What are the odds of being struck by lightning? 1/700,000. What are the odds of a foreign tourist being kidnapped in Colombia? 1/234,000 What are the odds of drowning in a given year? 1/80,000 What are the odds of dying in plane crash during your lifetime? 1/5000 What are the odds of dying in [...]
Posts Tagged ‘Colombia’
Colombia’s Most Potent Import: Happiness Via Pedestrian and Bike Friendly Urban Planning
When the typical Norte Americano says the first thing that pops into his or her mind about Colombia, chances are they’ll use words like “cocaine” and “kidnapping.” After all, most movies set there depict the nation as a complete narco-terrorism war zone. Photo by Daquella Manera But the country is beginning to shed its terrifying [...]
Super Journalist Maureen Orth’s Passion: Bringing English, High-Tech Skills to the Children of Colombia
Award-winning journalist Maureen Orth has lived a fascinating life. One of the first women hired by Newsweek, she’s interviewed pop stars such as Paul McCartney and Bruce Springsteen. She is currently a special correspondent for Vanity Fair magazine, where the topics she covers range from Obama’s White House to the “Craigslist murder.” Her family life [...]
Going Sola: A Gringa Finds Courage in Colombia
In this guest post, Lauren Quinn –the creator of Lonely Girl Travels –shares her experience traveling alone in Colombia at a time when most tourists were afraid to go there. Lauren was one of Lonely Planet’s Featured Bloggers for 2010. Besides being an intrepid traveler who has also made sola visits to places such as [...]
Where Latin America’s Dress Code Falls Short
The advice to gringos planning to travel to places like Colombia or Mexico City is always the same: try not to stand out. Don’t walk around with a big camera dangling from your neck. Refrain from wearing expensive jewelery. Try not to appear as though you’re lost. All of these admonitions make sense, and I [...]
2009 Murder Statistics: U.S. Visitors to Latin America
Out of the approximately 2.5 million U.S. visitors to Mexico in the first half of 2009, at least 126 Americans died of non-natural causes, according to U.S. State Department statistics. The Los Angeles Times points out that, of these, there were: 36 homicides, and 22 drownings. The balance of the non-natural deaths resulted from accidents [...]
More in U.S. Turning to Latin America for Medical Care
As Congress continues to debate reforming the health care system in the U.S., more Americans are going to other countries to seek medical care. Recent studies indicate that Mexico and other countries in Latin America have emerged as a prime destination for medical tourists. Some major players in the medical tourism industry include Mexico, Costa [...]
Lonely Planet, Ex-Writer Trade Blows on Travelojos
Two posts last week (here and here) mentioned some disparaging remarks the author of Lonely Planet’s guide to Colombia made about Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela. The author, Jens Porup, made the unflattering characterizations of these countries in a speech in Bogota before Colombia’s minister of tourism and other highly ranked officials. His comments generated a [...]
Colombia Should Cater to Backpackers, Expert Says
As Colombia begins to shed its reputation for crime and violence, it still struggles to attract international visitors. A lack of an iconic tourist attraction is chief among the country’s problems. In a speech before the Bogota Tourism Board a couple of weeks ago, travel writer Jens Porup offered a strategy to Colombia’s top tourism [...]
The Swine Flu Crisis in Argentina, Brazil
With all the hand wringing about the upcoming flu season by most major media outlets in the U.S., there’s been little coverage of the toll that the Swine Flu or H1N1 virus is currently exacting in Argentina and Brazil. Health officials in Argentina recently disclosed that the Swine Flu has killed 465 people. On Sunday, [...]
