Colombia! Exploring Medellin and Cartagena

My son and I set off for an adventure in Colombia. Upon arrival at the airport, we were greeted by our driver and hopped into our private vehicle to drive straight to Comuna 13 for the start of the trip. We had arrived mid-day and while we were tired, we still had an entire afternoon to fill. So we decided to visit this area before check-in, and I'm so glad we did. I have heard about this region, and the tale of the rise from poverty and obsolescence to become a community that attracts hundreds if not thousands of tourists every day. The people here thirty years ago lived through a nightmare and became somewhat of an epicenter for the focus of fighting between the narco groups, paramilitaries, and government military.  This was the area with the highest concentration of fighting and violence and resulted in hundreds of 'desaparecidos', or people who have been disappeared, many of whom are still unaccounted for. This culminated in what was perhaps the most aggressive operation to take place in the area, Operation Orion in 2002, which was a final push involving tanks in this tiny community to extract the remaining holds of narco groups and paramilitary groups in the area. The community however has another story than the official one told by the government even today. Upon touring this community, you get a sense of life and hope. The main attractions to this neighborhood were some public escalators, installed to assist in the rebuilding for those unable to climb the steep hillside, and the graffiti art that aimed to tell the tale of the past through pictures and give hope for life in the future.  Walking around today, it feels much more like a Disney land, with food vendors, and side shops to explore. A number of 'picturesque' signs and posing stations are set up where you can snap a picture for a fee. Musicians and rappers line the streets sharing their art, and there is much to see and observe here. Many of the visitors were Colombians, though tourists from another region, they too wanted to come visit this tiny corner of Medellin. We walked around for about 2 hours, enough to get my legs tired. We ate some local pineapple popsicles, tried a cheese arepa, watched some musicians, and looked at the graffiti art as our guide explained the history of the area. We then walked around some of the alleys off the main streets, to see the homes, and way of life for this tiny town. Many younger generations do not have a memory of the events that their elders tell them about now, and many have moved out of the area making the feel to the neighborhood not quite as painful. It is amazing to see what a tiny community can do though to turn around a dire situation, and I found it to be an excellent introduction to Colombia, as it taught us a lot about the Narco Wars of the 80s and 90s between Pablo Escobar's Medellin cartel and the Kali cartel, the elites and their private paramilitary group and the government forces.  As I love history, I found it all quite fascinating especially given that it really was not that long ago that many of these events took place. I was very grateful to be there with a private guide who could help make that history come to life.