Ever searched for travel safety tips before going to a destination? I did that before I went to Colombia. Colombia? A country in South America? My first reaction was, holy shit, I had to fly half of the earth for I live in China; the second was, is it safe to visit?
Have you watched the Netflix series Narcos? The magical and realistic story that the narco tried to run for president happened in the 1980s in Colombia.
This country suffered significantly from drug and violence problems last century. As all travelers did, I searched for safety tips before my departure. Undoubtedly, these horrible words came into my eyes.
“Reconsider travel due to crime and terrorism.” “Exercise increased caution due to civil unrest and kidnapping.” “Violent crime, such as homicide, assault, and armed robbery, is widespread. Organized criminal activities, such as extortion, robbery, and kidnapping, are common in some areas.”
I was frightened by these descriptions. It was even worse for me, a young Asian girl, to visit the so-called drug kingdom alone, like a baby bird being pushed out of the nest to learn how to fly by practice. So I prepared as much as I could, bearing all tips in mind, like a nervous wreck:
- Avoiding bad neighborhoods
- Keeping a low profile
- Staying away from remote areas where guerilla groups are active (sounds interesting, though)
- Watching out for drugging scams
- Avoiding demonstrations
- Taking Uber rides instead of taxis
After taking the 30h+ flight, I finally made it to Bogota, the capital of Colombia. Despite being exhausted due to jet lag, I plucked up the courage to walk on the street alone to buy a sim card. It rained the night before - typical for Bogota’s weather to change a dozen times a day from sunny to rainy and even a hailstone storm.
I was walking on the street, carefully observing my surroundings; only a few people were on the road. Suddenly, a small but brimming with spirits old lady stopped me and asked, “What are you looking for?” My heart stood still and skipped a beat. The last thing I would like to do at that time was to be hit on by a stranger.
Before I answered, however, she showed me how to cover my half-moon bag under the trench coat and asked me to do so. Then, having been told I wanted to buy a sim card, she led me to the nearest mall, asking me to remember the sign and landmark down the road - a police station, a museum, and a park. She was also a lovely translator for me and the salesperson at the booth. I could not even say the basic greeting “Good morning” in Spanish (and now still cannot).
She was so friendly that she spent her whole morning with me, a total stranger, and even postponed her business to the other day. From that moment, I threw all those advice behind me. During that half a month in Colombia, there were some inevitable times that I had to do things that would not be recommended in the safety brochure. But walking out at night to buy water or taking out the phone to answer calls on the street didn’t make me feel insecure for even one second.
I am not encouraging anyone to take risks. It is necessary to be cautious when going to a strange place. But there are a lot of sites that are worth visiting despite some negative comments on social media. Judging someone you don’t know is rude, so what about a place you haven’t ever been to or people you haven’t ever met? Go there and experience that in person instead of reading terrifying stories on Instagram. Life is all about embracing the present moment.
“Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.” — Buddha
A friend I met in Bogota told me he was reluctant to come here at first for security concerns and left his apple watch back at home to avoid displaying wealth. Another friend blackened the “fancy” white Nike logo on his shoes like a pupil to make them undistinguished. But in the end, both of them had the same conclusion as me: visitors don’t need to over-worry about the safety issue. It cannot be denied that the Internet and social media is a great innovation that has changed how we communicate and interact. To some extent, we are all influenced by what we read on the Internet. But following your heart is far more helpful than any travel safety tips.
I have read a book by a young archaeologist Liu Tuo who has visited Afghanistan twice. He wrote that on the plane, the airline stewardess was astonished to hear that he would travel around Afghanistan, not for business or family reasons. She said she had flown to this notorious country hundreds of times but never been anywhere outside the airport.
We are all that airline stewardess in our own lives. Safety tips sometimes make us over-worried about travel. We may be reluctant to set off, experience, and therefore miss out on all the beautiful scenery and lovely people far away.