Or, don`t call me sir! I am really getting a crash course on social inequality in Colombia and I don`t even have to leave the neighbourhood I am in to learn about it since Pasadena is an upper middle class neighbourhood and people have other people come in and clean their homes for them and they treat them like servants. At least the woman running the bed and breakfast (or should I call it bed and no breakfast?) treats her staff like, well, underlings. Like people who matter less than she does. Like people whose main function in life is to serve her needs in exchange for a very cheap wage. Having seen Myriam interact with her staff the last couple of days has really put me off her more than ever. I am aware that this is a cultural glitch in Colombia, especially among older people but I can`t call this attitude picturesque or quaint. It is downright awful and there is no point talking to these people because they are not going to get it, they will just get offended and defensive and how dare anyone question their sense of entitlement. Older Colombians tend to be quite daft, I have noticed, and it is impossible to reason with them. I actually came to this country prepared because there is an older Colombian woman who lives on the same floor as me in my building who is just like that. Insufferable!
Younger Colombians I think are the hope for this country. They seem to have a far more egalitarian sense and a lot of them do want to see things change in their country, despite the obstacles, and I am cheering for them.
Today is my second last day here. I am not doing a lot. Just art, last minute grocery shopping for tomorrow and later I am going to get the rest of my Colombian pesos changed back to Canadian currency since at my bank in Vancouver they tend to quibble about notes that look a little bit damaged or soiled, even though that is the shape they were in when they sold me the currency before I went on this trip.
I just got an email from the Canadian Embassy confirming my suspicions about the encounters with the fake cops. There isn`t anything they can do really but at least I am assured that I haven`t been making any of this up.
I don`t expect I will be returning to Bogota. I feel unsafe here. Very different from Mexico City, which is three times the size but for me anyway in my five visits there has always felt safe to me. I will probably return to Mexico City for a sixth visit. Another turn at Bogota? Not likely.
No comments:
Post a Comment