Barranquilla Trip May/June

[ArtVandelay]

I haven't posted here but I have got a lot of information reading all the posts here.  I had a very nice trip and really enjoyed myself.  I just got back yesterday, and today, I'm so sick.  Two and half weeks in Colombia, no problems, one day back, I can't get out bed.
 
I had a successful trip and all the hype about Jamie's agency is well deserved.  He runs a top notch program and went out of his way to make sure I was happy.  I stayed 17 days in Barranquilla and the only regret I have is I didn't stay longer.  My translator picked me up at the airport with one of my favorite girls, which was a nice ride back to the agency.  I saw this girl again but I think she was too immature and wasn't ready for real relationship.  If I was just down there on vacation I'm sure she would have been fun to hangout with.  I must have met close to 50 women, if not more, most of them drop dead gorgeous.  The girls ranged from doctors and lawyers to students and unemployed women.  I consider myself a great public speaker and it takes a lot to intimidate me, but having a room full of 15-20 beautiful woman staring at me, even made me feel some butterflies' the first couple times.  I think I had four or five group introductions all together... by the end they were all running together.  The group introductions are the same as everyone else had described in the past.  Some of them were large and some were small.  My first group introduction I think I picked four girls, that I wanted to see again, the second, two girls.  My second day, it rained horribly, and only two girls were able to make it to the afternoon introduction and I wasn't interested in another date with either.  Jamie and my translator were able to reschedule the girls that missed the afternoon introduction for the evening, so that introduction was huge.  I picked three girls from that introduction for another date and I had one more group introduction and I picked one girl from that one.  I didn't have any no shows for any dates.  I had a couple girls that had to reschedule but they called far enough in advance, where I could schedule another date.  I won't go into each date because that would take way too long.  I only had one girl, who really rubbed me the wrong way.  She was very pretty, well spoken, educated, spoke some english, and had a smoking body.  It was our second date and we went to the beach.  A jewelry vender came by and the first time we ignored him but he came back again.  This time she picked out a necklace, and just expected me to pay for it.  Now it only cost like $5-10 dollars, no big deal, but it's the principal.  If she would have asked, I would not have thought anything about it and bought her the necklace.  It's a shame because she was really attractive, smart, and had potential to have a successful career but she showed other signs as well.  Every other girl I took to Archie's would sit right next too me, side by side and make contact with me but this one sat a little further away.  All the other girls would also touch me if they are interested... I'm not talking about a hand job under the table, but touch your hand or arm when they talk to you.. They will make good eye contact with you when you talk... She did not. I guess I should have known after the first date but she was one of my favorites and she was really attractive.  When I had my translator with , I was spoiled, and used him exclusively.  I wouldn't even attempt to speak spanish. (Also they speak so fast there) So another thing I observed was if the girl was looking at me when she was talking or if she was carrying on a conversation with my translator.  The girls who were really into me, would look at me and continue to look at me when the translator would speak.  Interview and Interrogation is what I do, so I looked for a lot of things to see if the girls were truthful, deceptive, interested, or just enjoying a free lunch.  Having someone else doing the interview (Translator) really gives you the opportunity to observe body language, facial expressions, and movements.
 
 I felt by the end, if I couldn't find a good women there, it was my fault, not the women, and not the agency.  It took me maybe five days of dating 4 or 5 women a day to finally date my girlfriend exclusively.  I felt strongly about her early but Jamie said, don't stop dating other women until you are sure, she is the one.  I followed his advice and it helped me be sure of the girl I wanted.  I would have hated to have canceled my dates, find out she was a flake, and come home, looking back at all the girls I didn't give a chance.  It was sound advice and encourage those considering going down to follow it.  Jamie was always there, willing to give me information about a girls history or give his opinion if asked.  He also didn't put up with much crap from the girls.  One of my lunch date was running late, actually this was my airport pick up girl, and he told the translator to tell her, "hurry up, he sitting here staring at a wall waiting for you."  I speak some spanish.... enough to let my translator have most of the day off the second half of my trip, after I started dating my girlfriend exclusively.  I also had a cell phone with google translator to help me, when I got stuck.  He was worth every penny I paid for him.  He had my schedule mapped out two or three days in advance... and at the beginning, that's important because there was so many girls I was dating, it was one less thing I had to worry about.  He would also give me his opinion of the women.  I told him early, I don't want to hear about the good things, I can see the good things myself, I want the red flags you see, that I may have missed because of cultural differences.  He was a good guy and by the end of my trip, I consider him my friend.
 
After the first five days, I dated my girlfriend exclusively.  We took an overnight trip to Cartagena, which is a very nice city and can be very romantic.  The next time I go down, I defiantly want to spend a week or more there.  It's more "American" friendly but you pay for that friendliness.  We stayed at the Hilton, which has hot water, which by this point in my trip was good as gold.  It was American prices for the room and the drinks.  She was drinking Cuba Libre and I was drinking Mojitos, and each round was cost me 40.000 COP.  They had a nice balcony with a table and chairs with a view of the ocean.  We ordered room service for lunch and had a very nice meal with a gorgeous view.  The hotel had three swimming pools, one with a really cool sliding board and waterfall.  But do not forget anything or you will pay out the rear for it in the "drug store." We had dinner in historic Cartagena, and I can't remember the name of the restaurant, but it was very nice.  All the restaurants I saw in that area looked nice, so I don't know if you can go wrong there.  We came back and my girlfriend cooked dinner.  I guess I got lucky here, because she cooked a couple of times for me and the girl can cook.  She didn't make a dish I didn't like and want another plate.  I went to her house to meet her parents.  For this I took my translator... The last thing I wanted was for me to say something offensive, unintentionally, because of my lack of knowledge for the language. They were very nice and friendly people.  They did all they could to make me feel comfortable and like a king.  I was kind of embarrassed because they didn't have air conditioning.  It was 8pm but I was sweating inside the house like I was standing on the sun.  My girlfriend started wiping my head with towel while I was talking with her parents.  I'm not fat or overweight and I wasn't nervous, I'm just not used to the heat.  I keep my house and my car freezing and down there..... there is no such thing.. For me there was two temperatures hot and fire...  They invited me back for lunch on Sunday, which was very nice and excellent food.  Again they were very catering to me and treated me very well.  Her father was a very straight forward guy and spoke what he thought.  He had questions for me and wanted to make sure his daughter would be taken care of if the relationship progressed.  He also was seemed concerned that I would allow her visit Colombia and keep in contact with her family.  We spent the rest of my time there doing various things around Barranquilla.  We did go and see one movie, mainly because I had to see it... Hangover II came out while I was down there and I couldn't wait.  I could go on but it's getting late.
 
My translator and my girlfriend dropped me off at the airport.  We ate lunch together and then we said our goodbyes.  I really enjoyed myself and found a great girl.  If something happens and this doesn't work out, I would use Jamie's agency again, without hesitation.  I'm a firm believer in you get what you pay and I got just that.  I guess time will tell what will happen.  I'm already planning my return trip and am looking forward to it.  Thank you to all the guys who went before me and posted their trips and gave advice to novices like myself.

[V_Man]

Awesome report. Thanks for posting it.

[benjio]

Nice trip report. I'll say it before and I'll say it again. Jamie runs a class act agency. You get exactly what you pay for...bottomline. I've recommended him to several men and I will continue to do so.
 
My recommendation to you would be to take it slow and really get to know your girl and her family. Colombianas have a very clever way of appearing to be the perfect match at first, then revealing some serious character flaws when they get comfortable with you. Not being negative or pessimistic, but from my experience that's just reality. If your Spanish is decent call her once in a while...but not too much because she'll get spoiled and begin to expect it. And most of all, please, please, PLEASE learn to appreciate the culture. Colombia is like no other place on Earth and Costenos definitely have a subculture of their own. Even if you don't grow to like coconut rice, Vallenato Music or Old Parr Scotch Whiskey the fact you know that's what she's accustomed to is the first step to her falling completely head over hills in love with you. And after that....you won't have a thing to worry about.
 
Good luck and please keep us posted.

[whitey]

Glad you had a great trip - thanks for posting.

I'm not sure what the status of your relationship is with your friend ... are you both still free to date, or are you committed to each other exclusively for now? 

In Colombia, you are expected to formally ask the woman to be your girlfriend (novia).  This doesn't mean you are putting a ring on her finger, and there's no ring involved ... it just means that you both know you're in a committed relationship.

[Alabamaboy!]

Do you happen to work for VanDelay Industries?

Glad you liked BAQ and Jamies. I have been there more than 10 times now to BAQ. I have dated and talked to quite a few ladies from there and have seen the good, the bad, and the ugly of what can happen there. My wife is from BAQ. My ex fiancee also was from there. If you ever have any questions, feel free to PM me.

As Benjio indicated, Costenos definitely have their own unique subculture. I found it extremely different than Medellin, Bogota,  or Bucaramanga. My wife was like a fish out of water during our recent vacation to Medellin.

[robert angel]

V_Man,
That was a fine trip report and proof that with the right preparation and mindset, you can meet several women, narrow it down to one favorite and still have enough 'quality time' with that one woman to really have an enjoyable time, get to know her and even her family a bit and set up your next visit.
Hope you're feeling back at 100% soon---thanks for taking the time and effort to make such a helpful post.
Good to finally have you aboard!

[Colgando]

Nice report Art, glad you had a good trip, I am happy for you, take care man and get well soon.

[utopiacowboy]

My wife was like a fish out of water during our recent vacation to Medellin.

Now that's an interesting comment. Would you care to elaborate?

[ArtVandelay]

Thank you for all the positive comments and well wishes.  I'm back to 100%.
 
Whitey, thanks for the advice, that is an important piece of information to know about the culture.  I made it very clear I wanted to date my girlfriend exclusively and she was girlfriend.  In fact she would let me get past second base until she knew she was my girlfriend.  I took that as a good sign but maybe I read too much into it.
 
Benijo, I see what you're saying about calling too much and her getting spoiled.  I have been calling once a day since I got back but I guess the real test will be what she says when I miss a day for some reason.  I plan on taking it slow and on my next trip I plan on staying a month and living with her.  I person can only put up a front so long before the real person comes to light.  Hopefully a month,  24/7 will let me see what she is really like to be with.  I appreciate the advice.

[Alabamaboy!]

Now that's an interesting comment. Would you care to elaborate?

My wife is actually from Soledad. From a poor barrio where there is no personal space, no privacy, most things are completely disorganized, it is hot, sweaty, loud, raucous, music playing 24/7, the people are super laid back, informal, "chistosos".

Medellin was just the opposite, we traveled outside the city to wide open places, parks, green grass, big trees, super clean organized transportation, cool fresh weather, polite, relatively timid people for the most part, tranquil, and the people seemed much more serious and business minded. Most of the city is gorgeous compared to BAQ/Soledad which is......not.

She said she felt more comfortable in AZ/SoCal than in Medellin. But I am sure that is due somewhat to the urban legends that they tell on the Coast about how every Paisa is an assassin, every woman is a prepago, and how there are floods and landslides every hour that are killing everyone.

But even I felt like Medellin was like a different planet than BAQ/Soledad.

Hell my wife even gets a little nervous in Santa Marta and Cartagena and they are only an hour or so from where she grew up!

[Researcher]

     Hey ArtVandelay, welcome to the board!

     First off I always wanted to be a pretend architect!!! hehehe....

    Great trip report.I'm glad things worked out for you and it sounds like you had a good time and now have a very nice girlfriend. It's good that you took Jamie's advice. Too many guys rush into relationships with these women only to find out that it isn't going to work.Taking some time to actually get to know a woman doesn't guarantee success but it does pay off.It sounds like you are off to a great start with this woman and I hope that you will be another one of Jamie's success stories.

       Thanks for posting!

          Researcher

[benjio]

My wife is actually from Soledad. From a poor barrio where there is no personal space, no privacy, most things are completely disorganized, it is hot, sweaty, loud, raucous, music playing 24/7, the people are super laid back, informal, "chistosos".

Soledad is actually changing rapidly. It's still what we Gringos would call a rural area, but it has changed drastically since the first time I was in Quilla. I get my hair cut in Soledad (by the way...the most expensive hair cuts I get, because in the states it cost me $20, I have to pay $75,000 COP to get out there and back, plus $10,000 to the barber but I really like the guy and it gives me a chance to get away from the noise of Barranquilla). I'm thinking about buying a lot and building there. It's proximity to the airport makes it prime real estate. Especially at the rate Barranquilla is growing. Although there's plenty of land for sale in the city, there's no more room for growth on the other ends...nothing but the river and ocean.

[Alabamaboy!]

Soledad is actually changing rapidly. It's still what we Gringos would call a rural area, but it has changed drastically since the first time I was in Quilla. I get my hair cut in Soledad (by the way...the most expensive hair cuts I get, because in the states it cost me $20, I have to pay $75,000 COP to get out there and back, plus $10,000 to the barber but I really like the guy and it gives me a chance to get away from the noise of Barranquilla). I'm thinking about buying a lot and building there. It's proximity to the airport makes it prime real estate. Especially at the rate Barranquilla is growing. Although there's plenty of land for sale in the city, there's no more room for growth on the other ends...nothing but the river and ocean.

My wife is from Barrio "Las Moras" and it does not seem "rural" to me. It is packed with people much more densely than any other part of BAQ that I have been to except maybe Centro. There is not even any breeze or anything because it is completely blocked by all the buildings, concrete, etc. I was thinking that it might be a place to invest in also, because you can buy a house like my wife's family's house for $27 million COP or less if you look around a bit. Actually there was one area where they were building new homes for 24 million and you could split them and make two tiny homes. I was thinking of buying like 5 of them and splitting them. A friend of mine was telling me they pay like 250K monthly rent for those, so would be 2.5 million for 10 of them (after splitting them). But hell, we tried to do some other little business there and the people just do not pay and it is too much hassle to deal with them.

[benjio]

Bama,
 
I know exactly where Las Moras is. You know for all this time I thought they were calling it La Morda...Costeno Spanish...go figure. I have a close friend that lives there. Probably knows your people. I had the same business idea about a year ago, but you'd have to have a "head cracker" you can trust that lives in the neighborhood. I'm talking about someone your tenants fear and/or respect and could be there full time to collect rent and manage your properties. Maybe it would work if his salary depended on collecting rent, but knowing Colombians (especially in that area) he'd probably find some way to cheat or steal from you. That's just the culture.
 
Unfortunately I'm leaving Rio tonight at 8 gents. How I'm gonna miss this gorgeous paradise. I met a girl at a bar on Wednesday and we've seen each other a couple of more times. She's fun but entirely too young (22). She knows decent enough English because my Portuguese is still $#!+. I have a 25 and over rule that I refuse to break now...well maybe for a very mature girl but from my experience they are few and far between in LA. Not going to make the same two year mistake I did with my ex. Anywayz, trip report for Rio De Janeiro coming soon.

[Alabamaboy!]

Bama,
 
I know exactly where Las Moras is. You know for all this time I thought they were calling it La Morda...Costeno Spanish...go figure. I have a close friend that lives there. Probably knows your people. I had the same business idea about a year ago, but you'd have to have a "head cracker" you can trust that lives in the neighborhood. I'm talking about someone your tenants fear and/or respect and could be there full time to collect rent and manage your properties. Maybe it would work if his salary depended on collecting rent, but knowing Colombians (especially in that area) he'd probably find some way to cheat or steal from you. That's just the culture.
 
Unfortunately I'm leaving Rio tonight at 8 gents. How I'm gonna miss this gorgeous paradise. I met a girl at a bar on Wednesday and we've seen each other a couple of more times. She's fun but entirely too young (22). She knows decent enough English because my Portuguese is still $#!+. I have a 25 and over rule that I refuse to break now...well maybe for a very mature girl but from my experience they are few and far between in LA. Not going to make the same two year mistake I did with my ex. Anywayz, trip report for Rio De Janeiro coming soon.

I thought I did have a head cracker in my father-in-law who is an ex police officer there. But the thing is he likes to drink and party too much. And is known to take off for weeks at a time with his hoochies so I could not trust him.

[Alabamaboy!]

Benjio I would like to see a compare and contrast versus Colombia as well, because Brazil is another place I was considering as a retirement destination. They seem to have a great economy and health care system...with a great day to day lifestyle as well. But who knows now with the dollar going down the toilet and maybe inflation is starting to rev up down there. Where do you think a married guy in his mid 40's could live the best on a let's say $1,500 month budget? I am thinking if I can keep my budget down I could possibly "semi-retire" soon and enjoy life more.

Where are you heading from Rio? Back to the States or Colombia?

[Dan Las Vegas]

Great trip report!!!!
 
Dan LV

[whitey]

Soledad is actually changing rapidly. It's still what we Gringos would call a rural area, but it has changed drastically since the first time I was in Quilla. I get my hair cut in Soledad (by the way...the most expensive hair cuts I get, because in the states it cost me $20, I have to pay $75,000 COP to get out there and back, plus $10,000 to the barber but I really like the guy and it gives me a chance to get away from the noise of Barranquilla). I'm thinking about buying a lot and building there. It's proximity to the airport makes it prime real estate. Especially at the rate Barranquilla is growing. Although there's plenty of land for sale in the city, there's no more room for growth on the other ends...nothing but the river and ocean.

That is one pricey haircut ... must be good!

My last cut cost $3.000 in a salon about a hundred yards from my wife's house.  It's grown out now, and I'm dreading paying $24 for my next cut here in Canada. 

[braziliangirl]

Benjio I would like to see a compare and contrast versus Colombia as well, because Brazil is another place I was considering as a retirement destination. They seem to have a great economy and health care system...with a great day to day lifestyle as well. But who knows now with the dollar going down the toilet and maybe inflation is starting to rev up down there. Where do you think a married guy in his mid 40's could live the best on a let's say $1,500 month budget?

Certainly not in Brazil. It's expensive here and even more expensive if you want to live an American lifestyle. Plus, someone, I guess Micky, told me they require a $2,000 minimal retirement income a month. But, with the economy growing and depending on your business, maybe you could make more than that here.

Maybe in Argentina or Uruguay it could be possible to live with well with a $1,500 budget, but I still think the dollar is more valuable in Colombia.

[Alabamaboy!]

Certainly not in Brazil. It's expensive here and even more expensive if you want to live an American lifestyle. Plus, someone, I guess Micky, told me they require a $2,000 minimal retirement income a month. But, with the economy growing and depending on your business, maybe you could make more than that here.

Maybe in Argentina or Uruguay it could be possible to live with well with a $1,500 budget, but I still think the dollar is more valuable in Colombia.

I definitely do not want to live an American lifestyle. I don't understand people who go to other countries trying to live US lifestyles. If they want to do that, why not just stay in the US?

I know for sure I could live in Colombia for $1500/month. But I was pretty sure that with Brazil's economy that the prices have to be moving pretty high against the dollar.

[benjio]

Brazilian girl you read my mind!!! Rio De Janeiro is absolutely ridiculous when it comes to what things cost.
 
Ride from Airport to Hotel: $60.00 USD (about 15 miles)
Dinner at a decent Brazilian Resturant for two: $120.00 USD (I wrote decent because the places I ate were far from the most expensive)
Average Rent at an Apartment or Condo with decent security: $1950 (ONE BEDROOM!!!)
 
I'll put it like this. I work in IT for an Oil Company. The IT Manager for Latin American Operations is also from the U.S. and lives in Brazil. Before he accepted that position, he was making 6 figures in the U.S. HE GOT A 25% COST OF LIVING RAISE WHEN HE MOVED TO BRAZIL!!!!
 
If you're not a multimillionaire I wouldn't even consider retiring there.

[whitey]

Well, there goes Brazil from my list .... estingy!!!

[braziliangirl]

Rio De Janeiro is absolutely ridiculous when it comes to what things cost.

Ride from Airport to Hotel: $60.00 USD (about 15 miles)
Dinner at a decent Brazilian Resturant for two: $120.00 USD (I wrote decent because the places I ate were far from the most expensive)
Average Rent at an Apartment or Condo with decent security: $1950 (ONE BEDROOM!!!)

(...)
 
If you're not a multimillionaire I wouldn't even consider retiring there.

Rio is a wonderful city, one of my favorite destinations, but definitely too expensive. I'm planning a trip there for vacations and I keep asking myself why I don't go to Colombia or even Miami instead.

There are much cheaper cities, especially in the North and Northeast. Just to compare, in my city (which is in the North) the costs would be:
Ride from Airport to Hotel: $30.00 USD
Dinner at a good restaurant for two: $80.00 USD
Average Rent at an Apartment or Condo with decent security: $800.00 USD (two bedrooms)

And there are cities with a lower cost of living, like Fortaleza. But I don't know how it compares to Colombia.

[utopiacowboy]

The Brazillian real has risen dramatically against the US dollar. The US dollar has lost 40% of its value against the real in the last two years.

[braziliangirl]

So, I'm thinking about setting up an agency to help wealthy Brazilian women go husband hunting in the US...