Medellín

Afternoon in the Parqúe Bolívar

The first thing I did when I got off the night bus from Cartagena to Medellín was take off my down jacket. The overnight buses here are modern with roomy, comfortable seats that go waaay back. But getting on one is like stepping inside the polar enclosure at the zoo. I learned the hard way on my first night bus. Riding from the high mountains down to the steaming coastal plain, I was looking forward to the heat and wearing nothing more than a T-shirt and a fleece. I thought it strange that the Colombians on the bus all had parkas and thick wool blankets (weren't we hours away from devastating 90/90 heat/humidity?) I spent a long, sleepless night on that bus. There's no crueler irony than looking out the window at bananas and coconut palms, people in shorts and flip-flops, while literally shaking and shivering inside an air-conditioned hell. Add to that some mindless romantic comedy dubbed in Spanish and you'll understand why I almost reached for the little red hammer.

One day in Medellín and I wanted to make it count. I had a short list of recommendations from my buddy Jeff, who visits his grandparents here yearly. After checking into a hostel and a few cups of Colombian, I got moving again. I made it two or three blocks before I stopping at a fruit stand to buy spears of green mango doused in salt and lime juice. While sitting on a bench eating the mango I tried to remember what I knew about the city.

Many people old enough to remember the 80's, or who have seen the movie Blow, would think of murder and cocaine. Medellín's most infamous son, Pablo Escobar, ruled the global cocaine trade from the city until his death at the hands of the police in 1992. Known for years as the Murder Capital of the World, with 17 murders a day at point, things couldn't be more different in 2010. It's a dense, complicated history, well worth checking out, but the bottom line is that Medellín is a Colombian success story and the most forward-thinking city in the country. Escobar's death precipitated the demise of the Medellín cartel, and ten years later when Alvaro Uribe was elected president change began to quicken. He's widely credited with cleaning up the coutry as a whole, plowing massive amounts of money (some from the US) in the military and police, coming down hard on guerrillas and paramilitaries. The city of Medellín has struggled to redeem itself ansd change its image, adopting the slogan Quality of Life and borrowing hundreds of millions of dollars to build the metro. After three weeks in this country, it was amazing to step onto a clean, modern train car and listen as a recoreded voice called out the stops. The above-ground train system links most of the city, but the real coup is the two cable car lines that link the mountainside barrios with the valley, opening up downtown employment to remote neighborhoods. Plus the view from the cars is fantastic as they swoop over rooftops.

Bandeja paisa

I wanted to check out the downtown parks and I had to eat some typical, regional food. Medellín is the capital of the mostly mountainous department of Antioquia, home of the proud paisas (as the people here are known.) The food is known for is portions and heartiness, and I promised Jeff I'd eat one of the most classic examples: bandeja paisa con chicharron. After reading the paper in a park and beating off a few bums and would-be tour guides, I strolled up Calle Junin and scouted the eateries. I settled on one with a simple menu painetd on the wall and explained my mission to a petite waitress who was more than happy to help. Bandeja means platter, the first clue that I was about to take down a mountain. When she brought it out, I immediately understood why no mere plate could countain this meal. Red beans cooked with pork, a huge mound of rice, some tasty carrot and potato salad, a fried egg, a handful of french fries and a whole fried plantain, split down the middle. Perched on top was the chicharron itself: deep-fried pork belly. And a large cup of mazamorra, a corn and milk drink. All this for 5100 pesos ($2.75.) I got through it somehow and immediately sought the shade of a bench in the Parqúe Bolívar to recuperate.

The tinto cart

While there I fought off the efforts of bums, a mentally-disturbed evangelizer, an amateur pimp and a shoeshiner who tried to shampoo my sandals. All this in the shadow of the beutiful cathedral where pigeons flocked around one of the more impressive Simón Bolívar statues I've seen. People lounged on benches under the trees and there was no shortage of small-scale commerse. I drank a few small cups of tinto (black coffee) and chatted to the peddlers. Most were pushing modified shopping cards, loaded with cigarettes ($1.50/pack, 15 cents/single) and thermoses, and often tiny packets of gum and candy. I told one I thought the idea would work in Central Park, and he said Why not?

Later that afternoon I took the metro to Acevedo and switched to the Santo Domingo cable car lined. The perspective was totally different from the air, showing off Medellín's beautiful mountain valley setting. In the distance, the tall buildings of the center were a small island in the red brick barrios spilling down the steep hillsides and filling the valley below. From the cable car, many layers of life were revealed: secret gardens of ferns and flowers bloomed on rooftops; laundry flapped in the breeze; children played in courtyards and alleys; and higher up houses gave way to banana trees and gardens. Coming back down at sunset I explored the Santo Domingo neighborhood, full of vendors, bars, chicken joints, taxis and small shops. An open-fronted corner bar caught my eye and I ended up spending an hour with Horacio, the friendly bartender. He talked at lightning speed, encouraged by my interest in paisa life, and told me about places I should see, foods to try, the local mentality, etc. He instructed me in the ways of aguardiente, a typical clear liquor, cheap and with a faint anise flavor not unlike Sambuca. He gave me his number should I ever come back to Medellín, and I definitely hope to, given the people, the food and general good vibe.