Open Minded Traveler

My Three Day Hike in San Jose del Palmer in El Choco |Conflict Zone Tourism

Travel March 31, 2013 openmindedtraveler

When I was a child I loved the adventure movies. Romancing the Stone, The Gods Must Be Crazy, Indiana Jones and The Jewel of the Nile were just a few of the films that inspired my imagination and my dreams. At the time I always imagined myself on a trek…

Home Sweet Hostal

Travel March 26, 2013 openmindedtraveler

At Sayfa Hostal…

An Intense Travel Experience Crossing La Linea to Pereira

Travel March 26, 2013 openmindedtraveler

Crossing La Linea from Ibague, in the department of Tolima, to the city of Pereira, in the department of Risaralda. Here’s a picture I snapped with my cell phone at the very top of La Linea. The trip was characterized by crazy busses passing on hair-pin curves and tense moments…

La Linea, Hippy Burn-Outs and Robbed: Safe Travel in Bogota

Travel March 26, 2013 openmindedtraveler

Updated September 2025 | Safe Travel in Bogota In 2013, my backpacking adventure through South America brought me to Colombia, a country bursting with vibrant culture, jaw-dropping landscapes, and a few unexpected challenges. From the wild mountain roads of La Línea to a pickpocketing incident in Bogotá, this journey was…

A Street Party, A Power Outage and Pizza

Culture, Travel March 8, 2013 openmindedtraveler

What a crazy night! After a wonderful dance class I am hoofing it for la casa and I run across all these people on a side street. Upon closer inspection I realize people are selling hemp jewelry, hippies are juggling like its their last sac, there is live music going…

Getting Started in my New English Teaching Job

Culture, Teaching English March 6, 2013 openmindedtraveler

Teaching is an adventure, full of drama, sometimes scary and very rewarding! Teaching English in a foreign country is even more exciting because you must also factor in cultural nuances and language barriers. The reward is seeing your kids outside of class and being greeted in English and the ability…

Learning to Dance Salsa in Colombia

Travel March 3, 2013 openmindedtraveler

Time to hit the South American dance floor. I am learning to dance salsa in Colombia. It’s a new challenge!! Dancing is an activity that truly transcends language and culture. When you dance salsa in Colombia it is a beautiful blend of Latin passion and energy. Two people meet on…

Cali Colombia Museo de Oro Calima

Travel February 26, 2013 openmindedtraveler

One of my recent adventures in Cali Colombia Museo de Oro Calima! Along the way I went to the Cali Museo de Oro. In the exhibit guests learn about the different styles and figures of prominent native indigenous tribes from Valle de Cauca, Quindio and other areas. It takes about…

When the water shuts off…

Culture, Teaching English, Travel February 26, 2013 openmindedtraveler

I have been back in Pereira now after my visa run and I am living with a co worker who offered a room to me while I work and search for an apartment to live in. So I am staying with them in Cuba, a somewhat notorious and dangerous part…

The Return Trip from Ecuador

Culture, Travel February 22, 2013 openmindedtraveler

Everyday is like a B-rated comedy when you are an American living in South America. I think I could write all day about the odd things that I had never seen or thought possible before. Take for example a restaurant called “Whopper King,” it’s obviously named such as a knockoff…

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