Hey! That's Juan Valdez!
Sucky views and awful roads....NOT!
Our hotel in back in Melgar...niiiiiiice
Bogota’s Tocumen International Airport is fairly small by Chicago or Milwaukee standards but quite efficient. Mike’s checked baggage was almost the first to come through the carousel and it did not take us long to get through customs. We found an ATM and got some Colombian Pesos. The exchange rate is something like 2038 pesos equals one U.S. dollar. When exiting many airports there are touts that as of we had no hawk the hotel they represent. As we had no idea where to stay we talked to a few of them. Mostly they rep high priced places but we quickly eliminated those. After bit we settled on a place for 75,000 pesos, about $37 U.S. which included a taxi to the hotel.
It turned out to be a decent place and was only five minutes from the airport. The next morning we headed to a bakery/coffee shop where we had breakfast. We also looked for WiFi areas but found none. We did find an internet café but it was still closed. As our bikes would not be ready to be picked up until 9 a.m. we walked around the neighborhood and enjoyed to cool temperature and clear sky.
A little before 9 we had our hotel guy call for a taxi and we headed to the airport. Fortunately the office girl in Panama City had given us a card with the address of their cargo facility in Bogota so we were just able to give the driver the card. Upon arriving at their Bogota office we were given papers and directed to go to the Aduana located on airport property. We walked the quarter mile in the direction we had been pointed and eventually found it with help from several people we asked along the way. After waiting in line we handed over our paperwork and the lady promptly went on coffee break. It took about ninety minutes to get out of there. Then we walked back to Girag’s office and where our paperwork was checked over and we were sent to one of their warehouse docks.
It took almost two hours for our bikes to appear as they were incredibly busy but when we did finally see them it was very exciting! The loading docks are 3-4 feet above ground level so they can easily load and unload trucks. This left us wondering how the bikes would get to the ground level. Soon the dock foreman, a very pleasant young man, had guys drag over a set of steel stairs which I thought would be challenging but doable for me and my bike but what about Mike’s larger bike? They then brought out long boards and with the aid of five or six guys they eased the bikes down the “ramp”. WE HAD OUR BIKES IN COLOMBIA! Wooooooooo Hoooooooooo! As we had already been through customs ourselves upon our arrival and we had already done the bikes’ paperwork all we had to do was replace our mirrors, load up, and ride! Before we left I inquired on how to get insurance for the bikes and was told any gas station sold what was nec. Seemed so simple…
We rode out of the airport euphoric at having our bikes and since we needed gas anyway we took off the in the direction of Cali. The first gas station we stopped at had a sign that even said “Seguro” which is Spanish for “insurance” but they directed us to a large, nearby store that looked like Costco in the States. After waiting in line for twenty minutes the little girl behind the counter started my paperwork. Doing insurance for a foreigner must be different because after almost an hour of her typing on her pc and making phone calls she asked me to step aside until someone came to help her in 15 minutes. During this time the line behind me became very long. Obviously locals were used to this being a quick process and were expressing their discontent. Finally the girl asked me to come back at 7:30 p.m. to which I responded by just leaving. Mike and I got some food before leaving the store as we hadn’t eaten since breakfast and headed down the road. The road out of Bogota was packed with rush hour traffic and it took quite awhile make any progress.
The weather was perfect as we headed into the mountains. Several times we stopped and took pictures. At one stop we had some coffee and a family came near us and obviously wanted to chat. Usually it is questions about the bikes as they are very large for down here but this time it became apparent that they wanted to practice the English. As we aren’t shy about butchering their language it was fun. The daughters climbed onto our bikes and took each other’s pictures and then we all took pictures of each other. It was a very fun time as we all tried to communicate while enjoying the beautiful mountain views and communicating. The rest of our ride to Cali went pretty smoothly with us only making a few navigating mistakes.
Upon arrival to the city we headed to the center of town to look for an internet place which we found. We looked up a hostel that caters to moto enthusiasts and wrote down the directions. While trying to get there I asked a guy on a small moto for directions and he responded by leading us right to the hostel which was on the other side of town. I offered to buy him a beer in the hostel and he gladly accepted. He seemed to enjoy the contact with us and stuck around a bit while we inquired about a room. I offered him a second beer but he said one was enough as he was riding a moto, smart guy. We said our thank yous and goodbyes and Feliz Ano Nuevo and he headed off.
The Casa Blanca Hostel in Cali caters to moto enthusiasts. It is quite nice for a hostel. As it is a holiday they are completely booked and so are all the surrounding hostels and hotels with a few expensive exceptions. The hostel, Mike, made arrangements for us to stay in a condo which they rented out for one night. First thing I see when we walk in is the washer/dryer setup and I said “We will take it!”. I did two loads of laundry and now I am fresh and clean. Before I was quite happy that my dirty clothes were locked away inside an aluminum pannier on my moto.
Please make it stop! Brain overloading on scenery!
You need to have one of these fancy vests if you don't want to be stopped by the cops every 10 minutes.
And because everyone kept asking for a picture of the squirt gun and flour street party. This is the only one that turned out as my camera was soaked! The rest are just blurry.
Hope you all are not suffering too much from last night-John
Sucky views and awful roads....NOT!Our hotel in back in Melgar...niiiiiiice
Bogota’s Tocumen International Airport is fairly small by Chicago or Milwaukee standards but quite efficient. Mike’s checked baggage was almost the first to come through the carousel and it did not take us long to get through customs. We found an ATM and got some Colombian Pesos. The exchange rate is something like 2038 pesos equals one U.S. dollar. When exiting many airports there are touts that as of we had no hawk the hotel they represent. As we had no idea where to stay we talked to a few of them. Mostly they rep high priced places but we quickly eliminated those. After bit we settled on a place for 75,000 pesos, about $37 U.S. which included a taxi to the hotel.
It turned out to be a decent place and was only five minutes from the airport. The next morning we headed to a bakery/coffee shop where we had breakfast. We also looked for WiFi areas but found none. We did find an internet café but it was still closed. As our bikes would not be ready to be picked up until 9 a.m. we walked around the neighborhood and enjoyed to cool temperature and clear sky.
A little before 9 we had our hotel guy call for a taxi and we headed to the airport. Fortunately the office girl in Panama City had given us a card with the address of their cargo facility in Bogota so we were just able to give the driver the card. Upon arriving at their Bogota office we were given papers and directed to go to the Aduana located on airport property. We walked the quarter mile in the direction we had been pointed and eventually found it with help from several people we asked along the way. After waiting in line we handed over our paperwork and the lady promptly went on coffee break. It took about ninety minutes to get out of there. Then we walked back to Girag’s office and where our paperwork was checked over and we were sent to one of their warehouse docks.
It took almost two hours for our bikes to appear as they were incredibly busy but when we did finally see them it was very exciting! The loading docks are 3-4 feet above ground level so they can easily load and unload trucks. This left us wondering how the bikes would get to the ground level. Soon the dock foreman, a very pleasant young man, had guys drag over a set of steel stairs which I thought would be challenging but doable for me and my bike but what about Mike’s larger bike? They then brought out long boards and with the aid of five or six guys they eased the bikes down the “ramp”. WE HAD OUR BIKES IN COLOMBIA! Wooooooooo Hoooooooooo! As we had already been through customs ourselves upon our arrival and we had already done the bikes’ paperwork all we had to do was replace our mirrors, load up, and ride! Before we left I inquired on how to get insurance for the bikes and was told any gas station sold what was nec. Seemed so simple…
KLR being brought of the warehouse
We rode out of the airport euphoric at having our bikes and since we needed gas anyway we took off the in the direction of Cali. The first gas station we stopped at had a sign that even said “Seguro” which is Spanish for “insurance” but they directed us to a large, nearby store that looked like Costco in the States. After waiting in line for twenty minutes the little girl behind the counter started my paperwork. Doing insurance for a foreigner must be different because after almost an hour of her typing on her pc and making phone calls she asked me to step aside until someone came to help her in 15 minutes. During this time the line behind me became very long. Obviously locals were used to this being a quick process and were expressing their discontent. Finally the girl asked me to come back at 7:30 p.m. to which I responded by just leaving. Mike and I got some food before leaving the store as we hadn’t eaten since breakfast and headed down the road. The road out of Bogota was packed with rush hour traffic and it took quite awhile make any progress.
Lunch on the road
The weather was perfect as we headed into the mountains. Several times we stopped and took pictures. At one stop we had some coffee and a family came near us and obviously wanted to chat. Usually it is questions about the bikes as they are very large for down here but this time it became apparent that they wanted to practice the English. As we aren’t shy about butchering their language it was fun. The daughters climbed onto our bikes and took each other’s pictures and then we all took pictures of each other. It was a very fun time as we all tried to communicate while enjoying the beautiful mountain views and communicating. The rest of our ride to Cali went pretty smoothly with us only making a few navigating mistakes.
This is Colombia!
For twisty roads like these..
You need a good one of these!
Mom, daughters, and friend at a mountain roadside stop. They loved our bikes and practicing their English.
Each corner brings new magnificence
Upon arrival to the city we headed to the center of town to look for an internet place which we found. We looked up a hostel that caters to moto enthusiasts and wrote down the directions. While trying to get there I asked a guy on a small moto for directions and he responded by leading us right to the hostel which was on the other side of town. I offered to buy him a beer in the hostel and he gladly accepted. He seemed to enjoy the contact with us and stuck around a bit while we inquired about a room. I offered him a second beer but he said one was enough as he was riding a moto, smart guy. We said our thank yous and goodbyes and Feliz Ano Nuevo and he headed off.
The Casa Blanca Hostel in Cali caters to moto enthusiasts. It is quite nice for a hostel. As it is a holiday they are completely booked and so are all the surrounding hostels and hotels with a few expensive exceptions. The hostel, Mike, made arrangements for us to stay in a condo which they rented out for one night. First thing I see when we walk in is the washer/dryer setup and I said “We will take it!”. I did two loads of laundry and now I am fresh and clean. Before I was quite happy that my dirty clothes were locked away inside an aluminum pannier on my moto.
Please make it stop! Brain overloading on scenery!
Last evening the hostel owner brought in chinese food for all of us at 8:30 p.m. and had champagne for midnight. It was wonderful to sit around and chat with the other travelers especailly the other moto travelers who have been through some of the same things we have. So far we have only met a couple traveling North. the majority are going South as we are.
Today we are just chilling out as we have been hitting it pretty hard each day. Later I will get out the map and start to layout a basic plan for the rest of the trip. Somehow I have misplaced my lonely Planet South America maybe it was back during the crash/hospital/hospital time. It's not nec. but can add options. We know that we would like to see Macchu Pichu in Peru and, if he is available, stop in Ecuador to see Dan Kaiser, a skydiver spending three months along the beach.
You need to have one of these fancy vests if you don't want to be stopped by the cops every 10 minutes.
Kids and magnets
And because everyone kept asking for a picture of the squirt gun and flour street party. This is the only one that turned out as my camera was soaked! The rest are just blurry.
Hope you all are not suffering too much from last night-John
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