¡Estoy aquí!

I have survived my first few hours in Colombia unscathed!

This morning, I forgot which airport I was supposed to fly out of, so I had to call Naomi and have her log into my email and check for me (thanks Naomi, you're a lifesaver). Oops.

After that, the trip went quite smoothly. The flight from Chicago to Atlanta was uneventful, and then I had an hour and a half layover in Atlanta. I took the opportunity to stretch my legs before boarding the plane for Bogotà.

On the plane, I took a nap and woke up just in time for the on-flight dinner. The food really wasn't bad, although it seemed like a random compilation of items lying around. There was an itty-bitty salad, cheese ravioli, a dinner roll, brownie, a tiny cup of water, a butter packet, slice of cheese, and club crackers. I then watched "Men Who Stare At Goats," a short nature documentary, and the first episode of "The United States of Tara." There was some really cool-looking lightning a little northeast of the plane. I tried taking a picture, but failed miserably. After about 20 attempts, I gave up.

Customs was no problem. There was a bit of a line, but it really didn't take long at all. Once I had picked up my luggage, I tried getting some Colombian pesos. The currency exchange doesn't take cards, and I apparently didn't have any USD on me, so the woman at the counter told me there was an ATM on the second floor. I falsely assumed that it would be easy to find once I went up the escalator. As I was clearly a bit lost, one of the airport employees and a boy standing next to him tried helping me out, but they apparently did not understand that I did not have any cash to exchange and the boy led me back downstairs to the currency exchange. I spoke briefly with a man behind the counter, and then the boy realized that I needed an ATM and led me back upstairs and down a ways. After that brief adventure, I was finally able to make a withdrawal. Success!

I then went outside and looked for Katie, a U.S. citizen who has been working at Laboratorio Gilete (I will explain this in a minute) for the past year and a half. I actually found her with very little trouble and we were off.

Riding in a car was pretty nerve-wracking. I'm a nervous passenger, but I didn't want to seem rude, so I distracted myself by talking with Katie and taking in the city. There were quite a few people wandering around, and it seemed like a lot of places were still open, considering it was after 10pm.

I will be staying in a hotel for this first week. It's a nice little room, but I think the walls are pretty thin. I'm tired enough that I don't think sleep will be much of a problem though.

Tomorrow I'm going to sleep in a little, have breakfast in the hotel lobby, and then catch a taxi to Laboratorio Gilete. Gilete is an Orthotic and Prosthetic Center in Bogotà. They do a lot of work with soldiers. I will primarily be observing tomorrow and getting a feel for how the clinic runs.

I took some photos today but have not uploaded them. Hopefully I can get them up in the next few days.

Until next time, faithful readers, keep it real.
(I feel like I should always have something witty to say at the end of a post, but alas, it's just not meant to be.)