Jasmine Wanders

When I was invited to watch Medellin’s local team, Nacional, versus one of their rivals, Cali, I decided to take up the offer. Of all the aspects of Latin American culture I’ve explored, futbol fever is one I’ve never bothered to plunge in to. Until now.

Alebrijes, blue-footed boobies, and leatherback turtles are just some of my 2011 travel highlights.

Mexico has become an acquaintance to me. Sure, I appreciate its good qualities (and there are many). But it’s not love. It’s not my BFF. I won’t fantasize about it after I leave.

If you’re a regular visitor of my blog, you know that I’ve got some sort of sordid Colombian pueblo fetish…

I realized I was pretty much a freak show for writing such an intense letter to a country as if it were my lover. But the truth is, Colombia has had an powerful effect on me, and I owe it to her to publicize the truth here.

So was the salt cathedral trip worth it? If you’re a claustrophobic, satanic fan of pepper, you might want to stay away.

Maybe the idea was completely unrealistic to begin with? It’s possible I’ve watched Pay It Forward a few too many times.

I happened to be on campus yesterday to watch a concert, though the graffiti and artwork captivated me instantly and re-sparked my interest in the fight. I think the photos speak for themselves.

I was less like a kid in a candy store and more like a crack addict in an unarmed cocaine lab. I greedily passed from stand to stand, slurping up all the free samples I could get my hands on – about six in an hour.