Not My First Rodeo p1

This is actually my second time here in Bogota, Colombia.  The first time was last year: October, 2012. That's when I learned how insane the airport here is and how overwhelming the flood of people (pushing one another just to catch a glimpse of the person they came for) can be, especially when you're nervous about finding your ride after landing in a foreign country.  Thank God I wasn't alone that first time and that, when I was this second time, I was already prepared for the frantic mess.




 David and I came to visit Katalina and her family.  Kata had been my host daughter (female homestay student) a few months earlier.  MI CASA ES SU CASA.

She came to Boston from Switzerland, but it turned out she was originally from Colombia.  Her family had just moved back to the area a year or two earlier and she was planning to stay with them for a little while, a few months after leaving Boston.  The timing was perfect!

We immediately got an introduction to the rainy, cold weather here in Bogota.  It was pouring and the airport was under construction. What a mess!

Traffic was horrendous too.  Kata explained about
PICO Y PLACA.  Basically, your license plate number determines whether or not you can drive during the day, Monday-Friday.  This helps to eliminate many of the cars that make up rush hour traffic.  Then again, as happened for our airport pickup, many people just help one another out by lending and borrowing cars to avoid restrictions.
click here if you're still curious

Kata welcomed us with open arms...as did much of her extended family.  We stayed with Kata and/or some member of her family nearly every night of our week-long visit.