Moments II (Bogota)

Dear travel diary,

today I have to add a chapter to you that I would have liked to leave out and apparently is missing in no collection of travel anecdotes. On Saturday night, my phone was taken from me. Pretty stupid story, but unfortunately I can't change it.

After the club night, I was waiting on a busy street for my ordered taxi, more tired than drunk. To pass the time, I sat on a step, and then a guy grabbed my phone. I couldn't get up fast enough. When I tried to grab it back, we got into a confrontation and he ran into an abandoned alley. I was totally taken aback.

At night, I started to ponder, should I end my trip? I thought of the countless stories of other travelers who had experienced something similar. I wasn't a single case. The theft was more of a test, or at least an initiation ritual of the backpacker scene. I belonged now!!

Without a watch - I was so dependent on my phone - a thousand thoughts occupied me at night and I found it difficult to calm down. Finally, I decided that I had to keep going, giving up is not an option.

On Sunday morning, I gained a little more clarity, I bought a new device for 500,000 pesos and started to reactivate my accounts... not easy, but I'm managing. Luckily, I had a second German SIM card with me. I can only use WhatsApp, Telegram, and Signal with a replacement SIM card for my old number. Insta, emails, and my vaccination proof were working. Images, files, and contacts outside of messengers are lost... nothing I can do about it. Don't we all sometimes long for a fresh start?

During the day, I only ate Skittles, which I had been traveling with since Mexico. In the evening, I met Ladislaus from Peru, who told me about the situation in my host country. Over burgers and fries, he told me about the Colombian misery, which was particularly linked to the Venezuelan tragedy. Hundreds of thousands of refugees were in need of support throughout Latin America... poverty led to street crime (while wealth led to tax evasion).

Well, dear travel diary, from the beginning the rough charm of Bogota captivated me. I spent Saturday in the old town, took numerous beautiful photos, had breakfast with Tommy from Ecuador, and we had a long conversation about Europe and Latin America. In the afternoon, I met Tibo from Marseille again, who had his phone stolen in Guatemala, and in the evening I celebrated in the country's largest club. For the first time in weeks, I went dancing on 13 different floors!

Sunday evening, 24 hours later, I decided to leave Bogota behind, for now. I felt rejected. Bogota and I, we needed some distance. I fell asleep quickly and very well. Today, Monday morning, I feel even better and I'm looking forward to continuing my journey.

That's all from me, for now!

Greetings from afar!

A.

PS:

To all readers, rest assured that apart from my bruised ego, I'm doing well and have learned my lesson. In the future, I will be more cautious and spend less time on my phone.

I can be reached easily through my known email addresses, in Potsdam I have left my backup number for WhatsApp or similar, and my new SIM card for my old number is already on its way.

Since my photos are gone - thankfully this blog still exists - I will upload fewer pictures than usual for now. I hope for your understanding.