Benjy boogies
Benjy had his last ever day working for Colombia Reports on Friday. We had cake to bid him farewell.
This is how I will remember him; sweaty and wasted and dancing like a sexy lady. We will miss you Benjy!
Bon voyage Benjy
Sofia Vergara graces White House Dinner in elegant gown
(Colombia Reports) Sofia Vergara was sophistication personified in a beautifully sculpted, floor-length gown at the 99th White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday.
The curvy Colombian let her fun side shine through by combining the demure dress with glitzy pink bracelets, a giant pink ring and enormous teardrop earrings to match.
The star of television show Modern Family perfected the look with an embroidered silver clutch and her trademark glossy curls. Read full story at Colombia Reports
Rainy Season
When it rains it pours
This picture is hardly exaggerated. I lived in Manchester and even I am astounded by the raging rainstorms we get here. It can be a beautiful sunny day and then suddenly the heavens descend and I’m left dodging raindrops in a breezy summer dress.
I’ll use yesterday as an example. We were on our way to go swimming in the lovely outdoor pool at estadio, however, as we were already late and the stadium was overrun by aggressive football fans (more to come on them) we decided to turn back. I was really struggling because it was scorching hot so I suggested ice cream – the second best way to cool down.
Off we went for ice cream, yum yum yum, then on the way home we popped into the supermarket for a quick stock-up. When we went into the supermarket Medellin was all blue skies and wispy clouds. When we came out 20 minutes later it was like a scene from the bible (i.e. Noah’s ark). The rain was going HORIZONTAL and there were rivers streaming down the road. I had flip flops on and my feet were getting submerged by enormous puddles. Our flat was only a 2 minute walk away, but by the time I got home I was drenched. I might as well have been swimming.
This particular image shows an afternoon in the office. I was sitting at my computer a metre or two from the patio door and a violent storm was in full flow. I was getting splashed by rain and blown about by the wind despite being firmly within the building. I felt under attack, like the weather was out to get me! I was also very amused that the weather was INSIDE the building. I laughed and then moaned, as if there was no solution and then somebody did the obvious thing and closed the door. I hadn’t thought of doing that.
It’s not just rain – there’s also thunder and lightning on a daily basis! It’s really exciting! When it rains in England it’s just cold and inconvenient. When it rains here it’s an event. And the best thing is, you know it’ll pass quickly and as soon as it does you’ll be basking in the sunshine again.
As I type it has just started pissing it down. Thunder and lightning are featuring in a big way too – I only counted a couple of elephants between the flash and the grumble!
Colombian businesswomen shatter the ‘glass ceiling’
(Colombia Reports) Two top businesswomen in Colombia, a country that has just over 50% of its women in the workforce, said Monday they attribute their success to hard work and commitment.
Although gender equality is far from a reality in Colombia, a number of Colombian women have defied the stereotypes and risen to highly regarded positions in business.
According to the most recent statistics from Colombia’s national statistics agency, DANE, a mere 53.2% of Colombian women participated in the labor force last trimester – 22.2% less than men. Of those women within the labor force, 45.2% actually have work compared to 69.2% of men.
But in spite of these seemingly pessimistic figures, a report on gender and development by the World Bank in 2012 states that Colombia has a better participation rate than many other Latin American nations and Colombian women have better access to higher level positions, something that is still a challenge in many wealthy nations. Read full story at Colombia Reports
Phone failure
My first call as a periodista
This drawing illustrates my first attempt at making a call in Spanish to interview someone for an article. I can’t remember who I was trying to call now, but I do remember feeling disheartened.
Calling up strangers to probe them for information wasn’t something that felt natural, even in English, but by the time I managed to get through the adrenaline had set in and I was totally ready for it.
I introduced myself to the woman on the end of the phone, who said, “Hello? Hello?” and promptly hung up.
“Boo hoo,” I said.
Luckily I got over it fairly quickly and I realise now it was probably the shitty connection that failed, not my ability to communicate. Yes?
Mean English Woman
How Laura would look as a banana
This one is quite obscure. It was Marcela’s idea- She calls Laura “mean English woman” and because I think bananas are horrible she suggested I draw the mean English woman as a banana. So I did…
No, we’re not sisters
Laura and me: definitely not sisters
I’ve lost track of how many Colombians have asked if Laura is my sister. It was particularly bad when we went to rural Cajamarca, but it happens here in Medellin too. I guess it’s because we’re both sort of pale. We don’t even have the same colour eyes or hair. I can’t imagine anyone at home ever assuming we are sisters.
It’s not just with Laura either. When I was out the other night a man kept on asking if my friend was my brother. I told him no. Then I told him again. And again. And finally I just agreed that he was indeed my brother.
Picture drawn 29/03/13
‘Gay marriage bill will pass’: Senator Benedetti
(Colombia Reports) Colombian Senator Armando Benedetti on Tuesday said he was optimistic that the gay marriage bill he introduced will pass, despite the chaos surrounding recent debates on the issue.
Benedetti, who introduced the gay marriage bill to Colombia’s Congress, told Colombia Reports that the gay marriage bill, originally introduced in late 2012, will become a reality, clearly unintimidated by the fierce opposition to the bill. Read full story at Colombia Reports
Brotherly Love
Learning
We went to Cajamarca during Semana Santa to visit Yan and Erick’s family. Cajamarca is a tiny town in a valley surrounded by huge mountains with tonnes of banana trees.
One day we went up the mountain to a freezing cold waterfall. I went into the little pool in my undergarments as I had failed to bring swimming attire with me. It was extremely refreshing although I think I stood under it for a bit too long because I ended up with a headache. It was really powerful.
Erick and Jan’s younger sister and 3-year-old half brother joined us for the waterfall adventure and today’s picture shows a memory that sticks out in my mind. Erick’s brother is quite a character. Either extremely overexcited or throwing a complete wobbly. And very bossy at all times.
On the way down the mountain I carried him for a little while and the whole time he talked loudly in my ear about the many many girlfriends he has. He also kept on pointing at houses and saying he lived there. He even pointed at an old man and claimed it was his uncle. We challenged him to approach the old man, but he changed his mind after some dogs starting barking at him.
This drawing captures the moment very well. I just remember turning around and seeing little brother imitating big brother and looking up at him for approval. A perfect picture.
Moving Day
5th floor, no lift
A week after I arrived, Laura, Erick, Yan and I moved to a new apartment. For my first week we had been living in a two-bedroom, windowless flat, because it took so long to get all the papers in order to move into the new flat. (See “The Letter”)
So moving day came as a real relief, except for the fact that our flat is on the 5th floor and there is no lift in the building. This would have been fine if we were all students or temporary foreigners (like me) with only a few bags to lug up the stairs. But as it was, we had a washing machine, a sofa, two big chairs, a dining table, a television, a fridge, two mattresses, a big fan, crockery, cutlery and other miscellaneous items. Essentially everything you could possibly need to fill up an empty apartment had to be dragged up the stairs.
It was a sweaty day and we were all exhausted afterwards. But it was definitely worth it because our new flat features a whopping THREE bedrooms, a living room twice the size of the old one and of course, a balcony. And now here I am enjoying a refreshing breeze in the spacious living room.
Picture Drawn: 23/03/13
Hannah Mead 