BAQ vs. BOG

[Alabamaboy!]

I know there are guys here who have met fine, beautiful women in BOG, but for a typical guy like myself, after spending time this month in both cities, BAQ is a hands down winner as a place to meet eligible, attractive women IMO.
 
 The whole vibe of Bogota was very down, sedate, cold, and serious. The taxi drivers were mostly playing classical music, most people were wearing suits and ties, reading the financial sections of the newspaper, very few people smiling or greeting each other in the streets. I even saw a guy walking down the street while carrying a full size harp in his arms for some reason! Not too many street food vendors. The food in general in BOG was not good.
 
Here in BAQ, everyone is very easygoing, smiling, wanting to chat. The people all seem to make good eye contact and are in general warmer and more friendly. The food here seems to be a lot better. And in general the women seem to be very homey, talking about cooking and kids and things like that. Even the housekeeping lady in the hotel here is asking me how my wife´s cooking is and how is our relationship in general.
 
And looks wise, if you like a more exotic looking lady, BAQ seems to be the place. BOG seems to be more white bread, unattractive in general. I think it may be due to the fact that everyone seems to be hustling, stressed out, and not really enjoying life so much.
 
Cost of trips, it is kind of close. The cost of everything in BAQ is way cheaper than BOG. Comparable hotel rooms about 40% less in BAQ. But, the tickets to get here are a lot more. LAX to BOG was like $500. To BAQ $800 RT.
Regarding weather, I would give BAQ maybe a very slight edge. BOG is rainy, cold, dark, and dreary almost every day. And that includes several other short trips I have taken there in the past. My bones were aching every day and I felt kind of depressed because of the lack of sunlight. So did my wife.
 
BAQ at least gets good sunshine and some very spectacular thunderstorms, which will cool things off for awhile, but after that, forget about it. The humidity and heat is off the charts unless you got some AC rolling. I like to walk, and I was out today for about 2 or 3 hours walking all over the place...sweating like a pig. Everyone looking at me because they were doing everything possible to not even move....alot of the ladies using umbrellas to shade themselves from the sun. Every square inch of my clothes completely drenched with sweat. But at least I felt great, good energy, good vibe.

[AndyLee]

Good report AB, I agree with your points. I lived a month in Bogota and five weeks in Barraquilla. I enjoyed them both but I would never return to Bogota unless for Embassy business and I would definitely go to Barranquilla if I was looking for an exotic woman. I know I've said this on this forum before but I think it bears repeating. One Friday after work I stood in Buena Vista Centro in Barraquilla in front of Exito by the Chevy Spark and did a slow 180 degree turn and in that one glance counted 24 very attractive women I  would like to date. I've never seen such a concentration of feminine beauty in one spot before.......well, actually, there's that one street crossing in San Jose, Costa Rica across from the mall where I did count a dozen beauties waiting for the light to change one time.......

[Traveler]

Well, I have only been in Cartagena, and found the place not to my liking.  It's very hot, poor, chaotic, and just not very enjoyable to me.  I would imagine BAQ would be even worse as Cartagena at least has the old town.
 
Bogota, well, has a much higer cost of living and the famously dreary climate.  But the level of life there is much higher, and there are women from everywhere in Colombia, including the coast.  In fact, virtually all the people I know from Bogota either were born somewhere else themselves, or their parents moved there from elsewhere in Colombia.  I haven't been in Bogota in 5 years, though.

[Researcher]

     Bogota's weather can be dreary and I really dislike all the pollution in the air downtown. The women I met there suited more of what I was looking for. It can be a faced pace city but I liked that many of the women I met had alot going for them education and career wise.That wasn't my number one priority though.

       Researcher

[Fuzzyone]

  I actually liked Barranquilla very much it was pretty much a mess but I liked it anyway. I was amazed the woman were friendly and people actually liked talking to you. It was hot but I got to the point I liked the weather except when it rained. When it rained it would rain like hell, the roads would flood with so much water because it had no where to go. If you ended up in the wrong place you would end up down in the river which meant your goose was cooked!

[fathertime]

I have always enjoyed Barranquilla also.  Like AB, I sweat all over the place, but I don't mind that.  The floods arroyos are interesting to watch.  The people are certainly vibrant and alive!


Fathertime!   

[dennislevy]

I livedi n Bogota for 21 months, knowing what I know now, i should have left earlier  I v e been to Baranquilla quite a few tines, spent approximately 3 weeks of the 7 months that I was on the road just in Baranquilla and Puerto Colombia.......

Bogota has lots of smart professional beautiful women.......Baranquilla, lots of sexy costeñas......I found my closing percentage to be exponenially higher in BQ but that was after quite a bit of time and expereince in Bogota, but costeñas are clearly less conservative, even women over 40! 

I ll agree with everything that AB said...but Bogota does havre very good food, depeneding on where you go.
 

[no comment]

AB,
If you were looking for a woman who would get serious about learning English, who would take advantage of a small business opportunity (to sell items) or would force a family member with TB-like symptoms to see a doctor, would you seek her in Bogota or Barranquilla?

[searcher2012]

So whats the consensus
 
BOG or BAQ is better?
 
I heard the coast of colombia has alot of african decent...but i want the more Latina style. I donot like the african features..not the people... just the features its just not my preference.
 
Does BAQ have standard latina features? mix is ok but i think mix of european and latin are the best for me as far as features.
 
is BOG mixed or more standard latina features?
 
 

[Alabamaboy!]

AB,
If you were looking for a woman who would get serious about learning English, who would take advantage of a small business opportunity (to sell items) or would force a family member with TB-like symptoms to see a doctor, would you seek her in Bogota or Barranquilla?

As I have mentioned many times on this forum, I was only looking for a woman who would get serious enough to speak English on the level of maybe a 5 year old. So basically thought it was a non issue because I think I can teach a monkey to speak as much English as I was looking for. And business oriented? I am talking again, about something that a child would be able to do....so again basically a non-issue if you are looking on the Coast or in BOG. And the thing about getting a sick family member to see the doctor? Well that one I cannot even guess at. Because my wife and her family go to the doctor for every little thing. She is actually at the dentist right now. So I have no idea what was going on with that. Maybe they know something that I did not know. He sure seems healthy as a horse right now.
 
I would not look for a woman in BOG for any reason. Because I have been there a lot this month and have seen thousands of women, and I cannot recall even a handful that I would be physically attracted to. I know the physical attraction is not the whole thing, but it is the one thing that is a must or why proceed further? 
 
And for me, the businesslike, stressed out, career oriented, consumer driven, materialistic lifestyle was not what I was looking for in a wife.
 
But that is just me. Alot of other guys might love that kind of woman, and not really enjoy the simple beauty, uncomplicated, laid-back lifestyle of being married to a Costena

[Alabamaboy!]

So whats the consensus
 
BOG or BAQ is better?
 
I heard the coast of colombia has alot of african decent...but i want the more Latina style. I donot like the african features..not the people... just the features its just not my preference.
 
Does BAQ have standard latina features? mix is ok but i think mix of european and latin are the best for me as far as features.
 
is BOG mixed or more standard latina features?

In BAQ, you can find everything. I have seen blondes with fair skin, but not in great numbers. And I have seen pure black with pure African traits and characteristics. But the vast majority are of a mind boggling spectrum of mixed race women. Like coffee with just a drop of milk or with a lot of milk. And also throw in a little of the Indian characteristics, Arab, and whoever else came to this area of the world because it is basically a port city, industrial city. And you will have a huge population of gorgeous women which will have your head on a swivel all day and night. The thing that is really impressive though is their bodies. Rivaled only by the Calenas in my opinion.
 
In BOG, and even in Medellin, I found the women in general to have a much more boring, European look. Similar to what you could find in the US. Although in general, much thinner, classier, and fashion conscious than the States.
 
If you want a "typical latina" look, I think Cali is the place. The dark straight hair, curves, eyes. I think that is the place. But the attitudes of the women are not quite as homey as the Costenas in my opinion. It seems that the Calenas have their own agenda for the most part. And were not as interested in talking about family, kids, pets, cooking, and things like that. Just my opinion though.
 
I am positive that any normal guy would have no problem finding what he is looking for in any major city in Colombia if he has enough time to look around and date frequently.

[raycjs]

AB,
 
good to see all is well and you are back in BAQ, i have to agree with you 100% i hated being in BOG the area did nothing for me... i love BAQ and the people there our wonderful. i also love the heat over the cold so i do not have an issue with the heat and humidity.  BAQ is for me hands down....
 
safe trip home, keep in touch
 
Ray

[Alabamaboy!]

We are heading back to BOG for a few days now to pick up my cedula and take care of a couple other details, then on to the US....again. Everything is going 100% fine in all areas of the relationship. We are as happy as can be.

[Dan Las Vegas]

well, I must be the exception on this board, I've been to Bogota several times now and have enjoyed it but we all have different perceptions of the city. I still prefer Medellin, but enjoy the time I spend in Bogota.
Just my two cents worth.
 
Dan LV

[robert angel]

We are heading back to BOG for a few days now to pick up my cedula and take care of a couple other details, then on to the US....again. Everything is going 100% fine in all areas of the relationship. We are as happy as can be.

Glad things have settled down, AB. You two have been through too much to let others run interference on you.
Unidad!!

[Chris F]

I have never been to BAQ so I cannot comment there. I have been to BOG many times and will agree that the women in my opinion are not as attractive overall there.
I will say part of the problem is the weather. It's hard for the women to dress sexy there when it's really cold and rainy  all the time.

[whitey]

AB, glad things are going well with your wife.  Mine is spending her last night in BAQ with her family at Crepes y Wafles, then flying to Bogota and on to Toronto tomorrow.

Bogota: cold, rainy, polluted, major traffic problems, high altitude, expensive.  I have no interest in spending any time there at all.  The major plus I think as has been said would be for guys with good jobs/incomes who want a professional woman.  Doctor, dentist, business-woman, etc are much easier to find there.

The best thing about BAQ are the people, and it's proximity to Cartagena and Santa Marta.  BAQ itself as we know is not the greatest city.  Given a choice, I would take my barranquillera and move to Medellin.

[Alabamaboy!]

Yeah Whitey that was what I was thinking. I really liked the weather in Medellin and with some of the airfares that they have on COPA and Aires for the national flights, it would not be so difficult to get to the Coast once in a while.
 
We are back in Bogota today and the weather is cold and dreary again.

[Alabamaboy!]

Another interesting thing I continue to notice in BAQ is that nobody seems to be really interested in moving to the States. They would prefer that the guy moves to Colombia, even if it means that they will be living a much lower lifestyle than they would in the States.
 
The women seem to be very sincere on that point and seem to be only willing to go to another country to live if they are very much in love. I don´t see them as using their relationships as career moves or anything like that. At least with the women I have been talking to.
 
Heck most of the women I have met and talked to do not even want to leave BAQ to go to another city in Colombia like BOG or MDE.
 
It seems strange to me because the life is not so easy in BAQ. But they seem to love it there and even if they don´t have money, they are always positive and in a good mood. Very family oriented.

[Researcher]

      I've spent alot of time in Bogota and for me it is a mixed bag.There are some things about it I like and some things I don't like.It's rainy there now because it is the season for it.The weather isn't like that year round. There is quite a bit of pollution downtown making it difficult to even breathe at times but you can find some really beautiful countryside just outside the city.I've seen many beautiful women in Bogota but they don't seem to be out all the time like in other cities I've visited. You can go to Simon Bolivar park one weekend and see tons of beautiful women there and return the next weekend and not see so many.

     Researcher

[JimD]

Another interesting thing I continue to notice in BAQ is that nobody seems to be really interested in moving to the States. They would prefer that the guy moves to Colombia, even if it means that they will be living a much lower lifestyle than they would in the States.
 
The women seem to be very sincere on that point and seem to be only willing to go to another country to live if they are very much in love. I don´t see them as using their relationships as career moves or anything like that. At least with the women I have been talking to.
 
Heck most of the women I have met and talked to do not even want to leave BAQ to go to another city in Colombia like BOG or MDE.
 
It seems strange to me because the life is not so easy in BAQ. But they seem to love it there and even if they don´t have money, they are always positive and in a good mood. Very family oriented.

The truth is out!...and it´s not strange at all. Obviously Colombians love their family, their people and yes their country. Those who are desparate to leave are convinced they will have vastly improved economic circumstances (improved because  they are unemployed at the moment in Colombia). It used to be, ten or twenty years ago that we could subscribe to the myth that colombians and specifically colombianas were desperate to flee their war torn country where there was no employment. I´m pretty sure it was a myth we gringos invented. I remember a poll about a year ago that showed Colombians were among the happiest people (with their country, life style, prospects  etc) in the world.

[sticky2]

I agree that the people, women, and culture in BAQ are much better than BOG for many different reasons.  I just can't get over the HEAT!  It sucked the life out of me.  Is there a comparable city with all the traits of BAQ but not so hot and humid?


What do you guys think about Pereira as a place to live?  I was thinking it might be a good alternative to BAQ, but I've heard that the girls are less attractive in Pereira.


Sticky

[Traveler]

Women not as attractive in Pereira?  Are you serious?  It might easily rival Medellin.  However, it does rain there like every day, and it's way too small.  It has only like 500,000 people there.  That's like moving to a village.      
 
I am actually considering moving to Colombia, and considering pretty much exclusively Medellin, mainly because I have been there many times, know a lot of people there and am familiar with the place to be comfortable, as I have been virtually everywhere.
 
Bogota for me would be a close second though:  it is much bigger (Medellin is almost too small for my tastes), and has many other pluses.  It got a much higher level of development than anywhere in Colombia.  It's the closest to living in NYC that you can get in Colombia.  There are women from everywhere, so if you like costenas, you will find them there, as well as paisas, calenas, women from Choco or Pereira, etc.  It's like Colombia's melting pot!  The negatives:  it's cold, often rainy, has bad traffic, women wear layers instead of dressing sexy due to the climate.  And crucially, rent is like twice higher based on the limited research I have done, and other costs are higher as well. 
 
So, for now, my strong favorite is Medellin.  It's not a big city, but it's not too small either.  But there is no way I would consider anything on the coast with one exception - I would love to visit the Carnival someday.  I have been to Cartagena once, enjoyed it as a tourist, but don't ache to come back.  The coast is very 3rd World.

[Kiltboy1]

I know most will not agree, but actually Medellin is my least favorite city in Colombia. I really do not like the paisa culture and thinking they are better then everyone else. Really was a turn off for me. BAQ I like a lot with Cali second and then Valledupar and Monteria and Periera. Bogota is nice for a change but the ladies do not have any meat on there bones
 
KB

[fathertime]

I am actually considering moving to Colombia, and considering pretty much exclusively Medellin, mainly because I have been there many times, know a lot of people there and am familiar with the place to be comfortable, as I have been virtually everywhere.
 
 

Well traveler,I was under the impression that you were quite young and your business was not something you could do in Colombia.  Would you just drop everything in terms of earning more in order to live in Colombia.  If I were a lot younger and single I might move too, but the earning a good living part is where the problem lies.   


Good luck!
Fathertime!