You Know You're in Colombia When....

My image of Colombia will forever be colored by my time living in La Merced.  After 2 months of life in this quaint and beautiful rural town, here are some things I have learned:

You know you're in Colombia when...

...your 5 year old friend can work a soccer ball better than you could ever hope to.

…an arepa appears on your plate at least twice a day.

…you arrive at a meeting wearing sandals and sit down next to a 58-year-old woman wearing bedazzled 6-inch pumps.

…you tell people you don’t eat meat and they give you this face:

…standing up in a bar or restaurant and creating your own dance party is socially accepted and even encouraged.

…your office is 2 blocks from your apartment, yet you can’t get home without being offered at least 2 shots of aguardiente.

…you are woken up by banging noises at 5 am, and you simply go back to sleep because you figure someone is just setting off fireworks outside of your front door.

…you can never get enough coffee breaks.

…you order a cappuccino and you have to specify if you’d like it with or without alcohol.

…your name becomes obsolete and you are simply dubbed “La Monita.”

…you can’t buy shots of liquor, only bottles or half bottles.

…the street dogs outnumber the people.

 …a horse, a donkey, and the roof of a Jeep are all feasible modes of transportation.

 …"breakfast without chocolate isn’t breakfast.”   – Doña Jacky

…you have a naptime after lunch…like a little baby.

 …a walk through the mountains can quickly turn into a flight through the mountains.

 ...you can't imagine a world where you don't get to wake up to this:

…you are surrounded by some of the happiest and most beautiful children you’ve ever met.