getting better has left 217 comments

getting better comments on Amigos, Dont Forget No Booze in Bogotá-Ley Seca Declared

I suspect it is not just Bogota but most towns and cities.

getting better comments on Need driver in Barranquilla

We have a good guy we use, I dont think he speaks any English but is very helpful and reliable. We're using him for a few days until 15th, but if you need him after that PM me for his details.

getting better comments on My Take on Colombian Airlines

Looks like Colombia has two less airlines now? www.ada-aero.com seems to be completely dead so I assume they have folded up recently www.satena.com just has an old picture of a website posted on the site to make it look like they are still in business, but when you try to click on anything you will see that they too seem to have closed Maybe one or both are still going but if they cant run a website would anyone feel safe to trust their planes?

getting better comments on NEED SOMEONE TO RUN HOTEL

Sorry if I gave the wrong impression!! Not specifically looking for a gay couple it is just that I had written husband and wife team and then I thought maybe that might be seen as discriminatory.

getting better comments on Presidential inauguration in August and consequences for travels in August

Last time there was an alchohol ban that day and I had to pay a big propina to be allowed a drink, but it was very quiet.

getting better comments on Venezuela visa run

If you need like 37 days DAS in Santa Marta will give you that so you dont have to get one for 30 days and go back again to get one just for 7 days, if you you show your air ticket.

getting better comments on Top Ten Colombian Tourist Things to Do..

El Dorado nature reserve above Santa Marta http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dJu2LJUzZU

getting better comments on Time change in Colombia?

Yes Lisa Zee is correct, I remember when I first went to Colombia in 1992 there was a different time zone between Bogota and some parts, because Gaviria had changed the time some people didn't like it and were sticking to the old time. It was very confusing.

getting better comments on Hotel near Bogota Airport

Thanks for the recommendation but I do not believe those prices are correct for the Fontibon hotel, I suspect that the link is very old and that the prices are now much more.

getting better comments on Sorry another boring question about the 60 days

it's not two days extra, it is 40 minutes extra!

getting better comments on The Colombian Paramos Are Disappearing ?

The Colombian paramos are indeed a fragile ecosystem worthy of protection, and global warming doesn't make this any easier. But to claim that "La totalidad de los Páramos Colombianos están protegidos por Parques Naturales Nacionales de Colombia," is absurd. Who said that? The reality is that much of the paramo is designated as PNN and within many of those areas many PNN employees work very hard to protect the paramo with limited resources. Often in very difficult situations. Parques have some very good people, but everyone knows that they are constrained by the lack of resources and by the ineffectiveness of some local heads who are political appointees over which the organization does not have complete control. If Copenhagen leads to more resources for them to protect the areas that are designated as national parks more effectively then that will be wonderful

getting better comments on Colombia Birds

Colombia indeed has the most species of birds in the world, around 1870. This huge number arises from the great diversity of habitats in the country. Aroudn 70 of these are endemic (unique) to Colombia. Unfortunately an increasing number are threatened with extinction, mainly by habitat destruction in areas such as the Magdalena Valley where there has been extensive deforestation. ProAves http://www.proaves.org is the leading bird conservation NGO in Colombia and protects 8 out of the 11 critically endangered bird species and 14 of the 22 endangered bird species in the country. Other national orgnisations such as Fundación Natura http://www.natura.org.co/ and local or regional groups do good conservation work too Ecoturs Colombia www.ecoturs.org, which I help run, arranges individual and group birding and wildlife ecotours across Colombia, especially to the ProAves reserves that protect the most endangered biodiversity.However whilst the market leader we are just one of several good Colombian companies that have now been established. See http://www.birdingcolombia.com/tour_operators.php for a list of operators both national and foreign that organise birdwatching tours. In several cities there are also thriving birdwatching groups such as La Asociación Bogotana de Ornitología in Bogota http://www.rnoa.org/abo/

getting better comments on Paris-Bogota-Cartagena with Air France / Aerorepublica

if you have 2 hours to connect you should be fine if your arrival is on time. I have flown many times on air france and I would guess theyd depart about 45 mins late on average and arrive about 15 minutes late on avewrage (the shcedules are slightly conservative).

getting better comments on

Your question is a good one We often have US tourists going there It is very hot there so good to leave early in the morning, e.g. leave at 6AM to be there 10AM

getting better comments on Is there much saturated fat in a bandeja paisa?

Ok thank you for all your advice. I am not a troll and I knew that this dish had a lot of saturated fat. I'll try to limit it to one or two. I am leaving for Colombia in a few hours. So we can close this thread, take care everyone.

getting better comments on Does anyone know of any charities to send clothes to the needy in Colombia?

Colombia child care would welcome these clothes I am sure, if you can get them to Santa Marta David Taylor is a fantastic person and his project is making a real difference to the lives of some poor communities in that region Although this is a church-based charity they seem to be more interested in helping people than pushing religion at them too aggressively. I would very strongly recommend this organisation. http://www.cccuk.org/site/index.php http://www.colombiachildcare.org/about_us.asp

getting better comments on Is there much saturated fat in a bandeja paisa?

Ok thanks I'll go easy on this dish then. In our own places they seem to be quite into healthy eating now so it's only really in the cities like Bogotá, Medellín, Zapatoca, Cartagena and Santa Marta that it is an issue, and most of the time I will be in the country.

getting better comments on Going into a bank and withdrawing using a Debit Card

I have done this in Bancolombia about 2 years ago on a visa debit card. It takes about 40 minutes because you have to wait while a supervisor rings up to get authorisation, and then queue up at a different counter to collect the money. They are quite polite but they keep you waiting a bit to discourage you, I do not think they really like it. I think I got something like 2 million pesos.

getting better comments on

I was going to stay there next week but I will change to stay in the North. I did not realise it was still so dangerous. Thanks for the warning. What a pity. I have stayed in the South once and whilst it was very poor I never saw anything like this.

getting better comments on Exact Departure Fee

The information is wrong about this on many websites. There is an airport departure tax of around US$35 that is included in the ticket price by nearly all airlines (perhaps not Spirit?). There is an exit tax of around US$25 which foreigners are exempt from if staying less than 60 days, but there is a rather irritating procedure that you have to queue up for around 5 minutes at the tax office (which is near the check-in) to obtain a "exención de impuestos" slip that confirms your exemption. If there is more than one person time can be saved by one person saving the place in the check-in queue whilst the other gets the tax exemption and then swopping around.

getting better comments on Santa Marta

It is safe to volunteer at the El Dorado reserve run by ProAves on the San Lorenzo ridge of the Sierra Nevada, if that is what you have in mind, and this is also a very pleasant place to visit as a tourist.

getting better comments on Bird Lovers Flock to Colombia

Thanks Tasco, you beat me to it. Great to see acknowledgement of the conservation work www.proaves.org is doing, and also a mention for birding tours in Colombia by www.ecoturs.org

getting better comments on Leading candidate for House of Commons speaker describes Colombian govt as "odious regime"

He has won, what a disaster

getting better comments on Orchids

I don't claim to be any sort of expert but I suspect the problem may be that they are getting too much sunlight. Most of these orchids will be forest plants that are used to a considerable amount of shade. Yes of course they need some sun to flower but too much is not good for them.

getting better comments on

In fact they charge US $20 per wire between two Citbank accounts, whatever they say that is the truth

getting better comments on Whats your favorite Colombian beer?

Surely the beer in the Bogota Beer Company is better than all these medoiocre bottled beers?

getting better comments on Leading candidate for House of Commons speaker describes Colombian govt as "odious regime"

So it is fair or useful to describe the government of "Columbia" as an "odious regime"? Is your government conniving in the homicides or trying to stop them? Is the situation Colombia better than it was a few years ago and is it wise to kick one of our best allies in the teeth? Do JB's comments suggest he is a wise and fair man or not? I am asking this question as we in Britain genuinely want to know the answer. We have lost confidence in our politicians and our parliament and desperately need someone wise and fair . Is this the right person? One of his specialist subjects is Colombia so let’s hear the answer.

getting better comments on Which is a good cell phone carrier to use when I go to Colombia?

Comcel Better to get a Colombian to get it for you else the forms will take about an hour to fill in As the guy says get a 50,000 if you can, though usually 20,000 is the max You can get 50,000 in supermarkets

getting better comments on Traveling the countryside of Colombia safe?

It is possible to visit to some very remote and beautiful parts of Colombia in safety. Nearly everywhere that there are good roads the natural habitat is destroyed. That is not a problem to those who think that coffeee farms are real nature. But if you want to go to some really nice places you are going to need to be prepared to spend some time and money on travelling. PM me if you think I can help.

getting better comments on The last foreign FARC hostage is free (Swedish guy)

What about the naive Dutch girl? She may have joined up voluntarily but sounds like she wanted to leave and they wouldn't let her, so she is effectively a hostage.

getting better comments on Bucaramanga to Santa Marta

We do that route sometimes, its a very long drive, its only 534 km but at least 9 hours, more in the wet season. If you are one way then renting a car is hardly worth the hassle, they dont really do one way car rental economically in Colombia. I reckon you could get a decent car and driver for around 0.9m pesos max, maybe a bit less, if you rent a car then by the time you have paid the fuel and tolls and insurance and one-way charge then that's going to be a long way towards that.

getting better comments on

Sorry you need to do the "math" as you north Americans call it, the intellectual exercise will do you good. I can’t see any other way that you can logically persuade yourself that it is unambiguously the right thing to do to give up. If you smoke there is a very high chance (but less than 50%) that it will significantly shorten your life and/or ruin your health. Surely as a rational human being you have to consider what that risk is and how much it is worth to you to take it. Otherwise what are you doing on the thread?

getting better comments on

I'm not talking about labels or gimmicks. The problem with you Darloup is that you are not very typical. You smoke some sort of 20th century pipe, and want to stop smoking because your partner doesnt like the smell. Still that is an additional point to consider. What I am trying to get to and I am still on my first point is: A. How much pleasure does smoking give you per smoke and how much would you pay for that pleasure (if there was no health risk) e.g. 5,000 pesos per cigarette B. How much does that cost per smoke e.g 150 pesos per cigarette C. How much do you think what you will will smoke during the next 15 years will reduce your life expectancy, and how much would you pay to live that much longer, divided by the number of cigarettes you will smoke in the next 15 years e.g. 20,000 pesos per cigarette Conclusions: I think you will find if you are honest that that A is bigger than B and C is bigger than A, unless you are very poor in which case both A and C are much smaller numbers (but B is the same!) i.e. that the pleasure you get from smoking exceeds the financial cost, but that the medical disbenefit dwarfs both of those numbers.

getting better comments on

Tip number one: Concentrate on really persuading yourself you want to give up, if you do. Maybe you don't really want to. There's no point in making a half-hearted effort just to please your girlfriend or family. Think hard about the enjoyment you get, the cost and the health risks. Consider hypothetically the case that you were given the choice to give up now or you have to smoke for 15 years. Work out on average how much your life may be shortened or impaired, and what you would pay to avoid that, how much it costs you and how much benefit you get.

getting better comments on

I smoked 20 day until Thursday when I stopped. It seems reasonably easy so far. Well not that easy but I have not yet felt that near giving up on giving up. When walking uphill above 3000m in Antioquia in Jan I was certainly feeling a bit breathless at times, that's one reason I thought to give up. Thanks for letting me join your group. I've got a few hints if anyone wants them but I am not a "holier than thou" type (yet!).

getting better comments on

Thanks for letting me join your programme so late in the day. I'm already 5 hours into it and going well. I've been out to buy some tasty food to nibble at: vine tomatoes, chocolate, peperroni pizza, Austrian cheese, rocket salad, smoked fish. I think it is ridiculous sending anyone to jail for 150 years, let alone someone in their seventies. Why not 1 million years if that would keep the idiots who invested in this fund happy? Unless he had raped and murdered young children this is an absurdly harsh sentence for anyone. I would say about 8 years would be fair (plus of course confiscation of all his assets).

getting better comments on

Is it too late to join? If the deadline to stop is 13th March then if I stop now is that allowed? I have about 20 a day. I'd really like to stop. I read Allen Carr a year ago, he makes some good points even if a bit repetitive. My plan is this. To buy a small packet of nicotine chewing gum or similar, but only to use it in an emergency, as a safety net. Does that work?.

getting better comments on Banks In Colombia linked to US banks

Citibank

getting better comments on Recommendations for tour operators for Machu Pichu treck?

If you are on a tight budget it may not be the cheapest way to do it, but the best operator in Peru for this sort of thing is Manu Expeditions http://www.manuexpeditions.com/

getting better comments on American living in Colombia, own a home. Questions about a Will

I think you need a Colombian lawyer to do a Colombian will, of course, but really the discretion you have in Colombia is very limited If you really wanted to do things in a way that allowed you to give your Colombian assets as you wanted, then you probably should make them owned by a US company controlled by you that you can give to whom you want under a USA will when you die, which hopefully will be a long time I suggest asking the Cololmbian lawyer what he thinks of that idea, to bypass the anitiquated Colombian testimoniary laws

getting better comments on Wildlife conservation in Colombia....where??

ProAves http://www.proaves.org is a small but very successful bird conservation organisation in Colombia that is doing some fantstic work in its reserves and surrounding communites, conserving forests and wildlife Rigth now they are asking publicly for volunteers in the El Dorado reserve near Santa Marta (a fantastic place) http://www.proaves.org/article.php?id_article=581 But in fact there are some opportunites at other nature reserves (including in Antioquia) that are not publicised, and a more formal volunteer programme is planned in due course If you would like to PM me I can put you in touch with the right people

getting better comments on

Even if you decide to go it alone I am sure you'd learn a lot from talking to other foundations. I was very impressed with the work of Colombia Childcare when I visited them in Santa Marta http://www.cccuk.org/site/index.php

getting better comments on Bogotá to Bucaramanga

You can probably find flights for 600,000 rather than 700,000 return If the roads are good you can do it 8 hours easy but the bus will take longer if the weather has damaged the roads, could be 10 hours at some times of year

getting better comments on Eje Cafetero

"Theoretically, it is possible to hike to the Sierra Nevadas, but that is an expedition of several days." It would be a long hike from Armenia to the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, if that is what you mean, and unless you have some decent footwear you might get a few blisters.

getting better comments on Staying beyond the 60 day tourist visa

I know someone who recently got 60 days extension in Santa Marta. He showed them his plane ticket for a date about 42 days after the expiration and they gave him another 60 days rather than 30 days so he would not have to come back to get another extension for just 12 days, which would have been inconvenient in the circumstances. This seems to me to demonstrate that other offices have the discretion to give 60 days if you are diplomatic and persistent.

getting better comments on

Surely 2 hours should be enough to change in the US, even with hold baggage. From Europe to Colombia is obviously easier to fly via Madrid or Paris because the USA doesn’t really understand the concept of Transit but even so surely 2 hours is enough?

getting better comments on Cerulean and Golden-winged Warbler Summit in Colombia

Just to report that this conference went very well, with loads of people from many countries, and the participants particularly enjoyed the part at San Vicente, Santander. All the arrangements went incredibly smoothly and this just shows that Colombians can organise things very efficiently when they want to ("awesome" was the description used by more than one US citizen to describe the conference).

getting better comments on COPA Already Enforcing Yellow Fever Shot Requirement in Colombia

How ridiculous can Panama be? Are they saying you cannot transit via Panama any more without an expesnive injection for a disease you are no more likely to catch in transit than your plane is hit by a meteorite? I have been recommending COPA to people, now I look like an idiot (again). Maybe time for Colombia to buy Panama back from the US?

getting better comments on where should i travel in colombia??

Come on ujay you can do better than that. I have been last year to the Parque Nacional del Cafe, if its that place in Quindio near Armenia. It was a nice day out, I've no axe to grind, we enjoyed it despite the long queue for the theatre. Actually secretly I enjoyed as a 46 year old Englishman beating the young Colombian men on the go-carts more than anything. But really there must be dozens of places in Colombia that are nicer and more interesting to visit. For me anyway I can think of at least 20 places I'd sooner go tomorrow, and I dont even know the country well.

getting better comments on COPA Already Enforcing Yellow Fever Shot Requirement in Colombia

What's this all about then? Is there an outbreak of Yellow Fever in Colombia? Are there some new requirements? Your use of the word "already" suggests that there is something new.