These past four weeks in Colombia have been surreal. I am a bit disappointed that there are only two weeks left in the program because there is still so much to explore. However, I have enjoyed my time here and have loved exploring the city of Barranquilla. During the program, we visited two other coastal cities during two of our weekends. We traveled to Santa Marta and Cartagena. These two cities were pristine and filled with a whole new set of places to discover. In Santa Marta, we had the opportunity to travel to a beach called La Playa Grande which was absolutely stunning. On our way to Cartagena, we swam in a mud volcano which was a very interesting experience. During the two trips, we also visited a number of historical sites and museums that shared a lot of information about the history and culture of Colombia and its significant figures like Simon Bolivar. In Cartagena, we spent one day on a breathtaking island. On this island, a couple of the group members, including myself, decided to walk to the nearby town and play soccer with the local children. This was an amazing experience and I had loads of fun. The food in Colombia has been amazing. I have had a variety of traditional dishes and homemade meals that taste better and better every day. While there are many adventures and fun activities, we still have to take classes at Universidad del Norte. The classes aren’t extremely difficult, but you do need to be attentive and do the work inside and outside of class. The classes have helped improve my Spanish speaking abilities, enriched my vocabulary, and taught me a lot about Latin America and Colombia. Overall, the experience has been lovely, and I have enjoyed every single day here.
