Quote: (11-24-2015 10:33 PM)scotian Wrote:  

Quote: (11-24-2015 10:27 PM)Merenguero Wrote:  

Quote: (11-24-2015 10:25 PM)scotian Wrote:  

Quote: (11-24-2015 10:08 PM)Sidney Crosby Wrote:  

^ That's true, but a lot of people exaggerate the "white god factor"

Due to back packers and sex tourists many Colombians think gringos smell bad, dress bad and are only there to bang whores and do drugs, its all about separating yourself from those dirt bags and if you're gonna bang whores and do blow, keep that shit on the DL!

If a guy brings a prostitute to a venue in Parque Lleras, it's game over. The local guys there probably bang many more prostitutes than anybody in Colombia, but 99% of them or all of them wouldn't be caught dead having them spotted with a prostitute in Lleras.

Colombians will generally bang anything, including donkeys but at least have the sense not to rub it in people's faces. I've seen the corniest looking mid-40s doofus gringos dressed like shit parading their prepagos through Lleras like they were trophies, it was embarrassing and lots of people were staring. There's plenty of whore houses to go to, or crazy ass strip clubs where you can bang them on stage in front of the crowd, the waiters will sell you blow and you can openly consume it. The backpackers who get strung out and freak out at bars or in the streets are just as retarded as the obvious sex tourists, I almost got into it one night with a guy in Bogota who was coked out of his mind and trying to pick a fight with me.

Agreed on all counts. I'm not the biggest fan of Colombia or Colombians, but one thing those guys do have going for them is that they seem to have a lot of tact as far as being very careful who people see them with. On the contrary, many foreign tourists will bring prepagos anywhere and everywhere and act like it is completely normal and/or some great thing. Low class.

Quote: (11-24-2015 10:41 PM)Merenguero Wrote:  

Quote: (11-24-2015 10:33 PM)scotian Wrote:  

Quote: (11-24-2015 10:27 PM)Merenguero Wrote:  

Quote: (11-24-2015 10:25 PM)scotian Wrote:  

Quote: (11-24-2015 10:08 PM)Sidney Crosby Wrote:  

^ That's true, but a lot of people exaggerate the "white god factor"

Due to back packers and sex tourists many Colombians think gringos smell bad, dress bad and are only there to bang whores and do drugs, its all about separating yourself from those dirt bags and if you're gonna bang whores and do blow, keep that shit on the DL!

If a guy brings a prostitute to a venue in Parque Lleras, it's game over. The local guys there probably bang many more prostitutes than anybody in Colombia, but 99% of them or all of them wouldn't be caught dead having them spotted with a prostitute in Lleras.

Colombians will generally bang anything, including donkeys but at least have the sense not to rub it in people's faces. I've seen the corniest looking mid-40s doofus gringos dressed like shit parading their prepagos through Lleras like they were trophies, it was embarrassing and lots of people were staring. There's plenty of whore houses to go to, or crazy ass strip clubs where you can bang them on stage in front of the crowd, the waiters will sell you blow and you can openly consume it. The backpackers who get strung out and freak out at bars or in the streets are just as retarded as the obvious sex tourists, I almost got into it one night with a guy in Bogota who was coked out of his mind and trying to pick a fight with me.

Agreed on all counts. I'm not the biggest fan of Colombia or Colombians, but one thing those guys do have going for them is that they seem to have a lot of tact as far as being very careful who people see them with. On the contrary, many foreign tourists will bring prepagos anywhere and everywhere and act like it is completely normal and/or some great thing. Low class.

Despite the very sexualized and overtly whorish culture down there, it still is a Catholic society and the people have the guilt that goes along with it but Colombians (both male and female) are masters at hiding it, hence the abundance of drive in love motels where you can take a skank to bone her on your lunch break.

Quote: (11-24-2015 10:25 PM)scotian Wrote:  

Quote: (11-24-2015 10:08 PM)Sidney Crosby Wrote:  

^ That's true, but a lot of people exaggerate the "white god factor"

The glory days when old school Colombia Gs like WEDO were tearing it up down there 15+ years ago there was to a certain extent but due to back packers and sex tourists many Colombians think gringos smell bad, dress bad and are only there to bang whores and do drugs, its all about separating yourself from those dirt bags.

One of the problems is that a lot of the gringos in Colombia are backpacking around South America is that Colombia is often their last stop before flying home, they don't have any nice clothes with them and they are broke.

Usually when I went out I would wear a button down shirt, black jeans and desert boots. Which is "ok" but obviously not great, when I go back I'll have some better stuff.

Quote: (11-25-2015 04:07 AM)Sidney Crosby Wrote:  

Quote: (11-24-2015 10:25 PM)scotian Wrote:  

Quote: (11-24-2015 10:08 PM)Sidney Crosby Wrote:  

^ That's true, but a lot of people exaggerate the "white god factor"

The glory days when old school Colombia Gs like WEDO were tearing it up down there 15+ years ago there was to a certain extent but due to back packers and sex tourists many Colombians think gringos smell bad, dress bad and are only there to bang whores and do drugs, its all about separating yourself from those dirt bags.

One of the problems is that a lot of the gringos in Colombia are backpacking around South America is that Colombia is often their last stop before flying home, they don't have any nice clothes with them and they are broke.

Usually when I went out I would wear a button down shirt, black jeans and desert boots. Which is "ok" but obviously not great, when I go back I'll have some better stuff.

Same here, how hard is it for those back packer dickheads to stuff a dress shirt and nice shoes into their packs for when they go out and mingle with the locals? Hostels often have irons, its not that hard to look have decent, if they can't afford to look decent and take a fucking shower then they should stay in the hostel and not embarrass themselves. Colombians dress well but not that well (in Bogota, yes they do), a button down or nice polo shirt with jeans or slacks and leather shoes (which you can get polished for $0.80), pick up a nice fake watch for $20 and you're good to go, no excuses!

Quote: (11-24-2015 10:08 PM)Sidney Crosby Wrote:  

^ That's true, but a lot of people exaggerate the "white god factor"

"If only I had some of that White God Factor," I've thought to myself zero times while in Colombia, DR, or anywhere abroad.

Question. How do you guys get around between cities? One way flight ticket between cities are averaging $80-100 USD. Is it cheaper to buy tickets at airport?

Quote: (11-25-2015 05:33 PM)Wuking Wrote:  

Question. How do you guys get around between cities? One way flight ticket between cities are averaging $80-100 USD. Is it cheaper to buy tickets at airport?

I used to fly all the time, its much quicker and I wasn't too sure about the bus safety in Colombia but then I started taking them and now only do for shorter trips (5-10 hours) for anything over that, I will usually fly. Its much more economical to take buses for short trips, I'll break it down for you:

Bogota to Medellin or Medellin to Cali via bus (Cali to Bogota is too long unless you break it up with a stop in the coffee zone, which I recommend):

-Taxi from hotel to bus terminal: 10.000
-Bus ticket to Medellin: 65.000
-Taxi from bus terminal to hotel in Medellin: 10.000

*I always take a night bus, just show up at 10pm and take the next bus, its roughly a nine hour journey so you'll usually show up in Medellin at 7-9am. By doing this, you'll save money on a hotel, just check out of the hotel you're staying in that day at noon and leave your bags there, they will let you do that, then fuck around all day until its time to go to the bus terminal. This will save you at least 50.000 So the costs associated with the bus trip are 85.000 or at today's rate, $27.71 but then you can knock off the cost of a cheap hotel and that cost comes down to 35.000 or $11.41. Its a pretty good way to save money and you'll see the country side better than from a plane, although flying into Medellin (Rio Negro) is pretty dope.

Now lets compare that to a flight from Bogota to Medellin:

Taxi to El Dorado airport: 25.000
Flight: 250.000
Taxi from Rio Negro to El Poblado or Laureles: 60.000

Your costs will be 360.000 or $116.39 then you can tack on the hotel you'll have to pay for instead of sleeping on the bus which will be at least 50.000 and now you're up to 410.000 or $132.55.

As you can see its a lot better to travel by bus if you are trying to save money and you have the time, if money isn't an issue and you're tight on time, or just don't want to ride on a bus then planes are still a reasonably priced way to travel, just show up a couple of hours beforehand because Colombian airlines are notorious for fucking shit up especially Avianca who always change gates at the last minute.

My personal favourite bus company is Flota Magdelena, they have these big double decker buses that have super comfy leather reclining seats each with a small TV on the back like on a plane, free wi-fi and coffee/soda. All long journeys stop at highway restaurants a long the way for a half hour to eat. To me, it really is the way to go, pop a couple melatonin pills and use a neck pillow thing and you'll be golden, just bring a sweater, those fuckers crank the AC!
[img][/img]

I've traveled all over Colombia by bus, including the dreaded 22 hour journey from Cartagena to Bogota, if any of you have any more questions, let me know.

Quote: (11-25-2015 05:33 PM)Wuking Wrote:  

Question. How do you guys get around between cities? One way flight ticket between cities are averaging $80-100 USD. Is it cheaper to buy tickets at airport?

Airlines are motherfuckers. You have to learn to cheat the system and to cheat them just like they are cheating you.

Check this out. I just did a random search from Bogota to Medellin on Avianca's website.

This is the results using internet in my hotel (showing I am in the country of Colombia) and setting it to local currency.

   

119,000 cop is $38.00

This is what happens when I use my VPN to log into Dallas Texas and doing the same search:

   


So there you go, the same flight , buying from USA is $90, buying from Colombia is $38.

Hey Linux does that work for international flights to? Ie from the USA or Canada to Colombia

Quote: (11-25-2015 08:09 PM)Atlantic Wrote:  

Hey Linux does that work for international flights to? Ie from the USA or Canada to Colombia

I find it's usually the other way around, flights will be almsot twice as expensive if you look at flights from Canada to Columbia while searching within Colombia using local currency.

Quote: (11-25-2015 07:17 PM)scotian Wrote:  

Quote: (11-25-2015 05:33 PM)Wuking Wrote:  

Question. How do you guys get around between cities? One way flight ticket between cities are averaging $80-100 USD. Is it cheaper to buy tickets at airport?

My personal favourite bus company is Flota Magdelena, they have these big double decker buses that have super comfy leather reclining seats each with a small TV on the back like on a plane, free wi-fi and coffee/soda. All long journeys stop at highway restaurants a long the way for a half hour to eat. To me, it really is the way to go, pop a couple melatonin pills and use a neck pillow thing and you'll be golden, just bring a sweater, those fuckers crank the AC!
[img][/img]

I've traveled Colombia by bus, including the dreaded 22 hour journey from Cartagena to Bogota, if any of you have any more questions, let me know.

Did the Wifi work the whole time and did it have power outlets etc? On my journey back to Bogota from Quito non-stop I took a total of 4 buses and 5 cabs and every single bus sucked. The seats were fine, but none of them had working TV's, the one that promised wifi, I think it worked for 20 minutes.

Those buses look pretty good, but with the cheap vivacolombia flights I'd rather fly unless I planned on breaking out the trip and stopping in cities along the way.

Quote: (11-26-2015 02:08 AM)Sidney Crosby Wrote:  

Quote: (11-25-2015 07:17 PM)scotian Wrote:  

Quote: (11-25-2015 05:33 PM)Wuking Wrote:  

Question. How do you guys get around between cities? One way flight ticket between cities are averaging $80-100 USD. Is it cheaper to buy tickets at airport?

My personal favourite bus company is Flota Magdelena, they have these big double decker buses that have super comfy leather reclining seats each with a small TV on the back like on a plane, free wi-fi and coffee/soda. All long journeys stop at highway restaurants a long the way for a half hour to eat. To me, it really is the way to go, pop a couple melatonin pills and use a neck pillow thing and you'll be golden, just bring a sweater, those fuckers crank the AC!
[img][/img]

I've traveled Colombia by bus, including the dreaded 22 hour journey from Cartagena to Bogota, if any of you have any more questions, let me know.

Did the Wifi work the whole time and did it have power outlets etc? On my journey back to Bogota from Quito non-stop I took a total of 4 buses and 5 cabs and every single bus sucked. The seats were fine, but none of them had working TV's, the one that promised wifi, I think it worked for 20 minutes.

Those buses look pretty good, but with the cheap vivacolombia flights I'd rather fly unless I planned on breaking out the trip and stopping in cities along the way.

I never had any issues on Flota Magdelena bus and yes each seat had its own outlet to plug into but they were new, give it some time and they'll probably be fucked. The problem with discount airlines such as Viva Colombia is that they don't always have multiple flights each day so if something happens (which often does) and you miss your flight for whatever reason, they may not have another flight that day. At least with Avianca, if you miss your flight then they'll be able to get you on another one within a couple of hours, that happened to me in Cartagena when I got drunk as fuck and slept in past my flight time.

The short buses can suck really bad, I had a couple of shitty experiences on them, one from Cali to Pereira where it was so bad that I got off in Buga and paid for another ticket on a bigger bus. Then another time from Pereira to Manizales with RVF member Getdownonit, we thought we were going to die because the driver was such an idiot. The bus from Cali to Buenaventura is notoriously bad, shitty roads and there's often military road blocks, she gets a bit FARC-y out that way.

Overall though the bus systems is decent, another reason why I like it so much is that I often don't decide I'm going somewhere until last minute and that doesn't affect the price at all. If you do that with flights, you'll pay a lot more and I hate planning ahead. last year I must have traveled between Bogota-Medellin-Cali-Coffee zone almost a dozen times. I guess you'll just have to try it out and decide for yourself, but either way, travel within the country is fairly simple and easy.

^ That was Pereira to Medellin bro. I wish it had been only an hour on that 16 seat glorified bang van. Those bench seats are so cramped if you're any bigger than scotian good luck having kids in the future. On the plus side it's faster than a normal bus with the way the driver took those mountain roads.

Quote: (11-26-2015 11:30 AM)getdownonit Wrote:  

^ That was Pereira to Medellin bro. I wish it had been only an hour on that 16 seat glorified bang van. Those bench seats are so cramped if you're any bigger than scotian good luck having kids in the future. On the plus side it's faster than a normal bus with the way the driver took those mountain roads.

Oh ya my bad, I remember now, we stopped for a break and you said "I'm not getting back on that fucking bus man, lets get off in Manizales and take another one", then I informed you that we had already passed Manizales, so you went behind another bus and self medicated lol. Fortunately a few passengers got off shortly after and the bus ride became more bearable, there isn't too many times in life where being as short I am is an advantage but bus rides in Colombia are one of them.

Quote: (11-26-2015 11:19 AM)scotian Wrote:  

Overall though the bus systems is decent, another reason why I like it so much is that I often don't decide I'm going somewhere until last minute and that doesn't affect the price at all. If you do that with flights, you'll pay a lot more and I hate planning ahead. last year I must have traveled between Bogota-Medellin-Cali-Coffee zone almost a dozen times. I guess you'll just have to try it out and decide for yourself, but either way, travel within the country is fairly simple and easy.

Yeah, that's true.

Scotian, you could also have mentioned the potential for overnight bus ride game. I feel like there's a story of yours I should be linking to, but I can't quite put my finger on it.

These days, I travel by plane. Bus rides and road trips are good to discover rural Colombia. After a while though, you've done all the main routes, and you just want to get there quickly.

You can get good prices on flights if you book far enough in advance. Avianca often price matches with VivaColombia. LAN and Copa are hardly worth checking fares - they're always more expensive.

One tip for bus travelers is check whether your bus is going to stop at any other terminals. It can add an hour to the trip if it picks up / drops off passengers at some city on the way through.

Quote: (11-26-2015 12:03 PM)Tigre Wrote:  

Quote: (11-26-2015 11:19 AM)scotian Wrote:  

Overall though the bus systems is decent, another reason why I like it so much is that I often don't decide I'm going somewhere until last minute and that doesn't affect the price at all. If you do that with flights, you'll pay a lot more and I hate planning ahead. last year I must have traveled between Bogota-Medellin-Cali-Coffee zone almost a dozen times. I guess you'll just have to try it out and decide for yourself, but either way, travel within the country is fairly simple and easy.

Yeah, that's true.

Scotian, you could also have mentioned the potential for overnight bus ride game. I feel like there's a story of yours I should be linking to, but I can't quite put my finger on it.

These days, I travel by plane. Bus rides and road trips are good to discover rural Colombia. After a while though, you've done all the main routes, and you just want to get there quickly.

You can get good prices on flights if you book far enough in advance. Avianca often price matches with VivaColombia. LAN and Copa are hardly worth checking fares - they're always more expensive.

One tip for bus travelers is check whether your bus is going to stop at any other terminals. It can add an hour to the trip if it picks up / drops off passengers at some city on the way through.

That story is buried somewhere in a Colombia thread from years ago, The Buenaventura Finger Bang Bus is a story I'll be telling my future grand kids one day, the pussy Gods must have been looking down on me that day!

I never realized how much calenas changed in a few years time, until I came back to Brazil. The crime situation and how secure a woman feels in a city, really, affects a man's prospects. You have to work that much harder.

I have done all sorts of adventure sports, roller coasters, sky dives and other exciting activities. Never have I been even remotely close to getting sick or having any kind of upset stomach. Me and Scotian took some shitty bus from somewhere going to Cali and within 5 minutes I had to switch seats with someone and breathe slowly through the little window to avoid spraying everyone with vomit. While the overnight buses are decent those little shitty buses are a fucking nightmare. It is double capacity and they drive like they are trying to win a fucking game of Mario Karts. They would accelerate as hard as possible only to slam on the brakes again 3 seconds later x 1000. Whatever way the suspension is set up the thing rocks on all axis contentiously - even on straight road. No air circulation, no leg room and impossible to lean on anything to get some rest.
I would rather mail myself inside a box then take one of those again.

^ Was it like this? These guys drive crazy

not even close son. that shit is from the future. I saw two of those crash on carrera 11 in bogota from my front window while my diminutive Canadian compadre was getting over a line within 30 seconds the buses separated and went on their way down to candelaria

this is what youre in for



its a death trap blast from the past

godspeed

I took the Flota magdalena from Cali to Bogota. From 2100 in Cali to 0600 in Bogota. Montoya inspired many drivers in this country and this bus driver was no exception.

I guess it`s a hit or miss.. there was no plugs for computers, no wifi.. tv only in the front. It was only on for an hour or so, superloud. Then we got an hour or two of sleep, before some aggresive army guys stopped the bus and went through all the luggage (for those of you who carry illegal stuff. I had my spliffs in my boxer luckily)
No breaks at all! Nonstop driving. Which meant no smokebreak. Funk that.

Seat was allright. And they blacked out the whole bus almost the entire time, so definitely catered to sleeping. You should be able to get some minutes on the eye here and there.

G`head if you on a budget. Or maybe got enough spanish to ask when the best bus goes, they send one every hour..

Quote: (03-10-2016 12:15 AM)RiskIt4Biscuit Wrote:  

I took the Flota magdalena from Cali to Bogota. From 2100 in Cali to 0600 in Bogota. Montoya inspired many drivers in this country and this bus driver was no exception.

I guess it`s a hit or miss.. there was no plugs for computers, no wifi.. tv only in the front. It was only on for an hour or so, superloud. Then we got an hour or two of sleep, before some aggresive army guys stopped the bus and went through all the luggage (for those of you who carry illegal stuff. I had my spliffs in my boxer luckily)
No breaks at all! Nonstop driving. Which meant no smokebreak. Funk that.

Seat was allright. And they blacked out the whole bus almost the entire time, so definitely catered to sleeping. You should be able to get some minutes on the eye here and there.

G`head if you on a budget. Or maybe got enough spanish to ask when the best bus goes, they send one every hour..

Even if you're on a budget, you're better off taking flights. My Bogota to Cali flight on Avianca costs $23 USD one way.

To Book Avianca in Colombia, go to their website and switch the settings to In Colombia and English. You'll find prices in Colombian Pesos even if you're in the states.

Just for reference...

The same $23 USD flight costs $84 when you state you're in the United States.

So you paid money to meet women in Cali, how did that go? If you pay me money next time I'm down there I will show you how to meet local women, my usual rate is $500/day but since you're an RVF member I'll cut you a deal.

Thanks for bumping a thread I wrote almost 4 years ago to show me how stupid I was.

Quote: (08-11-2018 06:18 PM)LINUX Wrote:  

Thanks for bumping a thread I wrote almost 4 years ago to show me how stupid I was.

I see, back in the days, you were mostly collecting numbers.
Do you still rely today that much on online?