Bogota Journal: Is That All There Is To Emeralds?

I saw my first Colombian emeralds yesterday.  I honestly wasn't looking for them but there is this high end mall I usually walk past and, hey, I usually walk past malls, but I was thinking, heck, I'm in Colombia, and there might be something interesting inside, so might as well, eh? So, there in this mall, was a gem store specializing in emeralds, all finely cut, polished and set in gold, of course.   I had a little glance at them and thought, well, they are pretty, but why the fuss?  They're only rocks, really.  Rocks stained in blood.  The conflict and bloodshed surrounding Colombian emeralds is legendary with children and wives of assassinated miners working now in the mines.  The president of Colombia, Juan Manuel Santos, is trying to clean up the corruption and there are also ethically sourced emeralds being mined and marketed in Colombia, but it seems like a very slow and uphill battle here.  It staggers the imagination the huge monetary and social value projected onto these and other precious stones and the huge fallout because of this greed.  What does this say about us as a species?

The other day I saw two vultures at different times flying over the freeways.  In Vancouver I believe we call them real estate brokers.  They must have been in search of roadkill.  Even in the botanical gardens I wasn't much blessed with any exotic bird sightings.  The pretty ones are smart.  They stay hidden and out of view.  Speaking of which here is an image of the bird I am going to start drawing today.  It's called a golden tanagerIsn't he a beauty? They live in the Amazon region of Colombia and fortunately are still very common.

Yesterday I hung out in the rich area and worked up my nerve to sit and have coffee and draw on the terrace of a very fancy-shmancy cafe with Canadian prices.  I was afraid I would be kicked out for doing art there.  Instead the waiters warmly welcomed me and two of them, one especially, took a huge interest in my art and we had quite an extensive conversation so it looks as if I`m welcome back.  In the same district there are professional shoe shine guys who behave very unprofessionally and as in parts of Mexico even after I said no three times two of them chased after me.  Scary.

At breakfast this morning I just met a father and son act from Canada.  They live in Edmonton.  The dad would be in his forties, I think, his son in his early twenties.  It is a bit interesting talking to fellow Canadians after almost a month away from the country.  It is also a reminder of how different many Canadians are from each other.  I sensed a likely conservative voter and tried to take care to steer around potentially controversial subjects, and he sensing that I was likely a bit different from himwas doing the same.  Kind of a friendly dance on eggshells.