Life Styles: Houston Texas and Medellín, Colombia

Thomas Wolfe wrote a famous novel, You Can’t Go Home Again. The home town changes, not always for the better. At school and family reunions, people have changed, sometimes with different attitudes and priorities than they had in the good old days.

I have spent much of my life in or near Houston with long-term excursions in Atchison, Kansas, Pontiac, Michigan, Austin, Texas, Valencia, Venezuela, Barranquilla and Medellin, Colombia.

In 1972, I taught history at the American school in Medellin when this city had a little more than one million people. My wife (who was born in Colombia) and I moved here in late August, 2008. The city now has about four million people in the metropolitan area. There are more cars, many more motor scooters, more people downtown, an overhead metro and freeways that were not here in 1972. Many picturesque places have disappeared, have deteriorated or have been replaced by corporate looking structures. I added a new word to my Spanish vocabulary – trancon – traffic jam.

There are no deed restrictions in Medellin. In my upscale neighborhood, there are many small businesses within three hundred meters from my front door. The following is an abbreviated list:

a fruit stand,
a curtain store,
a children’s clothing store,
a shoe repair stand,
three convenience stores,
a pastry shop,
an accounting service, and,
an art studio.

These businesses are tiny. Most are in unused garages.

Medellin is a high density city with many apartments and high rises. Family homes with front and back yards are rare. Since contractors use bricks and mortar but no wood, fire insurance for residences does not exist.

Medellin’s climate description is ‘’the city of the eternal spring’’. Homes do not have heating or air conditioning.

Since there is a pleasant climate all year around, most small businesses, bars and restaurants are not enclosed. There is much street life.

Although Colombians have their access to junk food, I seldom see a fat person. People here walk much more than Houstonians.

Since buses and taxis are readily available, my wife and I do not own a car. Our major purpose in moving here was to reduce expenses. Just about everything here cost less. Major exceptions are book prices. I thought that Barnes & Noble charged plenty. Now I need smelling salts when I visit a book store. My rough guide is that book prices start at twice the price for a book in the US and go up from there. Since fewer people buy books, the cost for each one sold is high. The publishers and cultural institutions are making major efforts to encourage reading. In October, 2008, there was a ten day book festival at the Botanic Garden (a public park), where book dealers offered discounts. There was widespread participation.

Colombia has a free press. The jaded citizenry see nearly daily articles on corruption and human rights abuses. I have the idea that only the reporters and political news junkies pay much attention to the day-to-day political activities. To encourage participation, Colombian elections are held on Sundays. Despite perennial cynicism, emotions can run high just before any election. Here, and in many Latin American countries, the bars close at 6PM on the Saturday before the election.

As in the US, I have seen some sentiment in the newspapers for drug legalization. Since such a step would drastically reduce illegal income from paramilitary groups, I would expect a huge drop in violence.

There are many things for a foreigner to get used to. In many public places and restaurants, all you have to do to use the rest room to pay for it.

Few individuals have checking accounts. While Americans are used to sending a check in the mail or paying on line, people here pay in cash. Some cash habits are due to a lack of confidence in the mail. E-mail and low telephone costs have reduced letter volume everywhere. Even before e-mail, companies have had small armies of messengers performing what is accomplished by mail in the US. I did not even find the post office listed in the local telephone directory. Only a few stationery stores sell stamps. Recently, I paid the equivalent of 10 US dollars to send 5 letters, one to the US and four to Colombian addresses.

Americans are used to corporate disdain for customers. Your call is important to us (that is why you will be on hold for 6 minutes). It is worse here. There are long lines where no excuse exists (similar to the Texas driver’s license lines).

From reading the newspapers and talking to many people, I see that Barack Obama is popular here, even more so than President Kennedy. Even polls show some popularity for Senator McCain ,I have met only one Colombian who hoped for his victory.

City people have dogs and cats for pets now. I cannot remember seeing this in 1972. Another new cultural event is Halloween (El Día de las Brujas – Witches’ Day). The kids wear costumes and go around trick or treating.

Many snack places sell coffee in plastic cups. Since the hot coffee melts plastic, people are consuming polymers and other unhealthy substances. I doubt I can change this national pastime.

As a disincentive to armed robbers, small businesses start the day with three cents in their cash register. The early customers almost have to bring exact change. The three cents reference is hyperbole but not by much. Since banks like to have people stand in line rather than hire enough employees, getting change is a constant chore.

Television cable services here offer programs in many languages in addition to Spanish: English, French, Italian and German. Catholics have at least two channels and Christians (they do not call themselves Protestants anymore) have at least one. Since there is no television guide, I only have a general idea of what will be on. Medellin’s biggest newspaper, El Colombiano, used to offer a television guide but gave up when the program producers started changing the scheduled programs. Viewers shot the messenger by complaining to El Colombiano rather than the producers. El Colombiano editors decided to end their grief by no longer publishing any television schedule. I am surprised that the advertisers are not pressuring the producers to stick with the announced schedule. I and other s would probably watch a few additional movies or programs if I knew when they started, the movie title and the plot.

There are two national newspapers, sold throughout the country and both published in Bogota. Both have interesting articles and commentaries.

Foreigners can see things that the nationals cannot. For example, Alexander Toqueville’s observations about the US in the 1830s are still used today. By this time next year, my observations may be more profound but maybe not. New people like me become accustomed to their new home and after a while can no longer see things that first appeared as different, unusual or exotic.