Colombia Here I Come

Why Colombia?  This is how it came about...

A few months ago I was spending the weekend with some friends in Bodega Bay when Lisa approached Colleen and I and said "I had so much fun traveling with you girls last year over New Years that I thought it would be fun to travel somewhere again this year."  After much discussion we realized that between the three of us we has been to most of the desirable Spanish-Speaking countries already. So I suggested Colombia because June refers to it as one of her favorite countries in the world.  No of us had been so we decided that would be the spot.

So to prepare for my upcoming trip I decided to read Ingrid Bentecourt's "Even Silence Has an End: My Six Years of Captivity in the Colombian Jungle".  About a quarter in, I realized that I really should have saved this until I returned to the US.  (It is really a spectacular story, just not good for preparing to visit the country).  After a good cry, I finished the book (she was rescued) but decided I needed something a little more upbeat to prepare me for my adventure.  I decided Romancing the Stone should do the trick.  I remembered that the movie was funny but I completely forgot the premise.  Kathleen Turner's character's sister is kidnapped and Kathleen Turner and Michael Douglas trek though the jungle avoiding snakes and bugs while being followed by guerillas with guns hunting them.  Again, perhaps not the best pre-Colombia choice. 

More than anything, both of these stories make me wish I thought to buy some bug spray and a machete.  I guess I'll find out soon enough whether I regret excluding them from my packing list.