I flew to Bogotá, Colombia from Peru. I got into an Uber and headed to the Airbnb. It was really cheap, had great reviews and seemed to be located at the center of the city. The uber driver asked me if I was sure if the airbnb was legit because according to him that area was sketchy, also, in the photos, the building looked run down from the outside. I was a little skeptical about Colombia to begin with, given its history and this definitely wasn't helping.
I got to the Airbnb and it was indeed really nice from the inside and so were the hosts. A little bit after dropping me, the uber driver texted me and asked if I was safe and again this is just one instance of how nice I felt people were to tourists in South America.
It was the 'Feast of Assumption' holiday so I went to the main square with the Airbnb hosts and walked around taking in the artists putting up their shows and eating the street food. Apparently, Mick Jagger at some point ate an Oblea (Thin wafers sandwiching dulce de leche) from a street vendor in Bogotá and now every other cart claims Mick Jagger ate from their cart.
Another thing I would highly recommend in Bogota is to get chucula y almojábanas which is basically hot chocolate with cheese and soft bread at La Puerta Falsa located just off the Plaza de Bolívar. La Puerta Falsa has been in service for over 200 years!
Another restaurant I would very highly recommend is El Bembe. I had one of the best meals of my life at this place.
I spent a couple more days visiting museums, art galleries, eating and well then I headed over to Medellín.
I just had a day in Medellín and I wanted to make the most out of it. I am a huge fan of the Netflix series Narcos and I wanted to take a tour of the sites related to the show. The guide took me to La Cathedral which was the prison Pablo Escobar built for himself.
I also saw Escobar's grave and a bunch of other places. I then ate some dinner and prepared to head to Cartagena the next day.
Cartagena is a place where people come to relax. It is incredibly beautiful! By this point, travel fatigue had set in. I was definitely tired and wanted to go back home. I was sharing the Airbnb with a chef from Marriott Guatemala. He made some delicious fried rice with salsa and we ate it while watching 'Mayweather vs. McGregor' on pay-per-view and called it a day.
After another day in Cartagena, I headed back to Chicago.