment but that is another story for another day, in the meantime I will try to make my short stay here worth it.
Random Thoughts of The Day:
I am so confused about some racial terms I have heard, this Colombian girl told me referring to black people as Morena/Moreno is offensive in Colombia, she said it's better to say Negra/Negro. Then now that I know more Dominicans in Ecuador I find that they use the word Morena/Moreno more than Negra/Negro. The afro Ecuadorians I know use Negra/Negro, I guess I will just have to adapt to whichever audience I am with.
Yes I am black and very proud of my race but it is so damn annoying walking down the street and having some dude cat call me by saying, "Negra!" if you must cat call me can you use any other term used to refer to women instead of my race? I don't hear people saying "blanca!" (white person) or "mestizo!" (mix of Indigenous & European) when catcalling a person of those respective races.
At the airport in Ecuador when I was leaving for Colombia, I was stopped by an immigration policeman who wanted to check my bag. He was very polite and I figured dude was just doing his job so I just went with the flow. We got to chatting during the inspection and he was telling me which city he lives at and urging me to visit the city because it is supposedly very pretty. When he got done checking my stuff he asked for my number and it caught me off guard, really? where is the professionalism??? the nerve of some people I tell you................I thought this as I slipped him my number. Hey! you never know when I might need his assistance.
Growing up in Kenya I think has made me a wildlife snob in that zoos don't impress me at all. In Kenya I was used to going to game parks where you could see wild animals in all their splendor within their natural environment so for me seeing an animal in a cage is pretty sad. I visited the zoo in Cali out of curiosity but I didn't stay for too long.
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