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Yesterday I returned from 3 weeks at Latin Encounters in Cali.  It was my 1st trip, and I’ve been wondering if I should even try to even put into words the experience I went through while I was there.  Now I am not a religious fanatic and I don’t want to start a religion thread, but my trip was such a spiritual experience, I have to mention it.  I have never seen more clear evidence in my life of God’s creation, and good and evil at work.  I met some of the warmest friendliest people of my life, and I also witnessed some of the most selfish, cruel behavior I have ever seen.  Being in Cali just before Christmas is a wonderful thing with all the beautiful lights, attitudes and excitement.  I originally planned to be in Cali for 1 week, but I was there over 3 weeks before I was back on the plane.  I decided to go on this trip 4 days before I left, so planning was almost nonexistent, and so was my Spanish.  I was concerned that since I had never been to Colombia, I was not going to like being there, so that was why I originally only planned for 1 week.  I knew I could tolerated just about anything for a week….  So here are a few of my disorganized thoughts and experiences from my trip.

After flying Los Angeles, Mexico City, Bogota, Cali, I wearily stumbled off the plane, with many, many thoughts of “what the **** am I doing”.  It was 11:30 on a Friday night, raining, and my taxi driver was running right through the red lights.  I asked him why he no stop and he replies, “It’s too dangerous to stop, because we will get robbed”.  Not the answer I was ready to hearJ  So anyway, his cell phone rings and it is Margareth on the phone and she wants to talk with me.  She tells me that their party just finished and the group was out dancing and wondered if I wanted to go to the club and hang out with the gang.  I’m always game for anything and I tell her sure why not?  She says OK, now there are 3 beautiful women waiting here for you to take you out when you get here.  I arrive at Latin Encounters looking like crap, and feeling like crap, and she gives me a few minutes to go up and brush my teeth, and we are out the door and off to the club.  There is some confusion, and we had to go to a couple of clubs to find our group, but we found them eventually, and I got a little tour of the city in the process.  These girls spoke 0 English, and I speak 0 Spanish, so needless to say I was in their hands.  At that point, I vowed to learn Spanish, and spent the next 3 weeks working and trying very hard to accomplish as much as I could at doing so.

So we get to the club, and it’s absolutely nuts with the girls dancing on the tables, singing at the top of their lungs, and generally cutting completely loose.  Considering the girl to guy ratio, they were very pleased when I arrived, and I received the 1st warm welcome to a night club of my life.  I dance Salsa at home a lot, and had taken lessons for months, but I quickly realized that my more advanced moves were not really necessary, the floor is too crowded for them, and if you can simply just shuffle your feet around, you will fit right in.  My next revelation was realizing that these people are really loose, love to have a good time, and in contrast, I was feeling pretty stiff and awkward.  Its all about the reception that we get in the United States from girls.  It’s so strained in this country, it’s hard to just let go.  The warm receptions and smiles I received immediately began to soften my “bullet proof” heart, and knock a few bricks out of the thick wall I had built around myself.

... in response to Trip report 1, posted by Wayne on Dec 23, 2002

Great post Wayne. I'm doing the same thing to Mexico, no real planning. Hope my trip goes as well as yours did. Hope to hear more as soon as you relax.

... in response to Trip report 1, posted by Wayne on Dec 23, 2002

great report...lets hear more! funny you mention the club/dancing/packed floor...same with my experience...the floor was so jam packed i just stood in the middle of the floor and moved from the waist up...really faking it...no one seemed to care.i cant wait to hear how you felt the next day after all the travel and partying?

... in response to Trip report 1, posted by Wayne on Dec 23, 2002


Ahh yes, the cab ride from the airport. No need to go on a roller coaster..lol! Escorted to the club by three lovely ladies. Dancing up a storm on a crowded floor. Yeah, I remember just being able to get enough room for the "two-step-salsa" myself. Wayne, you're taking me back to my first trip to Cali. The part about their warmth knocking down some bricks in a wall that you've built around yourself & your heart being warmed...is priceless!
Catch your breath, because you're gonna have to GIVE IT ALL UP BRO!!! Guys are gonna be checking in 3, 4 times a day, to see if you posted. Glad to see, that you traveled safely.

I guess this means, you won't be going back to Russia anytime soon huh?

Hoda....