It’s funny, every time I come back from a trip, it always feels like the whole thing could’ve been one crazy ass dream. My latest trip – 5 weeks in Medellin, Colombia – was no different. Hell, if it weren’t for my pictures, I could probably convince myself it never happened.
I’ve been back in California for a week now and it’s been throwing me off – everyone speaks English, it’s not raining every other day, I haven’t heard any reggaeton or salsa, and everything is just a little too clean and organized. It feels weird.
So before the dream completely fades away, I want to share with y’all a small taste of what made Medellin special for me:
Teach Me How to Salsa
Before I left for Colombia, I told everyone that I planned to return as a master salsa dancer. I was only half-kidding.
As soon as I got settled in, I signed up for private dance lessons 5 times a week for 3 weeks and made sure I went out salsa dancing at least twice a week. So did I reach master status? Hell no. But I had one helluva good time trying.
I quickly realized a few things: 1) 5 hours of practice a week sounds like a lot, but it’s nothing. To get good at this, you need to devote way more time than that. 2) Learning a fancy move is easy. Learning how to lead a partner through that fancy move is damn hard.
3) Every once in a while there’ll be that (rare) moment where the music lines up, you stop over-thinking, and everything just clicks. And for those few seconds, you get why people love this so much and you feel like an actual dancer.
At the end of my 3 weeks, my maestra Jazmin tested me and you can see how I did in this video. I got decent and learned a few moves, but my form is still off (stop bouncing, this ain’t hip hop!) and my leading skills need a ton of work.
But honestly, all that matters to me is that I FINALLY landed the finishing move! Man, we practiced that so many times and this was the first time I got it right. Thank God it happened while the camera was rolling. But hey, at least now I’ve got an excuse to return and keep practicing, right?
The Language Barrier
I’ve already gone on and on about this, but it’s so important, I’ll say it again: living in a country where EVERYONE spoke Spanish except for me made Medellin a trip I’ll never forget.
From my dance teacher to the Colombian family I lived with, it was all Spanish, all the time. For a guy who slept through all his high school Spanish classes, this was not a walk in the park. But it was so worth it.
I learned a lot about communication, both verbal and non-verbal. I stopped taking language for granted. I learned how to fully express my personality even with the vocabulary of a toddler. I finally fell in love with learning a language and realized I wasn’t as dumb as my high school Spanish classes made me feel.
My respect and admiration for language is at an all-time high now. I can’t wait to learn more. And I know now that I’m more than ready.
Music Makes the People Come Together
Heading to Colombia fresh off my 28 Day Song Challenge, I should’ve known that music was still gonna play a big role for me. But I never would’ve guessed that music would be behind most of my closest Medellin friendships.
I got to know my best Colombian parce (friend) because I found out he was a reggaeton/electro producer and we ended up making a bunch of songs together. Thanks to Santiago and his friends, I had some of my most memorable (and hard to remember) nights of my trip. Un buen amigo.
Jaemin & Santiago – Don’t Need No Words (Preview) by jaemin
And yes, ladies and gents, I got to make my first reggaeton song! Here’s a little preview we recorded quick, but we actually want to turn this into a legit song someday.
My two other close buddies, a Brazilian and a Dutchman, were both mean guitar players and we kept linking up to jam (and even made a few cents at the local University one day). Here’s a clip of me and Samuel, the Brazilero, playing some random stuff in my room:
Not a Vacation
All my other travels have been vacations, where I took off for a month and did whatever I wanted. This time was different. I brought my laptop and actually completed 2 video projects and a new business website in between learning Spanish and salsa dancing.
This was my first experiment in actually living and working abroad, not just vacationing – and it was a smashing success! It reaffirmed that I’m heading in the right direction with this increasingly location-independent lifestyle. And now I know for sure that my next trip can be, and needs to be, way longer than just one month.
Being the Only “Chino”
I’ve never in my life, ever gotten so much attention for being Asian. And I’m not gonna lie. It was awesome.
In Barranquilla (Shakira’s hometown), a more rural coastal town where we did Carnivale, I swear I was the first Asian that these Colombians had ever seen. Everywhere I went, people would tap their friends and point at me. I’d always hear people saying “Chino” (Chinese man). They’d ask me to take pictures. I felt like a celebrity!
It almost sounds like it was racist, but I felt the opposite. There was never any negativity, just curiosity and a lot of smiles. Girls were definitely interested too. And it was always hilarious when I’d say, “I’m from the US…” Cue look of confusion “…but my parents are from Korea.” Cue look of understanding. I felt like so many people were genuinely interested in talking to me and finding out more.
I did meet a few Asian-American girls (no guys for some reason) who seemed to think differently. Maybe as a girl, it’s more threatening to be stared at all the time. Maybe it’s a glass-is-half-full kind of thing. Maybe I’m just an attention whore. Either way, being an Asian dude in Colombia will definitely make you stand out, and I had a great time with it.
Aguardiente and Bandejas
If you ever go to Medellin, I guarantee your stomach will remember these two exact items.
First up, the Bandeja Paisa. Being a cheap ass but also needing tons of food, this Colombian national dish was right up my alley. For about $3 USD, you get a big plate filled with grilled meat, rice, salad, soup, plantains, and freshly squeezed juice. For $3 USD. Best believe I had this every single day!
And Aguardiente, or “Guaro” as the locals call it. It seems like every culture has their black licorice flavored alcohol. The Greeks have Ouzo, the Swiss have Absinthe, and the Colombians got their Aguardiente.
Less harsh than vodka so you can swig it straight from the bottle, but strong enough to make you swear you’ll never drink it again the next morning. Most people usually get it in cardboard box form and the tip just gets soggier and soggier as the night goes on. Nice. Love it or hate it (I’m learning towards the love side), this shiny box will be there for you on many a Colombian night. Salud!
The Chicas
Okay, there’s no way I can do a wrap-up on Medellin without mentioning the women, so here we go. Yes, it’s true, the women really are beautiful here. Every day, just heading to my dance class, I’d pass by at least 3 or 4 bona-fide head turners.
Hotter than girls in the States? Hard to say. I was just in Los Angeles for a shoot and we definitely have our stunners, but they’re usually hidden in cars. Medellin is more of a pedestrian/metro culture, so you’re bound to see more people in general on any given day – and with that, more beautiful women.
But maybe more interesting then that, is what the women of Medellin do to the guys here. I don’t know if it’s the hyped-up legends of Medellin women or what, but normal dudes will turn absolutely girl crazy in this city. A lot of travelers I met would talk about nothing but the chicas. All day. Every single conversation. Obsessed is the right word.
So fair warning: if you’re a dude, watch out for the Medellin spell. If you’re a girl, don’t bring your boyfriend.
Don’t Let Your Guard Down
It was my last night in Medellin. I had just come from an amazing Despedida (farewell party) that my friends had thrown me and was walking back home with this Colombiana I was seeing. We were on this main road, La 70, which is brightly lit and always populated, so I thought we were safe. Long story short: we ended up getting robbed at knifepoint by 7 guys.
Gracias a Dios that we didn’t get hurt and all they took were material things that can be easily replaced (I even backed up most of my pics). But to be honest, I’m actually kind of glad it happened. It left me with 2 important lessons:
1) Always trust your gut. Thirty seconds before the robbery went down, I saw a few of those guys across the street and immediately got a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach. My intuition warned me but I reasoned it away, “Jaemin, are you being racist? Just cause a few Colombian guys are hanging out on the street doesn’t mean they’re dangerous. Don’t wait for them to leave, you’ll look like a bitch.”
Your intuition almost always knows more than you do. Whenever you get that feeling, take a moment and pay close attention to it. And if your personal safety is at stake, take several moments. Sure, there’s a 95% chance that you’ll be fine. But when it comes to your safety, even 5% is too great a risk. Trust your gut, even if it makes you look like a bitch.
2) Have a backup plan. The smartest thing I did was to have a backup plan. Before I arrived, I heard all the Medellin horror stories so I made sure I was prepared. I backed up the pictures on my camera every single day. I left the iPhone at home and used a shitty Blackberry instead. I brought a separate Debit Card and Credit Card, which I kept in my room. I only kept a photocopy of my Passport on me and left the real thing back in my room. I made scans of all my Credit Cards and ID’s which made cancellation a breeze. Thank God. Without my backup plan, the robbery could’ve been a disaster. Instead, it was just a minor annoyance.
In the end, my Medellin experience was so much more than I originally expected. I knew I’d get my salsa dancing in and eat tons of cheap food, but I had no idea I’d end up making a reggaeton song or that being the only Asian guy in Colombia would actually be awesome. And hell, I even got robbed at knifepoint!
I got to leave Medellin with a healthy respect for everything that makes the city what it is. The good, the dangerous, and everything in between. I guess you could say I got the complete Medellin package. And I wouldn’t have had it any other way.
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I feel like it’s been non-stop ever since I got back from Colombia. As soon as I touched down, I was celebrating my friend Taneen’s bday, then I was rushing off to LA for a two-day shoot (got to meet John Densmore, drummer for The Doors) and got to spend some much-needed quality time with my SoCal buddies.
Now I’m back up in the Bay Area for some much-needed family time and I’m planning on staying here for at least 2 months. I need a little breather from the craziness that is my life and I think this’ll be a good opportunity to focus and get my productivity on.
What’s next travel-wise? Well, after the Bay, I’m gonna try living in New York for a few months. When I lived in Berlin, I became convinced that a busy metropolitan city with great public transportation was the city for me (sorry LA) so I can’t wait to head East.
As for international travel? Well, I want to give New York a proper run, but after that…I’m thinking Korea. Yup, to get in touch with my roots and finally learn some Korean. My parents will be so proud. Can’t wait.
