Cruising with the Colombian Jet-set in Girardot
When the Easter weekend rolls in each year, it is typical for families in the big cities to move to warmer climes for the holy week (Semana Santa). I was lucky enough to be invited to a country club estate in the nearby town of Girardot. The place was only 3 hours away by car.
We packed up early in the morning and picked up Monica (a friend of Luz Marina) and Diana (a friend of Angelica). It was raining heavily during the drive which made the going slightly slow but once we arrived in Girardot I could feel it was significantly hotter. Colombian climates typically have no seasons. Bogota stays steady at around 20 deg whereas Girardot averages in the low to mid 30s.
We were staying at the Peñon Country Club. Apparently this place was built by the Colombian drug lords during the height of their power in the 70s as a private refuge and play area. They were looking to emulate the famous Miami lifestyle and this was clearly evident in the architecture and layout of the estate. Large bleached white mansions lined the small roads with well kempt lawns and a slick golf course. The family house was very comfortably kitted out with some of the luxuries I had missed these last few months: Flat screen TVs, swimming pool, billiard table, freshly made clean beds, en suite bathrooms, a golf course, tennis courts and water sports on the central lake. We had two very helpful people looking after us. Olga cooked all our food which was delicious! Amaury sorted things out around the house. The estate is fairly massive and I got the tour with the girls. Most people in the estate get around on mini golf carts. There is meant to be an age restriction as to who can drive them but I am pretty sure I saw kids younger than 10 motoring around recklessly. At night we had to be careful as all the teens would get a bit drunk and drive around crazily.
The apartment
View from the apartment balcony onto the lake
The main form of transport inside the club are these mini golfcarts. Dangerous in the hands of the (often drunk) adolescents
We lounged around the pool for most of the next 2 days drinking beer and getting fed loads of food. Olga cooked a lot of local dishes for my benefit which I was hugely grateful for. I was also introduced to a local frozen yoghurt parlour called Yogen Fruz which I fell in love with. You pick fresh fruit from a selection and they blend it into your frozen yoghurt. It was pretty amazing.
Sebastian and I about to take each other on in Fifa 09 on the PS3
Lounging poolside
I could get used to this! ;-)
Yogen Fruz. Addictive
The rest of my stay involved more tanning, eating and Yogen Fruz. Angelica´s uncle brought in some red wine from Mendoza which was excellent. There was one particularly funny moment which involved Camila (Angelica´s cousin). She offers to grab us a drink from the kitchen so I order a beer. What I get back is a tall cocktail mug of beer with about 15 blocks of ice in it. I ask if this is a traditional Colombian method of drinking beer and she responds by saying that she wasn't sure but she thought with all the heat I would want it cold!! Haha. We all had a bit of a chuckle about that.
Suddenly it was almost time for me to leave. This was very difficult as I was having such an amazing time in Penon, but I had a night out in Bogota with Andrea planned which I was also looking forward to. I managed to find a bottle of Amarula Cream at a local store which I gave to Luz Marina as a gift for letting me stay.
Camila and Diana
Luz Marina, Angelica, Me (clearly having won the tanning contest), Diana and Sebastian
I reluctantly got on the mini van returning to Bogota and arrived 3 hours later where I met with Andrea for some lunch. A short wait for her friend and we were out at the bars in Bogota. We started at the Bogota Beer Company where I sampled some local brew which wasn´t bad. Next stop was at a trendy Martini bar where I ordered a James Bond Martini. This thing must have had about 6 shots of vodka in it so I made sure I took my time. Next was the nightclub called Penthouse where I remember I was pretty drunk. Once we got back I managed to sneak in 4 hours of sleep before my alarm rang for me to get up and catch my bus to Medellin. Saying a quick goodbye and thanks to Andrea who I think was also struggling with a hangover, I caught a cab and was on my bus to my next city.
Getting started at Bogota Beer Company
Myself, Andrea and Carlos working on a bottle of Ron
Several Rons later and I was pretty drunk. Think this picture tells it all
We packed up early in the morning and picked up Monica (a friend of Luz Marina) and Diana (a friend of Angelica). It was raining heavily during the drive which made the going slightly slow but once we arrived in Girardot I could feel it was significantly hotter. Colombian climates typically have no seasons. Bogota stays steady at around 20 deg whereas Girardot averages in the low to mid 30s.
We were staying at the Peñon Country Club. Apparently this place was built by the Colombian drug lords during the height of their power in the 70s as a private refuge and play area. They were looking to emulate the famous Miami lifestyle and this was clearly evident in the architecture and layout of the estate. Large bleached white mansions lined the small roads with well kempt lawns and a slick golf course. The family house was very comfortably kitted out with some of the luxuries I had missed these last few months: Flat screen TVs, swimming pool, billiard table, freshly made clean beds, en suite bathrooms, a golf course, tennis courts and water sports on the central lake. We had two very helpful people looking after us. Olga cooked all our food which was delicious! Amaury sorted things out around the house. The estate is fairly massive and I got the tour with the girls. Most people in the estate get around on mini golf carts. There is meant to be an age restriction as to who can drive them but I am pretty sure I saw kids younger than 10 motoring around recklessly. At night we had to be careful as all the teens would get a bit drunk and drive around crazily.
The apartment
View from the apartment balcony onto the lake
The main form of transport inside the club are these mini golfcarts. Dangerous in the hands of the (often drunk) adolescents
We lounged around the pool for most of the next 2 days drinking beer and getting fed loads of food. Olga cooked a lot of local dishes for my benefit which I was hugely grateful for. I was also introduced to a local frozen yoghurt parlour called Yogen Fruz which I fell in love with. You pick fresh fruit from a selection and they blend it into your frozen yoghurt. It was pretty amazing.
Sebastian and I about to take each other on in Fifa 09 on the PS3
Lounging poolside
I could get used to this! ;-)
Yogen Fruz. Addictive
For entertainment, we resolved to have a tanning competition and also to exchange cultural and traditional dance moves. I was taught how to dance Salsa, Merengue, Cumbia and Vallenato whilst I emparted the knowledge of the Sprinkler, Lawnmower and Christmas Tree. We took these moves to the local nightclub called Oasis and stole the show.
Out and about at Oasis Disco
Out and about at Oasis DiscoThe rest of my stay involved more tanning, eating and Yogen Fruz. Angelica´s uncle brought in some red wine from Mendoza which was excellent. There was one particularly funny moment which involved Camila (Angelica´s cousin). She offers to grab us a drink from the kitchen so I order a beer. What I get back is a tall cocktail mug of beer with about 15 blocks of ice in it. I ask if this is a traditional Colombian method of drinking beer and she responds by saying that she wasn't sure but she thought with all the heat I would want it cold!! Haha. We all had a bit of a chuckle about that.
Suddenly it was almost time for me to leave. This was very difficult as I was having such an amazing time in Penon, but I had a night out in Bogota with Andrea planned which I was also looking forward to. I managed to find a bottle of Amarula Cream at a local store which I gave to Luz Marina as a gift for letting me stay.
Camila and Diana
Luz Marina, Angelica, Me (clearly having won the tanning contest), Diana and SebastianI reluctantly got on the mini van returning to Bogota and arrived 3 hours later where I met with Andrea for some lunch. A short wait for her friend and we were out at the bars in Bogota. We started at the Bogota Beer Company where I sampled some local brew which wasn´t bad. Next stop was at a trendy Martini bar where I ordered a James Bond Martini. This thing must have had about 6 shots of vodka in it so I made sure I took my time. Next was the nightclub called Penthouse where I remember I was pretty drunk. Once we got back I managed to sneak in 4 hours of sleep before my alarm rang for me to get up and catch my bus to Medellin. Saying a quick goodbye and thanks to Andrea who I think was also struggling with a hangover, I caught a cab and was on my bus to my next city.
Getting started at Bogota Beer Company
Myself, Andrea and Carlos working on a bottle of Ron
Several Rons later and I was pretty drunk. Think this picture tells it all
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