Colombia 101

[AndyLee]

I thought about this thread for a while, and what to call it. Funny that when I started typing it the time was 1:01. Pretty appropriate, considering I want to offer the introductory class to Colombia.
There´s a lot of posts on here about Colombia, so what more could I have to say? Dunno, let´s find out.
First, if you are first timer, planning a trip to Colombia, focus on just one city. It´s not easy to travel from one to other like it is in the US or Europe. For example, Cali and Medellin are only 200 miles apart, that´s about a 4 hour drive in the US, right? Here in Colombia it´s at least a totally miserable 10 hour drive, assuming there are no army checkpoints or landslides. If you go by bus, plan on at least 12 hours, or more.
Bogota to Cartagena? 2 hours by plane, 20 hours by overland bus.
It´s not easy to get from here to there in Colombia. That´s why I recommend for first timers to settle on just one city. In my opinion, Bogota offers the most direct flights, and the most educated-attractive-motivated girls per square mile of any other destination in Colombia.
Another point.....have more than one girl to visit. If you meet a girl on line and she seems perfect and you spend hours each day skpying and texting and hoping, then maybe she´s the one. Most likely, however, she will be a complete disappointment when you get here. So, always have a plan b and c. Arrange for the first girl to meet you as planned, but when the meeting goes south, for any one of a dozen reasons, don´t waste your trip. Have a backup.

[AndyLee]

Another point, know what your end game is. Some of us come here to get laid by beautiful women that are many time younger than us. I like that part, too. It´s quite a thrill to get laid by a beautiful girl who could have been my son´s prom date. But, realistically, even though that is fairly easy in Colombia, it gets old fairly quickly. I lost interest in the teenie boppers after the first 2 or 3. I prefer an older woman who is more likely to have had life experiences similar or comparable to mine.
Decide fairly early in your search if you are in it for the young tight pussy or for love and marriage. These two pursuits require dramatically different methods of approach.
Getting young pussy here is easy, just introduce yourself to enough teen agers and sooner or later one will latch on and take you for a ride, emotionally, sexually and financially.

[fathertime]

Decide fairly early in your search if you are in it for the young tight pussy or for love and marriage. These two pursuits require dramatically different methods of approach.
Getting young pussy here is easy, just introduce yourself to enough teen agers and sooner or later one will latch on and take you for a ride, emotionally, sexually and financially.

It is hard to imagine that a teenage young lady would take up with a guy 65+, but I assume you are merely relying your experiences. 

Another point, know what your end game is. Some of us come here to get laid by beautiful women that are many time younger than us. I like that part, too. It´s quite a thrill to get laid by a beautiful girl who could have been my son´s prom date. But, realistically, even though that is fairly easy in Colombia, it gets old fairly quickly. I lost interest in the teenie boppers after the first 2 or 3. I prefer an older woman who is more likely to have had life experiences similar or comparable to mine.
 

It makes sense, there are probably plenty of nice looking ladies in their 30's 40's and that is still a huge age differential in your case.


Fathertime!   

[AndyLee]

It is hard to imagine that a teenage young lady would take up with a guy 65+, but I assume you are merely relying your experiences. 



It makes sense, there are probably plenty of nice looking ladies in their 30's 40's and that is still a huge age differential in your case.


Fathertime!

Its much easier than you would think, and my age has little to do with it. Like I said, if you´re in for the fast action the 18 - 25 girls are readily available. Many are even younger, but I draw the line at 18 because it´s legal, and because they are somewhat adult.
Many girls younger than 18 will put their profile on Cupid and say they are 18 or 19. I know one girl in Manizales who has her profile at 21 but she is only 16. I know that because I demanded to see her identification card.
Somebody mentioned in another thread, that without a look at their cedula they do not get in my house. They have to be 18 to get a cedula, before that it is just a student identification card.
There have been several instances this year where foreign guys have been caught with underage girls and the press has been all over it. They even made a tv documentary out of that event in Cartagena where they rounded up 6 foreigners in one raid.
In the pueblo where I live there is a new police woman who´s job is to go to the schools and lecture the students on proper ages. She teaches them to run away from old guys and guys who want to take photos presumably to help them start a modeling career. She also warns them about the guys who want to make video call girls out of them. Remember that guy Von who used to post here? As I recall his business model was to seduce the girls into being web cam girls for him. Very distasteful business in my opinion.
Legal age here in Colombia for consent is 14, but that comes with some caveats. First, the girl and the boy must be of a similar age. For example, a 14 year old girl with a 67 year old guy is asking for trouble, even for Colombians.
Secondly, if the guy is in a position of influence over the girl, he can be accused of forcing her or coercing her, for example if he is a school teacher or public official or if the girl works for him, for example as a hotel maid or waitress in a panaderia.
Third, if he gives her money he can be charged with child prostitution. Even if the  money he gave her was just cab fare to get to his house. Prostitution under age 18 is illegal here.


I´ve dated from 18 to 58 and all points in between. I chuckle when I remember that 58 year old one, she was less mature emotionally than most 30 year olds I meet.
My favorite slot seems to be ages 34 to 42. In that age range I find the women are old enough to have had a few life experiences and a clearer idea of what they want out of life, and they are still young enough to be enthusiastic and ambitious and easy on the eyes.
At the moment I am dating a 26 year old that I met when she was 24. She´s a school teacher, never married and no kids. In the beginning I discouraged her from getting too involved with me, citing the 41 year age difference. She kept coming back, so finally I just accepted it. If she´s okay with it, so am I. Her family likes me and they don´t ask me for anything, just to be friends.

[AndyLee]

Just a follow up note to the under 18 comments:
I met a hotel owner recently who asked me to translate his brochure and room signs to English and while I was in his lobby I saw a sign that girls must be 18 to check in with a  male, or have papers showing they are married or guardian. I asked him about the sign and he said it was a new thing that all the hotels are being asked to post. I have not seen the sign in other hotels, but I haven´t traveled much this year, so what he says could be true.
On a related note, I met a foreigner here who was dating a 17 year old girl and he checked into a hotel in Pereira and within an hour two policemen showed up at his room demanding to see documents. The girl only had her student ID card, so the officers told the foreigner they would arrest him and charge him with child prostitution.
He asked the cops how he could get out of this and they asked for a million pesos. He only had 600,000 on him, about $200, so the two officers took the money and left, leaving the girl in the room with him without any more comments. Typical shakedown in Colombia, but it could have ended really badly if they had gone ahead and arrested him. If an American is caught traveling to a foreign country for sex with minors he can wind up in prison for a long time.

[benjio]

On a related note, I met a foreigner here who was dating a 17 year old girl and he checked into a hotel in Pereira and within an hour two policemen showed up at his room demanding to see documents. The girl only had her student ID card, so the officers told the foreigner they would arrest him and charge him with child prostitution.
He asked the cops how he could get out of this and they asked for a million pesos. He only had 600,000 on him, about $200, so the two officers took the money and left, leaving the girl in the room with him without any more comments. Typical shakedown in Colombia, but it could have ended really badly if they had gone ahead and arrested him. If an American is caught traveling to a foreign country for sex with minors he can wind up in prison for a long time.

I'm not sure how well he knew the girl but that's a very common grift in Rio de Janeiro. It's most commonly done on the fly when a guy is picking up a prostitute or GDP. She takes him to a predesignated motel/hotel room she's already made arrangements with, the police bust in, she reveals she's a minor by showing her ID and then the negotiations start. But I've heard of cases where the girl was dating a guy for a while in order to figure out how much she and the police could ultimately get out of him. Hypothetically, if I found myself in the same situation, I'd actually prefer the police were involved because usually that's just a one time payment. A girl personally scamming a guy could mean multiple pay outs over a period of time. Especially if he's an expat living there or even worse...has a wife and children (I've seen this happen before). The problem in Rio is there are so many 16 and 17 year old girls that can pull off 20+ it's scary. My friends that were living in Rio while they were making the Snoop Dogg video for the song Beautiful have told me a lot of those girls were just teenagers from Rocinha. What makes it even worse is some minors have been sex workers for a while and have paid for plastic surgery or gotten it for free!!! (much more common than people think).


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/23/plastic-surgery-brazil-poor_n_1375242.html


In a situation where a guy might usually think to himself, "This girl looks a little too young;" a nice set of manmade Double D's will usually drop his guard pretty fast. Colombian Women are generally very thin in their teens and not very curvy so that's a tell tale sign. A lot of Brasileiras however are naturally more voluptuous so it's more difficult IMHO. While I was living in Rio and going out a lot more (before I met my girlfriend) I would only go to clubs where I knew girls had to be 18 to get in. A lot of discos and clubs there don't ID girls at all. Others would completely ignore a girl's age if she was hot enough. My advice: Whether for a serious relationship or P4P, leave the young'ns alone altogether (Young'n < 21 years old). Imagine marrying a girl and bringing her back to the U.S. before she can legally drink here!!!    If you try and marry one and bring her back stateside that's a one way ticket to a divorce within 5 years. If you're trying to pay her for sex and get caught that's a one way ticket to 5+ years in prison.   

[Elexpatriado]

I think if you are not checking an ID  of any girl you take out for supper, a movie, to the discos, let alone bring to a hotel, and make sure she is 18 or over, you deserve to have the book thrown at you and rot away forever in a Colombian Jail..and get the true sex you deserve..

I'm not sure how well he knew the girl but that's a very common grift in Rio de Janeiro. It's most commonly done on the fly when a guy is picking up a prostitute or GDP. She takes him to a predesignated motel/hotel room she's already made arrangements with, the police bust in, she reveals she's a minor by showing her ID and then the negotiations start. But I've heard of cases where the girl was dating a guy for a while in order to figure out how much she and the police could ultimately get out of him. Hypothetically, if I found myself in the same situation, I'd actually prefer the police were involved because usually that's just a one time payment. A girl personally scamming a guy could mean multiple pay outs over a period of time. Especially if he's an expat living there or even worse...has a wife and children (I've seen this happen before). The problem in Rio is there are so many 16 and 17 year old girls that can pull off 20+ it's scary. My friends that were living in Rio while they were making the Snoop Dogg video for the song Beautiful have told me a lot of those girls were just teenagers from Rocinha. What makes it even worse is some minors have been sex workers for a while and have paid for plastic surgery or gotten it for free!!! (much more common than people think).


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/23/plastic-surgery-brazil-poor_n_1375242.html


In a situation where a guy might usually think to himself, "This girl looks a little too young;" a nice set of manmade Double D's will usually drop his guard pretty fast. Colombian Women are generally very thin in their teens and not very curvy so that's a tell tale sign. A lot of Brasileiras however are naturally more voluptuous so it's more difficult IMHO. While I was living in Rio and going out a lot more (before I met my girlfriend) I would only go to clubs where I knew girls had to be 18 to get in. A lot of discos and clubs there don't ID girls at all. Others would completely ignore a girl's age if she was hot enough. My advice: Whether for a serious relationship or P4P, leave the young'ns alone altogether (Young'n < 21 years old). Imagine marrying a girl and bringing her back to the U.S. before she can legally drink here!!!    If you try and marry one and bring her back stateside that's a one way ticket to a divorce within 5 years. If you're trying to pay her for sex and get caught that's a one way ticket to 5+ years in prison.

[Elexpatriado]

    If you try and marry one and bring her back stateside that's a one way ticket to a divorce within 5 years.

100% True, but I have seen it work when people stay in  Colombia, even with 30 or 40 year age differences. The relation starting when the girl is 18, and still together 5 or 6 years later. I have seen several cases like that.

[Awesome]

100% True, but I have seen it work when people stay in  Colombia, even with 30 or 40 year age differences. The relation starting when the girl is 18, and still together 5 or 6 years later. I have seen several cases like that.

What's with the strange fixation you have with being an old man dating teenagers?  I'm starting to find that a little bit disturbing.  A 60 year old man dating teenagers isn't looking for a life partner he can have a deep loving connection with, he's just looking for a girl who looks very very young.


And I guarantee you your 60 year old buddies who have married 18 year olds there were "ham sandwiches" involved.  Probably giving a regular payment to the girl's estrato 1 family.  Sounds like the perfect plan for you expat, I'm surprised you haven't tried that yet.  Or maybe you have tried it you just weren't able to pull it off yet.

[mambocowboy]

100% True, but I have seen it work when people stay in  Colombia, even with 30 or 40 year age differences. The relation starting when the girl is 18, and still together 5 or 6 years later. I have seen several cases like that.

One of my wife's fat and ugly Mexican American "conocidas" asked her if she's OK being married to a "viejo". At 44 I am in better shape than that hag has ever been. The 10 year age difference between me and my wife would be a non issue in Colombia....

[Awesome]

One of my wife's fat and ugly Mexican American "conocidas" asked her if she's OK being married to a "viejo". At 44 I am in better shape than that hag has ever been. The 10 year age difference between me and my wife would be a non issue in Colombia....

Jaja!!  MC  you viejo cochino!  That lady's just a jealous hater.  A ten year age difference should be a non issue in the states as well.  I have one uncle who married a lady ten years his younger and another uncle who married a lady 20 years younger, both of them gringas not even latinas.


I'm 36 and I'm looking to marry in the 20-22 age range.  I guess I better get ready for the "viejo" comments lol.

[mambocowboy]

Jaja!!  MC  you viejo cochino!  That lady's just a jealous hater.  A ten year age difference should be a non issue in the states as well.  I have one uncle who married a lady ten years his younger and another uncle who married a lady 20 years younger, both of them gringas not even latinas.


I'm 36 and I'm looking to marry in the 20-22 age range.  I guess I better get ready for the "viejo" comments lol.

Get ready for alot of haters...

[robert angel]

Jaja!!  MC  you viejo cochino!  That lady's just a jealous hater.  A ten year age difference should be a non issue in the states as well.  I have one uncle who married a lady ten years his younger and another uncle who married a lady 20 years younger, both of them gringas not even latinas.


I'm 36 and I'm looking to marry in the 20-22 age range.  I guess I better get ready for the "viejo" comments lol.

The age difference for us is nowhere near what Elex describes and here or there--or in the Philippines, I wouldn't & couldn't imagine living with a teenager now, never mind at age 60. But our 'age spread' is a lot wider than what Awesome describes as what he's looking for. I am surprised that there's been almost zilch in terms of negative comments for us. I remember one time, some grossly fat, ugly hag at Disney World, muttering something(jealous) under her breath--that's it.

Oh--and some schizoid looking woman a long time ago said something odd. So two weird people we never saw before or after. I bet two married people the same age get as many crackpot comments on 'compatibility'.

I'd think that if there were people who we work with making comments behind our backs, that after ten years, we'd have caught wind of it a bit, but not that they matter--we haven't caught a hint of negativity.

Not exactly related, but my wife and I still laugh about it. She was working at a school and this little black kid--'Jackson' --with the street smarts smack talk of an 80 year old man raised in Harlem. looked at me kind of cooly, then rolled his eyes up, down and over at my wife and with body moves and hand movements that would've made Richard Pryor look like a stiff white English Butler, cracked back at me, with pubescent 'wisdom'---> :

"Mr. A---you knowz you iz a luckeee, luckeeee guy..."

The kid was right too!

My family and hers have been totally fine with our age difference--I wouldn't even say 'cool' with it, because it's a non issue all the way around, not an 'OK', 'good' 'cool' or 'great' type thing that needs measurement. It Is what it is, pure and simple.

Yea, I worried about it at first--really before she landed, because not only is she younger in years, but she also looks a lot younger than her actual age. Thank God she's mature beyond her years, because I couldn't live with an air head.

She was soooo happy a couple weeks  back, when a lady in the line grocery store told "You know--you're very pretty". For ten years, people have complimented her by calling her 'cute' and it got old. Hearing "Pretty" made her feel mature--like a long train running finally arrived. Still doesn't stop her from really taking care of her skin and body--preserving her looks.

But guys--if you're worried about how others are going to react to her age, how beautiful--'exotic' if you will, that she is, you'd better thicken up your skin or better yet, just don't begin to give a rat's ass about any of them. They don't matter--YOU'RE the one who's gonna be with her all the time.

As Bernard Baruch (Not Dr. Seuss) said: “Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind.”

[Chris F]

I'm 36 and I'm looking to marry in the 20-22 age range.  I guess I better get ready for the "viejo" comments lol.

A guy who once posted quite frequently here who I also had the pleasure of meeting was JimmySt Louis. He is a great down to earth guy who married a twenty year old woman fromm Peru and brought her back to the states over 11 years ago. He was in his late thirties I believe at the time.
 
I remember many giving him some serious advice (including myself) about marrying a girl and not a woman. IMHO any woman under the age of about 23 is still a girl that has a lot of growing up to do. So in my opinion its a high risk situation.

Jimmy proved me and everyone else wrong and beat the odds. His marriage is still going strong and I believe they also have a beautfiful daughter as well. I am happy he beat the odds.
 
I believe many older guys though who marry "girls"( under 23) and not "woman" enter into a very high risk situation and do not beat the odds. To each his own in terms of the risk.
 

[utopiacowboy]

I remember JimmyStLouis. It's a shame he doesn't check in from time to time and post.

[Chris F]

What's with the strange fixation you have with being an old man dating teenagers?  I'm starting to find that a little bit disturbing.  A 60 year old man dating teenagers isn't looking for a life partner he can have a deep loving connection with, he's just looking for a girl who looks very very young.

I do not really disagree with what you stated. What I respectfully do not understand is that you stated you would marry someone starting at age 20 while you are starting to push 40. A 20 year old is still a "teenager" why would you be interested in making a "teenager" a "life partner?"

Do not get me wrong, I am not against age differences at all. It's just that you were critical of Expat dating 18 year old teenagers( yes he is older) while you are ok with marrying a 20 year old teenager.

It does not make sense.
 
 
 

[robert angel]

A guy who once posted quite frequently here who I also had the pleasure of meeting was JimmySt Louis. He is a great down to earth guy who married a twenty year old woman fromm Peru and brought her back to the states over 11 years ago. He was in his late thirties I believe at the time.
 
I remember many giving him some serious advice (including myself) about marrying a girl and not a woman. IMHO any woman under the age of about 23 is still a girl that has a lot of growing up to do. So in my opinion its a high risk situation.

Jimmy proved me and everyone else wrong and beat the odds. His marriage is still going strong and I believe they also have a beautfiful daughter as well. I am happy he beat the odds.
 
I believe many older guys though who marry "girls"( under 23) and not "woman" enter into a very high risk situation and do not beat the odds. To each his own in terms of the risk.

Agreed--glad I beat that number and that she had left the farm, earned a five year university degree in the city, got a job there after and wasn't living with family. She'd already  'grown up' to a large extent when I met her.

But you take a girl who's really young to start with, then is uneducated and still tied to her Mom's apron strings and God knows what else in the family/neighborhood and your odds aren't good.

She's just bound to change, to inevitably be influenced by material possessions and impressed by other people, besides you. To what extent and which direction the 'new life' takes her to is a huge unknown. Better to have someone who's had some independent, 'real life' experience, someone with whom you're pretty sure her most basic fundamentals aren't going to change too much as she gets a bit older.

But regardless of a woman's age, when you bring her from a modest life in third world country to a place like the USA, she WILL change to a degree.

And the ironic fact is, the hotter looking she is--combined with all that sweetness and innocence -- the very things that might screw up the whole relationship later on--are the very things that turn you on and blind you to the unfortunate possibilities down the road.

[Awesome]

I do not really disagree with what you stated. What I respectfully do not understand is that you stated you would marry someone starting at age 20 while you are starting to push 40. A 20 year old is still a "teenager" why would you be interested in making a "teenager" a "life partner?"

Do not get me wrong, I am not against age differences at all. It's just that you were critical of Expat dating 18 year old teenagers( yes he is older) while you are ok with marrying a 20 year old teenager.

It does not make sense.

That's a good question.  Ideally I'd like to find someone right around the 22 or 23 age area so that she has a little bit of maturity compared to a 20 year old.  Also I require my wife to have a college degree or close to finishing her degree so a 20 year old might not fit into that equation anyway.  Maybe my targeted age range should be more like 22-25.  Who knows maybe I'll meet a couple of 20 year olds in Colombia and realize I have nothing in common with them and a deep relationship won't work.




Either way I think my situation is vastly different from expat's situation.  He's pushing 60, claims he has a 20 year old girlfriend for each day of the week, and then has the audacity to complain about women being golddiggers and asking him to buy them gifts.  HELLO!  If you're a 60 year old guy dating teenagers you're SUPPOSED to be buying them gifts and giving them money.  That's what old guys who date young girls do. 

[AndyLee]

That's a good question.  Ideally I'd like to find someone right around the 22 or 23 age area so that she has a little bit of maturity compared to a 20 year old.  Also I require my wife to have a college degree or close to finishing her degree so a 20 year old might not fit into that equation anyway.  Maybe my targeted age range should be more like 22-25.  Who knows maybe I'll meet a couple of 20 year olds in Colombia and realize I have nothing in common with them and a deep relationship won't work.

Dating girls who have a degree is a good idea. Most girls graduate from high school at age 17 or 18. If they go directly to four year university they would be 21 or 22 at graduation. Unless they go to one of the technical schools like SENA where they might do a one or two year course in something like dental hygiene. There really aren´t colleges here, like we have in US, just universities.
Having her four year degree would tell you a few things about her that would be useful to know about her. It would indicate she is intelligent and able to have good conversations. She has the fortitude and discipline to actually finish a four year program. Her family has a little or a lot of money since universities are expensive comparatively so she is accustomed to a middle class or upper class lifestyle.
Depending on the type of degree would tell you something about her personality. I´ve dated girls with degrees in medicine, law, finance, business, political science, education and social programs. [size=78%]They have all had different personality types sort of consistent with their studies. My current girlfriend has a four year degree in education.[/size]
[/size][size=78%]I would imagine also that the type of degree your girl has would influence her ability to integrate more easily into the American lifestyle. For example, I´m thinking a degree in International Business, which requires four years of study of English, would serve her well in finding employment in the US.[/size]
I would imagine that any degree in the professional fields would be useful for her in the US, although she would probably have to attend US schools for a year or more to bring her education up to US standards.
As an example, my very first Colombian girlfriend was a former lawyer in Colombia but would have had to attend one or two more years of law school in the US before she could practice law, depending on the state. Pennsylvania required only one year, New Jersey required two.
That brings up another point, that the schools in Colombia are very inferior to the schools of the US and Europe, from kindergarten through master´s degree. I am appalled at the academic situation here. A high school degree here is probably equivalent to a grade school diploma in the US and a four year university degree is probably equivalent to high school in the US, and for that matter, the master´s program here is probably equivalent to high school in the US. It´s sad they spend so much money on the military while the schools are left begging for money to improve facilities and programs.

[Elexpatriado]

Cherry picking again.....

That's a good question.  Ideally I'd like to find someone right around the 22 or 23 age area so that she has a little bit of maturity compared to a 20 year old.  Also I require my wife to have a college degree or close to finishing her degree so a 20 year old might not fit into that equation anyway.  Maybe my targeted age range should be more like 22-25.  Who knows maybe I'll meet a couple of 20 year olds in Colombia and realize I have nothing in common with them and a deep relationship won't work.




Either way I think my situation is vastly different from expat's situation.  He's pushing 60, claims he has a 20 year old girlfriend for each day of the week, and then has the audacity to complain about women being golddiggers and asking him to buy them gifts.  HELLO!  If you're a 60 year old guy dating teenagers you're SUPPOSED to be buying them gifts and giving them money.  That's what old guys who date young girls do.

[Elexpatriado]

[quote author=AndyLee link=topic=8185.That brings up another point, that the schools in Colombia are very inferior to the schools of the US and Europe, from kindergarten through master´s degree. I am appalled at the academic situation here. A high school degree here is probably equivalent to a grade school diploma in the US and a four year university degree is probably equivalent to high school in the US, and for that matter, the master´s program here is probably equivalent to high school in the US. It´s sad they spend so much money on the military while the schools are left begging for money to improve facilities and programs.

 
I agree 100% . 99% of the women here have some kind of a degree, but like you said, it´s equivelent to a high school degree in North America. At least a high school degree oin the same era Andy and I grew up.
I went to a middle of the road University in Canada, and there is only one University in Colombia that rates as high on the international rating scale in Colombia-University De Los Andes in Bogota. And my University has gone way down in the rankings, and Univ.  Los Andes way up, in the years since I graduated.
Having graduated from any University doesnt mean the same here as in North America or Europe.just gives people basic academic skills.
And you cant say people become magically "mature" at 23. Everyone is different, and is mature at different ages. Almost  as many immature and irresponsible people at 40 in Colombia as at 20.
And while it may seem odd, from a North American or European perspective, (or even a mainstream Colombian perspective) for a 35, 40 or even 60 year old person hooking up with an 18 year old, I have seen several cases of this, and the people ares still together after 5 or 6 years. I dont think this should be a modus operandi of anyone, but you have to keep your mind open because it does , sometimes work, if you stay in Colombia.
I think what happens in these cases, is, the girl doesnt know what she wants at that age, falls in love with the guy, and sticks with him. Who knows, maybe she wakes up at 28 or 30 and leaves, but at least  they have had 10 good years together.
I really dont know, but despite what our goofball Barney Rubble says, it is not my personal modus operandi. Only what I have observed in a few rare cases.
Hey ,we even have a case here.Look at Vikingo and his girl-40 year difference and how long have they been together? They didnt start when she was 18 mind you, but if a couple  can last for 6 years from the girl being 18 to 24, who can say how long the relationship willlast?
 

[Awesome]

I've looked at a few Colombian university websites and I've noticed their curriculum or academic tracks are basically the same as any American university.  You start out with the basics of math, history, writing, and so forth and then progress onto more specialized courses depending on your chosen major.  I mean is a calculus I class, thermodynamics class, chemistry, physics class going to be that much different than the same class in an American school?  Are the textbooks and coursework drastically different?  Either you learn the material or you don't.


Medellin has four universities that are highly recognized in Colombia; Univ Nacional, U de Antonquia, EAFIT, and UPB.  There are also quite a few other lesser recognized universities in the city along with many technical type schools like CENA, MENSA or whatever they're called.


If you hang out with educated professional type people(in any country) you can't bring your wife who dropped out of school at age 15 to a formal gala, or dinner party.  She'll stick out like a sore thumb and it would be embarrassing and uncomfortable.  Another aspect to consider is if she's college educated she's more likely to already have a US tourist visa or would easily qualify for one so that we can travel to the states to visit my family. 


I don't want to be like a few gringos from another expat forum who were whining about their Colombian wives not being able to qualify for a US tourist visa.  I wanted to tell them what do you expect when you marry a girl from some estrato 2 barrio?  One of those same guys was also complaining that his wife's cousins invited them to a baby shower and specifically requested that they bring certain expensive gifts.  He thought that was low class and tacky of them.  Well HELLO!  You knew she came from a poor background when you married her you dumbass.


I'm looking for an educated woman to marry more for the social aspect.  I don't really care about her earning potential since she's not going to be working anyway due to having babies and taking care of babies for the first 10 years of the marriage. 


And oh yea HAPPY TURKEY DAY to all of my PL friends!!  What are you guys who live abroad doing today?

[fathertime]

That brings up another point, that the schools in Colombia are very inferior to the schools of the US and Europe, from kindergarten through master´s degree. I am appalled at the academic situation here. A high school degree here is probably equivalent to a grade school diploma in the US and a four year university degree is probably equivalent to high school in the US, and for that matter, the master´s program here is probably equivalent to high school in the US. It´s sad they spend so much money on the military while the schools are left begging for money to improve facilities and programs.

Hola Andy,


I was curious what in particular makes the Colombian schools inferior in the younger grades? When my boy is in Colombia for 2-3 months he is usually in school (Private), and it appears to me that he is very well taken care of, and the academics are tantamount to the US public school.   Granted it is a private school, and that may indeed make all the difference.    I haven't viewed the public schools though, perhaps you have, and can elaborate on what you have noticed, if you like.
Thanks,
Fathertime! 

[AndyLee]

I've looked at a few Colombian university websites and I've noticed their curriculum or academic tracks are basically the same as any American university.  You start out with the basics of math, history, writing, and so forth and then progress onto more specialized courses depending on your chosen major.  I mean is a calculus I class, thermodynamics class, chemistry, physics class going to be that much different than the same class in an American school?  Are the textbooks and coursework drastically different?  Either you learn the material or you don't.


Medellin has four universities that are highly recognized in Colombia; Univ Nacional, U de Antonquia, EAFIT, and UPB.  There are also quite a few other lesser recognized universities in the city along with many technical type schools like CENA, MENSA or whatever they're called.


If you hang out with educated professional type people(in any country) you can't bring your wife who dropped out of school at age 15 to a formal gala, or dinner party.  She'll stick out like a sore thumb and it would be embarrassing and uncomfortable.  Another aspect to consider is if she's college educated she's more likely to already have a US tourist visa or would easily qualify for one so that we can travel to the states to visit my family. 


I don't want to be like a few gringos from another expat forum who were whining about their Colombian wives not being able to qualify for a US tourist visa.  I wanted to tell them what do you expect when you marry a girl from some estrato 2 barrio?  One of those same guys was also complaining that his wife's cousins invited them to a baby shower and specifically requested that they bring certain expensive gifts.  He thought that was low class and tacky of them.  Well HELLO!  You knew she came from a poor background when you married her you dumbass.


I'm looking for an educated woman to marry more for the social aspect.  I don't really care about her earning potential since she's not going to be working anyway due to having babies and taking care of babies for the first 10 years of the marriage. 


And oh yea HAPPY TURKEY DAY to all of my PL friends!!  What are you guys who live abroad doing today?

Happy Thanksgiving to you, too, and to all the other Americans on the forum and in Colombia. Today I did my usual two hour hike in the mountains, had three cups of French Roast on the patio, surfed the net a bit, did some research for my book, wrote a little bit, now I´m ready to walk to the village to buy tomato paste so I can make Italian Spaghetti for lunch. In the afternoon I´ll continue researching and writing and later will join my friends in the park for beer and girl watching. In other words, a typical day for me

On paper the courses may look similar between US and Colombian universities, I haven´t looked. But, the workload here is far less than in the US. I did both college and university in US, and taught as adjunct professor in university for three years in US. Now I teach in Colombia.
The universities you list are the cream of the crop.
The Colombian courses are for the most part a joke compared to courses I was taking in US 30 and 40 years ago. For example, a med student here only studies in university for 4 years, then spends 1 year in what they call practicum. So in five years, by age 23, he or she becomes a doctor. Far different from the US where it takes 4 years undergrad, 4 years medical school and 3 to 7 years in residency.
You can see why I´m saying that any graduate from Colombia will have to take additional courses in the US before being allowed to practice.


By the way, a doctor here makes about what a police sergeant or army sergeant makes, something like 2,000,000 pesos per month, or abut $700 USD.


My medical insurance pays for all my needs, but without medical insurance I would pay about $10 USD for annual physical and about $7 USD for all the lab work. My medical insurance costs about $30 USD per month. In Pereira dentists do not have X-ray in their offices, you go to a central location to the X-ray technician and get a full dental X-ray for about $7, then you take it back to your dentist and he or she reads it. A root canal costs about $100. To get a tooth pulled costs about $10 USD.
People from other countries come here for medical vacations I know, but I am very leery of that whole idea. I´ve had dental work that had to be redone, and friends of mine who live here have some real horror stories to tell about the medical care here such as lasik surgery that went bad and dental implants that cracked and fell out, etc. If I need serious work done I would definitely go back to US and pay the price and get it done correctly the first time.


You are correct, a high school drop out is not going to be comfortable in the social gatherings you are describing. However, it is not necessarily correct that a university graduate will have an easier time getting a tourist visa. It may help, but it is not the deciding factor.
It probably also doesn´t matter what barrio she came from. It is simply not easy to get a tourist visa here, for anybody.
There are something like 1000 applicants per day and only a couple dozen get approved. It seems to help most if the woman is a professional with a good job and if she owns property. Recently one of my friends, who graduated from UTP with a four year degree in English and French, and is employed as an English teacher in one of the pueblos near Pereira, was turned down for the tourist visa.
She told me she paid almost 1,000,000 pesos to travel to Bogota and pay the fees at the embassy and her interview lasted less than two minutes and she was denied, and they didn´t tell her why, just NO. That is very typical of the stories I hear very often.
The reason of course is because so many foreigners get the 6 month tourist visa then stay in US permanently, or until they get busted.
I can´t find fault with a family asking for expensive gifts for a wedding. It happens all the time in the US. You get invited to a wedding, then told where the gift registry is and what and where to buy. Tacky in any country in  my estimation but so commonplace it has become part of our culture.
I can´t fault your plan to keep the woman in the house of the first ten years, although I still think you need to consider the future earning potential, as well as the consequences of not letting her out into the US work world.
Some of these girls might invest in a four year education then be happy sitting home watching soaps and raising kids, but others will want to use their degree to improve their station in life. The woman I am dating would be bored stiff in a matter of months and given her entrepreneurial spirit I´d imagine she would start a little side business, or want to work outside the house at least part time, just to make friends and stay active.

[AndyLee]

Hola Andy,


I was curious what in particular makes the Colombian schools inferior in the younger grades? When my boy is in Colombia for 2-3 months he is usually in school (Private), and it appears to me that he is very well taken care of, and the academics are tantamount to the US public school.   Granted it is a private school, and that may indeed make all the difference.    I haven't viewed the public schools though, perhaps you have, and can elaborate on what you have noticed, if you like.
Thanks,
Fathertime!

An even broader question would be, Why is Colombia a third world country, and the US a first world Country? They both have abundant natural resources such as coal, gold, emeralds and diamonds, forests, plains, deep water ocean ports, abundant labor force and so on. So why are they so different? If anything, Colombia should be more advanced than US simply because the climate here is excellent for agriculture and other outdoor enterprises.
The big reason in my estimation is education. I was a public school student over 50 years ago, in the rural mid-west where I grew up in a town of only 600 people. I can remember having textbooks and library books as far back as first grade. The bookmobile came on my street one time each week and each of us was allowed to check out up to three books. Plus, there was a real library in the school.  Both non-fiction and fiction books were readily available.
In Colombian public schools today this is not the case. My ex-wife Jackie has taught in public school  for nearly 20 years, and she can never remember a time when any student had a textbook or other books to read. Instead, each morning Jackie goes to the corner store and gets the number of photocopies of the pages she is teaching that day, and hands them out to her students who each pay her for the photo copies. It costs 100 pesos per page, and each day there are usually 1 or 2 pages. Sometimes the students can´t pay, so she pays out of her own pocket.
The schools where she has taught do not have libraries, and there is no such thing as a bookmobile. I have visited dozens, maybe even a hundred or more, Colombian homes and I never see book shelves. They all have flat screen TVs and stereos, but no books.
In the high school science class in Jackie´s school there is one bunsen burner and one microscope for 30 or 40  students to take turns using. I remember in my rural high school freshman year over 50 years ago each pair of students had a bunsen burner and a microscope.
I could go on all day giving examples of how poor the educational system is here.
That´s why so many middle and upper class families such as yours send their kids to private school. At the private schools the classes are smaller, there is more equipment to share, and the teachers seem better qualified and better prepared, and all the students have at least some books to read. Unfortunately the private schools are very expensive and only a small percentage of the population can afford to send their kids there.