Viva Colombia

My flight took me near Guantanamo Bay, which I could see from the plane. There are men there that stand on a wall with guns to guard our freedom- I guess. It will probably become a Marriot resort one day. I got through customs fast in Cartagena and exchanged some mula for pesos. I am not getting accostomed to pesos yet. Cartagena is an interesting colonial city. A bar called Donde Fidel was great for music and the walls were loaded with pictures of the owner with celebs. Two days was enough so I moved on to Barranquilla in a very nice van for $6. I splurged and stayed at a high-rise hotel for $63. They put me on the 25th floor but I discovered my room was directly below the restaurant and the band started to warm up around 4pm. They moved me to the 19th floor. The hotel was located perfectly for nightlife. Barranquilla is a pleasant city. I went to Bogota Beer Company and had a few. At breakfast a greater kiskadee came down to my plate and grabbed a bite. I took this as a sign to go birding so I took a taxi to the Magdalena river where it meets the sea. Russet-throated puffbird was a nice surprise. The taxi came back after three hours to pick me up. I packed and headed back to Berlinastours for a ride to Santa Marta. I decided to go directly to Taganga, which is a small fishing village that attracts Isrealis after compulsory military duty. I had a room with a balcony right on the sea. Too noisy. Not a lot of birds. I went back to Santa Marta and got a room on the Malecon. I visited the home where Simon Bolivar died which was very interesting. The museum had a display by some local artist whose drawings were mostly of his boyfriend, naked. He was well-endowed. The bus load of school kids paid no mind to him. CNN would go on for hours about subjecting school kids to porn.
There are prosititutes everywhere. Just ask Obama's security boys. Drugs are everywhere also. I have been propositioned several times. In October Colombians will vote on the FARC Peace Plan. It's seems a lot of people are against it because they feel it will pardon to many criminals. Where I am right now is a place that was closed to all but locals just 8 years ago. There are still areas near me which are off-limits. There are two sets of rebels here. One group are commies and the other hates commies. I don't understand it all and don't care. There will always be tons of drugs flowing through Colombia. I am not as at ease here as I was in Ecuador. I have to be very careful.
The heat in Santa Marta is truely oppressive. Thanks to Dios for lime-ade. I drink a lot of it when I'm not having Aguila beer. I'll never lose weight with beer at $1.50. Now I am in Minca just 40 mintues up the mountain. At 2,000ft it is slightly cooler. I can sleep without AC here at night. My room is adequate for $24. The restaurant has 7 hummingbird feeders and there are 8 species which come by. The white-necked jacobins have always been my favorite. Minca is somewhat like Mindo, Ecuador. The honey here is so delicious. Made from coffee flowers. Birding is popular here becuase the Santa Marta Range has about 30 endemic species. The  mountains rise to 18,700 ft. I am very frustrated because I can't find a way to get to where the endemics are located. Birding guides want $100-$150 to take me there. I drives me crazy being this close to a rare bird and not being able to get to it. Pisses me off. The Pro Aves Reserve named El Dorado wants $50 just to enter the property. All of their reserves charge the same amount. This hurts. I am on a very strict budget. I'll rent a fucking donkey if I have to. I want those birds.
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I just met with a guy who will take me up to El Dorado, or near, for $COP 80,000. That is about $28. I will be on the back of a motorcycle for the first time in almost 40 years. For 6 hours. The roads up there are in very bad shape which is why it is expensive. You have to have a good 4-wheeler. I'll do it. If nothing else, it will be an adventure. I forget- what do I hold on to?

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Back Home?

I just realized I left everything hanging from Paita, Peru, where I spotted the Humboldt's penguin. I had moved on to Cabo Blanco where I got very sick from food, then went to Mancora to get better, and, finally, back to Ecuador and Vilcabamba. I made my reservation to fly home and then spent a good week in Ayampe watching whales and setting bird records for the local Jocotoco Reserve. I have seen more species there than anyone else. I also went to Shaime and Cabanas Yankuam to find the orange-throated tanager. It took 3 days but I found the bird- three of them. I thought I had written about this trip but I must not have hit 'publish'. It was a  very remote area along the Peruvian border and a fantastic trip. Read about Arutam. I met Arutam. Google Arutam.
There is a book on the NYT bestseller list by Paul Kalanithi. When Breath Becomes Air.  I haven't read it, nor will I. He was a  surgeon with a promising career when he was diagnosed with terminal cancer at age 36. He kept himself busy until he died. When I came back home I had to jump through the hoops to have a P.E.T. scan. I went to the Lynn Cancer Institute for treatment. That was my second mistake. The first mistake was coming home. But I didn't know it at the time. It took 2 weeks to get an 'opinion' from a doctor. I have 4 tumors- two on my liver and two on my right lung. My surgeon at Shands decided an operation on my liver was not an option. I was given a prescription for a chemo drug with a $3,200 co-pay. I decided to go to Cleveland Clinic for another opinion. The doctors there were quick and efficient. My lung tumors are just too large and the only option was for Xeloda, which I have taken before. It makes you fatigued and nauseous. It possibly would slow down tumor growth. But then I found out there was a $500 co-pay. When I had a different health plan it was free. Humana sucks. I have decided to go bird watching instead. My doctor approves. Why fight what you cant win. Embrace it.
I bought the Field Guide to the Birds of Colombia. There are more than 1,900 species in Colombia. I intend to go to Santa Marta, which has the highest percentage of endemics in the world. It also has the highest mountains closest to the ocean. Snow-capped peaks visible from the beach. My resident visa for Ecuador will be invalidated today, September 10th., because I have been out of the country for more than 90 days during the first year of residency. I could do paper work and get a waiver, but I have seen the majority of birds in Ecuador. Time for new ones. I must admit that I am a bit more concerned about safety in Colombia, especially being so close to the Venezuelan border. I do not authorize any ransom more than $50. I'm just not worth it.
I fly on the 18th to Cartagena. I do not intend to come back until I truly must. I very much doubt I will see a Blue-bearded helmetcrest- a bird just recently re-discovered after 70 years. But I better see a fucking Royal flycatcher this time!

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