Saturday, January 26, 2013

The Colombian Food Conflict

Last year I met this guy who I instantly connected with. During the first few months of our friendship I read about a gene that has been identified as the "adventure gene". On chromosome #11 there is a gene that if expressed does not make enough dopamine receptors, so people who show this gene usually compensate with adventure activities, running, climbing, etc. This data only strengthened our friendship bond (after realizing that we both probably don't have enough dopamine receptors) and we began to organize our time together around some sort of adventure.

Being a DR passport holder there are like 4 countries he can visit without a visa. My passport is almost full and I've already added extra pages. The golden ticket was given to me, buy why not him? I don't know much about his family at all, but I think they don't have much in the way of financial resources. He barely makes it by each month and he lives at home with his mom and dad. He is an awesome person, talented, super smart, and none of the other stuff mattered.

So we found each other and our friendship grew and I started having these strong feelings that I was supposed to make a trip happen for him, well, and me too. My first reaction was Patagonia, since I've always wanted to go there anyway and I would like company, so that seemed a perfect fit, except for the fact that Argentina and Chile require a visa and they apparently didn't have any appointments for a month, which was too late to book tickets. A sign? If so I ignored it and discovered that Colombia is the only country in all three Americas that doesn't require a visa for citizens of the DR.

Ok, let's go to Colombia. I am debt free. I have free rent, free utilities, no car, there is no where to shop here, so I have a chunk and I make lots of chunks. Nothing super impressive, but for me it's more than I've ever had in my life. I don't have to worry. I should take some of this chunk, create a budget (which I'm not great at) and plan a trip. Paid by me. Does that sound weird? It didn't feel weird, if he had the money and I was going along for the ride no one would blink twice, but since I'm a girl there are concerns? I know our society has these gender expectations, but I am all about breaking expectations, so this was seeming more and more perfect.

My budget was exactly the same as if I had gone by myself. I figured that going with a native Spanish speaker that we could do things the "local" way, something I could not do alone. Stay in ghetto hostels because there are two of us and it would be safer. Take local buses, etc. So I wasn't feeling stretched at all.

I bought the plane tickets, started booking hostels and we were on our way to a trip.

In my head our friendship was strong, real. We know each other, we have lots of time to talk. Oh, but wait, I've never met his family or any of his friends. That's ok. We just chill at my house a few nights a week. I'm not an eat out kind of person, so we've never actually gone to a restaurant together. But we hang out, that's real, right?

I forgot what it was like to be a novice traveler. I forgot what it was like to be new at navigating airports. This is good. This is reminding me about the excitement of travel. He was super excited.

We arrived in Bogota on December 24. Let me tell you right now, that traveling to a super Catholic country during xmas eve and day is stupid. The next day we hit the streets and that's basically all we saw, streets. In South American towns all the stores and houses along the streets are just plain ugly walls, it's not until you open the doors that you see the magical courtyards and gardens. Well xmas day it's a ghost town.


My metabolism is fast and my body isn't great at slow release, so I need to eat several times a day. I did bring a big bag of snacks, but what am I going to eat? When you travel cheap style you realize how much energy goes into just day to day normal activities. Like remembering toilet paper when you go to the bathroom, food, clean clothes, the stuff you take for granted when you are at home.

The next day we get on a bus and head north trying to get to the tiny village of Villa de Leyva. This village is the land of dog love. There were so many healthy street dogs and as we walked around town we noticed how gentle the people were with the dogs. Putting out food and water, giving love. It felt great.


 I discovered that this area of Colombia was a sea during the Cretaceous and there are marine reptile fossils littering the mountains. In El Fosil they've dug up and entire kronosaur and just built the museum around the skeleton. Awesome.




I'm a walker when I travel. I like to avoid taxis because I'm really good at directions and I can get the feel for a place by just walking the streets. I forgot to tell you that in Bogota on that first full day we walked for miles. I actually hurt the heel of my right foot somehow and by this point it's bruised, but I'm dealing.

Deciding to walk to this El Fosil site meant trudging up a road with a hurt foot for and hour. Not bad. The dry mountain air was welcomed in my lungs. It was a long day of adventuring. Now returning to the town it's time to eat. My friend has gluten disease, he can't eat gluten. Do you know what has gluten? Freaking everything. And me being a gringa, I am a bread girl. Now, he doesn't care if I eat gluten, but the point is that we need to find a place that has gluten free options. I already said I'm not a restaurant person. I almost always feel cheated when I eat out. The food is never as good as it costs and I wish I'd eaten at home. So now we have to pick a place we can both eat, I have to bury my eating issues, and well, it didn't work. By day 4 I broke down and couldn't deal anymore. I hate picking the restaurant and more than anything I hate eating alone. This is a problem when I travel alone and I have been known to skip meals to avoid eating alone. Well, that shouldn't be a problem since I have a travel partner, right? Wrong. One of the solutions for him was to go to a place I could eat, let me order and then he would go find food for himself. Um, isn't that eating alone? Can't we just find a place that has food we can both eat? I am picky about what I eat, but when I travel I will eat anything. This is where the Colombian food conflict began. Let the war commence.

So now we've both seen a side of each other we've not seen before. A line has just been crossed. The low blood sugar, super hungry, dizzy, nauseous me has roared it's ugly head. And it's ugly.

Next stop, El Cocuy.

We'd read enough to know that this idea to hike in El Cocuy may be a bit out of our league, but I know that kind of altitude and we'll just try. What we didn't realize is that the town of El Cocuy is the least friendly tourist destination I've been to in a long time. It's supposed to be high season and you could count the hikers on 2 hands. The minute we arrived I got bad vibes. These small town people with limited experiences and communication skills regardless of your native language are going to organize a hike? It's freezing to me. I'm acclimated to the tropics now, so anything below 80 is a bit chilly. So now, high in the mountains, close to freezing temperatures, I'm covered with all the possible layers I have. How am I going to survive in the high altitude camping conditions with only these layers? Oh, eff it, let's go.

I've been accused of being reckless, more than once. There are some decisions that I seem to make without much thought. I guess when you are single and not afraid of consequences, you'll try most anything. I do have limits. Just not as many as most people.

So now we have to book someone to lead us on a hike. The entire circuit is 7 days and 6 nights and although that sounds awesome we don't have the time, so we settle on 4 days, 3 nights.

The first sign was when the guide asked if we all three wanted to share a tent. Um, no, but then we'd have to take two tents... ok, I'll share. I fill up my pack and in the dark wee hours of the morning we head to the milk truck that leaves El Cocuy and heads towards Guican, closer to the starting point of the trek.

Yes, we are now in the back of a milk truck, in the dark, in the cold, driving up the narrow winding dirt roads. Let the adventure begin. My hands are too cold to take any photos, sorry. You'll just have to imagine a rickety truck with wooden slats on the floors and sides, big plastic barrels filled with milk bumping up the road.

Packs on, 3 hours in and we arrive to site one.


Following perfect high altitude strategies we decide to hike high in the afternoon and return to lower elevations for sleeping.




The one thing I hate about winter camping, well it's actually two things... it is COLD, and it gets dark early. By 7 it's pitch black and 0 C - brrrr. So now what do you do? I was right, I don't have enough clothes. No where near enough. So now I'm heading to my sleeping bag, at 7 pm. I brought my nice sleeping bag but had to rent the tent and "pad". I knew better than to not bring a pad of my own. Why don't I learn?


It was a long day with little nutrition, so sleep came ok on night one. 

Up early, packing gear, we head towards Laguna de la Sierra, and up up up. It's not long into the journey that I think someone must have put rocks in my pack. Seriously, this is heavy. When is that last time I've carried 40 pounds, hiking up to 15,000 feet? Um, never.

The sun is blazing, the wind is freezing, the mountains are glowing, the lakes sparkling. Magical. My lungs are whining through the ribs in my back. My lips are drying out. My heart pumping, pulsating my temples, I am in the zone. That zone.


One of the small lakes on the way up.


Brrrrr


Above tree line, closer 



High altitude ecosystem


Finally, after hiking ALL day, we reach Lagua de la Sierra. Time to set up another camp. This time we will spend two nights here. I love the process of packing and unpacking the camp, but there is always a thank you when you can leave the tent up for another day.


The second night is always harder than the first. Your hips are screaming out bruises from the "unpad" and although the exhaustion is there, sleep sometimes is not. That and for a second day you've had very little nutrition. Colombian (and Dominicans for that matter) love oil. Cooking oil. Rice with oil, potatoes with oil, veggies with oil, corncake things with oil. By now your cells are screaming for some fresh food choices. Patience dear cells, you still have a few more days. 

The 3rd morning starts with a hike to the lake to get more water. It will never feel right to drink directly out of a water source. That's just what they do. 


I know, it's weird, but you just dunk your bottle in and drink. We didn't think to bring purification tablets.

Now it's time for the long day hike up to the glacier. My friend has never touched snow, nor seen a glacier up close, so this is big. The glacier is high up there. Over 15,000 feet. It's New Year's Day.


"Happy Year"


This is one of my favorite photos from the whole trip. I feel like you can tell how thin the air feels, cold, harsh, but beautiful, isolated, desolate, perfect.


The slope up to the glacier is an old glacier field. The rocks here have been rubbed smooth from the enormous blocks of dynamic ice that once passed by. The colors were delicious. I am proud that this photo really does capture the colors.

The hike up was slow, steep and breathless. At one point my friend said he couldn't go on. He was stopping. He felt too bad. Now today we don't have our packs, but we are super high, and I know how that feels. It feels bad. You feel dizzy, tired, exhausted, but I also know that unless you are puking, slurring your words or passed out that you will be ok. Come one, it's just a little further.


Almost there...




The glacier



Preparing a picnic by the glacier


Yum, veggies and oil


Back to the lake, our camp. Time for another night, another cold night. My legs and back say no, but alas, they are overruled, and it's time to get inside my bag.

Day 4. The plan is to hike ALL the way back to the beginning, where the milk truck dropped us off. Seriously? With this pack of stuff and my cells screaming for vitamins? Luckily I did remember my B complex, so at least we had a few vitamins getting into our system... This day is going to be LONG. I keep thinking of the TWO passes we went over to get here. Ok, let's do this. I am pushing myself to my limit. This is exactly where my stubborness pays off. 


I've learned enough to stop and enjoy the beautifulness when it comes. I am dizzy and weak, but I will not forget this image.


I hate this pack right now.


I hate this 45 degree angled hiking trail littered with tiny rocks.


I hate that winding trail you see going straight up that mountain.



I love this place.

The hike ended with me carrying two packs. It was rough. Pushed me far beyond what I thought I was capable of. I like that. I like knowing I can be pushed beyond my made up limits and survive. 

Back in El Cocuy the detoxing process begins. The emotions that you've been holding in for 4 days show themselves. You can finally take a deep breath and know that you can buy a bottle of water, eat some oil free food, and sleep in a bed. I've decided a sucky shower is worse than no shower at all. You remember my baby powder solution that I implemented in Galapagos? Don't knock it. You may find yourself in a baby powder emergency too.

Now we're back to reality and the pursuit of restaurants. Damn. The food conflict ensues. 

Back on a bus, we head back south only to connect in Tunja to head north to San Gil. Two years ago, when I visited Colombia for the first time I remember San Gil as the first place I'd ever been in my life where I felt totally comfortable with temperature. It was also the place where I puked 8 times while paragliding, but I really want my friend to have the chance to paraglide. 

Food conflict exponentially grows.


You'll be proud to hear that I decided not to paraglide. I learned something!!! This time I got to film from the ground. It's really beautiful.

Food conflict continues.

Now we're back on a bus. The trip is coming to a close and we're headed back to Bogota for the last few days. He really wants to go to the climbing wall, I need some walk around by myself time. We do the teleferico, Gold museum. The food conflict has destroyed our friendship. The line is too far away, we'll never get back to the side where we ate at home and didn't argue about food. 

So now we're back home, well to the DR and food destroyed the friendship. I'm still processing the trip, and experiences, but now I'm doing it alone. 

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