I began 2019 with the goal to vastly improve my Spanish and what better place to improve it than Bogotá, the Colombian capital generally regarded as harboring the most-neutral accent. I already intended just how to do it too — three years ago when I first visited Bogotá a woman named Nataly approached me while I was working from a Starbucks cafe in Zona G to solicit Spanish classes. We exchanged contact information, she emailed me and, well, I was busy with other things and never responded. Actually, I did respond, it just took me three years.
But when I did respond I knew it was her who I wanted to learn Spanish from — in the city that I grew to love so much in the interim spacing my reply. The universe had delivered me a teacher (this is how I like to make decisions — by following the path serendipity lays before me) and of course I felt compelled to oblige. I purchased 80 hours of Spanish classes and facilitated class three days a week over the lunch hour and set to work on the challenging task of learning a first, second-spoken language.
As someone who studied Latin throughout middle school, high school and college (6 years), I must really work to impress on you other, normal people, who may be reading this — that learning a second spoken language is really hard! You all did it all back when you were teenagers (or younger if you aren’t from the USA), when your brains were supple and new information diffused into your mind like water down a drain.
For me, however — learning to speak Spanish has been more like wrestling a big, ugly, sweaty Mexican wrestler. It kicks me in the mouth whenever I try to speak it quickly, it trips me when I can’t recall the word I knew last week, I stumble into the corner, and take a beating whenever I freeze during a street-side conversation. I spit out a tooth and some blood whenever I open my mouth to talk. It’s an ugly affair, and humbling to be unable to match a native 4 year old in verbal proficiency. If I ever accidentally have children some day – I will force them to learn to speak as many languages as possible from day 1 as at my age you really start to appreciate the practicality of learning things thirty years before.
I’ve already lived in Bogotá a number of times over the past three years as it is a perfect city to settle into a routine conducive to a normal life. I joined a gym, found an apartment with strong internet near a park perfect for running with a couple of cafes nearby as well. And while I started my stay out cooking dinner each night, I ended it ordering rotisserie chicken delivery from the place a block away two weeks straight.
During this stint in Bogotá I was also able to do some discovery. I returned to the Peruvian Amazon for another ayahuasca ceremony (with a short stop-over in Lima), visited the Caribbean island of San Andrés for four days and did some rock-climbing, hiking and local discovery around Bogotá in Chicaque natural park, the funny destination of Jaime Duque Park (think a miniscule, bizarre Colombian micro-Disneyland). Also visited a historic archaeological site of Facatativa and escaped for a weekend to the small town of Villete for a weekend of sunshine and swimming pool to offset the cloudy weather of the city. A highlight of my time here was hosting my friend Peter for about a week and doing my best to show him what I love about the city. I slept on his couch for a week in September as he helped me explore New York, so it felt good to return the gesture.
I have a tendency to fall into routines which is why I am constantly battling to introduce change and chaos as means to offset that natural drive. I am working towards a future when the two are in balance and I can mix steady rhythms alongside discovery. I’m still developing this lifestyle pattern and happy for the part that Bogotá continues to play.
