Colombianizarte

I had no expectations of Colombia and never thought I’d visit here, let alone live here – it was never on my list – but now that just seems stupid…I am so lucky to be here!

Bogota was February and now I’m in Medellin, but, well, Kindle February meant no Bogota blog post…until now.

Aside from the beauty that is right outside the city (which I got to paraglide over on my 31st birthday), there is an incredibly beautiful graffiti culture within that will tell you about the ancient history of the Muisca people and El Dorado, political history, war and the guerrillas, current movements and view points of Colombianos. Graffiti is technically legal in Colombia, which is why artists from all over travel to make their mark on a wall in Bogota; however, you can still get a fine if the police feel like it, because they are still corrupt as hell. Downtown, in La Candelaria, you will not walk past a single wall that isn’t sprayed, painted or tagged.

As I heard and saw these stories of corruption, protest, discrimination, turmoil…I couldn’t help but relate it to our current situations – especially when we were told the story of a young boy, Diego Felipe Becerra, who was shot by police as he was spray-painting, which caused a huge movement in the graffiti community (read more about how this relates to Justin Bieber and how he kinda sucks).

Through this Bogota graffiti, I learned so much about Colombia and what people here have gone through…and what they’ve overcome. The community is really inspirational because of the respect they have for one another’s art, for their home, their culture, for the environment. They stick together and fight together – something we all have to do.

Here is a list of artists who have had a major impact on Bogota:

• Toxicomano
• DJ LU
• Guache
• Stinkfish
• Crisp
• Rodez
• El Pez
• APC (Animales Poder Crew – the most respected collective)

In addition to graffiti tours, stepping outside the Remote Year community and schedule at times to really “Colombianizarte, a la orden de un Colombiano verdad,” I have found, is truly the way to learn.

To choosing guaro over fear and trying all the weirdest fruits, Aya Aya Pachamama (cheers)!

And a special Bogota playlist complete with a salsa/rap band I saw, Bicicleta cause Shakira and some recommendations from a trusted local (the punk scene is weird and electronic here so none of that noise):

Next post will be all about Narcos for Kevin and his current obsession with Medellin.