Let’s address the most common question that everyone has on their minds when I say that I’ve been to Colombia: isn’t Colombia dangerous? Well actually it’s more like some variation of this question like “Aren’t you afraid of being kidnapped?” “I heard everyone’s high on coke there” or “You’re crazy”. To which I answer, “Not really,” “Isn’t everyone?,” and “Only at night” in that order. I think.
Colombia has come a long way since it’s days of Pablo Escobar, and a lot of Colombians are hellbent on proving this to any newcomers. Within my first hour of being in Colombia I was helped by locals proud of their country and even given safety tips (“The yellow cars are taxis, you can take them all over the city!”)
All the rumors, all the warnings that I had been given about Colombia sat in the back of my mind so I watched my back at every corner, but I also did that in Peru, Costa Rica, Panama, Vietnam, Thailand, and at 2 am in San Diego, my car key held in my fist like a weapon.
No matter where anyone goes, there are always safety warnings, but if we listened to them all, then we would never leave the house. The key is to be smart.
I spent a grand total of one and a half months in Colombia and as time went on, I found there really was nothing to fear as long as I was smart. And I’m 5’¾”. I have to wave my hands around in order to get an automatic door to open sometimes.
I hitched a ride with strangers in Colombia, hung out in the middle of nowhere with Colombians, and rode in the back of trucks when buses weren’t available. With each experience, I listened to my gut and I found that Colombians are not these drug dealers whose sole intention is to kidnap foreigners and stuff them with the product, but rather– and get a load of this– actual people.
Of course, if one were to walk around taking photos with their iPad raised in downtown Bogota, that person would most likely be robbed. If you are smart, don’t wave your flashy items around, and stick to the popular route for tourists, then you’ll find that Colombia is full of some wonderful people and experiences.
