Alice and Randy Live in Colombia: Work and Play in Medellin

Wednesday and Thursday were days of work and play. My seminar for the Fulbright Commission was at 5 PM on Wednesday. Earlier we were invited to Casa Velez for lunch. Lunch is the main meal of Colombians and they usually go home or take it out in a restaurant. It is a full meal and quite leisurely. The Velez's housekeeper/nanny turned out to be an excellent cook and we enjoyed our cream of mushroom soup (homemade of course), chicken, cheesy mashed potatoes, salad, fried plantains, and fresh avocado (bought from their favorite elderly avocado street vendor).

A view of the girls from the private girls school next to Casa Velez. They were playing baseball (!) before the storm. Note the strong netting which is on all of the windows and balcony to prevent the cats from jumping off.

Randy watches the girls baseball but was not impressed by their form

The Princess Violetta

My favorite, handsome Lorenzo

Lunch is served

Ana Maria and Mario join up at home each day for lunch - a very nice lifestyle and the U.S. can take lessons from Colombia in this regard

The guys wait to dig in

Just afterwards a huge thunderstorm hit and it was actually relaxing to hear the thunder and watch the torrents of rain from the snugness of the apartment on the 10th floor. I had a Skype with my regular research team on a defense project during the storm while Mario played with Antonia (her school lasts a half day in the morning) and Randy chilled.

We then walked to the university - about a mile with a few treacherous street crossings. Along the way we admired various fruit and avocado trees and a lovely bright red and black bird (I was not quick enough to get a photo). We did some paperwork at the university and Randy walked to the hotel (about 10 to 15 minutes, all uphill). My seminar commenced a bit late (of course!) as the traffic was even more snarled than usual with the earlier heavy rains. About 30 people attended - a mix of students (undergraduate and graduate), working engineers and faculty members. The topic on warehouse design may sound boring but it is actually very interesting and complex. Some of the people attending specialized in warehousing so I had an attentive and informed audience. Many good questions ended the seminar.

In Mario's office at EAFIT

One of the modern buildings at EAFIT

I am in front of the engineering building

Chatting before the seminar

Working (for a change)

We enjoyed a dinner with Mario, Ana Maria, and two other faculty members, Carlos and Juan Gregorio. Carlos picked a small neighborhood restaurant that serves global fusion food, Mano Calamita. The menu was a bit strange but the food was pretty decent and we had a nice bottle of Chilean Carmenere by Montes. The wine menus in Colombia are dominated by Chilean wines with Argentinean next. A sprinkling of European wines (led by Spanish) and very few U.S. offerings. The wine prices are quite steep because they are all imported.

Our eating place that night

Located in a quiet neighborhood in Polbado (a big district)

At the dinner table - a very good looking couple

Randy and Juan Gregorio

Carlos and me

A final dinner in Medellin for this leg of the trip

We then dropped Juan Gregorio off at his home on the west side of Medellin and picked up Antonia from Mario's mom's apartment nearby. There, Senora Velez has two cats, including Mario's old cat, a 15 year old beautiful but feisty male.

Mario with his pre-marriage cat, now pampered by Mario's mom

Mario's mom feeds the cats some treats

The other cat

Family Velez

We packed up the next morning to leave our home at the Novelty Suites. We had a final breakfast of precisely cooked omelet and lots of fruit (me) and leftovers (short ribs and little biscuits today) (Randy). The Novelty Suites was not fancy or luxurious in anyway but they tried to please. The internet was excellent and the place really clean. Breakfast was full featured and our AC and fan worked well. All in all, we were satisfied. Of course, the location is the best - in the middle of Poblado and close to the university.

Mario picked us up and took us to the airport by another route as the normal road to the airport was closed by the police that day (what?). Anyway, we made it relatively easily and had time for a traditional lunch in the garden of a chain of restaurants, El Rancherito. The menu is extensive and the portions huge. I dined on a vegetarian version of a traditional stew - beans, corn, avocado, fried potato sticks, and fried plantain sticks. It was so good! We started with complementary tostones (fried mashed plantains) with salsa. Also delicious.