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Home » Destinations » South America » Colombia

Making My Way Back Home

Modified: Mar 4, 2020 · Published: Jul 21, 2009 by Dave Lee |

The early morning view outside my Bogota hostel
The early morning view outside my Bogota hostel

I awoke at the all too early hour of 5 am with nothing about a long travel day toward home ahead of me.  It was cold enough that I didn't bother with a shower.  I had also packed my headlamp at the bottom of my pack, and without the desire to repack the night before leaving, I had to execute my final hostel room departure in complete darkness.  At least the taxi ride to the airport was faster without the business of rush hour traffic.

Checking on my JetBlue flight to Orlando
Checking on my JetBlue flight to Orlando

Once at the airport, I checked my backpack, leaving me with my two laptops, camera, and a few random items in a cheap bag I bought before leaving Medellin.  I bought a last minute bottle of Medellin Anejo rum so I could enjoy the occasional rum on the rocks or with Sprite as I'd done so often the first half of 2009.  Of course I was raped with a giant mark-up which made me wonder why the hell I didn't just bring a bottle from Medellin.  You'd think I'd have learned to anticipate my own last-minute souvenir-buying tendencies by now, but nope!

In-flight entertainment
In-flight entertainment

The flight to Orlando, Florida was uneventful.  I didn't get a window seat, but I did amuse myself with a funny movie called I Love You Man and some Jon Stewart from The Daily Show.  Maybe there are some benefits to getting back to the USA after all.  But in general, I'm going to try and refrain from watching TV once home.  Aside from Lost, I didn't miss it at all while traveling.

Once we landed in Orlando, I passed through immigrations and customs with ease.  I was officially back in the USA, and it was weird.  I boarded a light rail to the main terminal, and was suddenly surrounded by Americans.

My first impressions made me realize how accustomed I had become to living amongst Colombians for the prior 6 months.  On average, Americans were heavier, paler (yes, I know I'm one of them), and dressed more casually.  Not to say that the Colombian default of jeans and t-shirts is formal, but shorts are fairly uncommon, let alone flip flops.  Not only was I seeing a lot of white people, I was seeing their white legs and feet as well!  It was almost too much for me to handle.  On the plus side, I was also struck by the racial diversity.  Of course I was at an airport for tourists, but even as I write this a few days later, I'm more aware of how truly diverse we are in this country.

Sunset
Sunset

My five hour layover turned to six hours as my connecting plane was late, but I simply camped out at a bar table near an outlet, overlooking the tarmac, and prepared a few blog posts on Medellin Living about my final days in Colombia.

And then I was on my last flight for the foreseeable future, heading back to Dulles International Airport in northern Virginia.  I had a window seat this time, and tried to capture a few sunset photos to mark the end of my journey.

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About Dave Lee

Dave is the Founder and Editor in Chief of Go Backpacking and Feastio. He's been to 68 countries and lived in Colombia and Peru. Read the full story of how he became a travel blogger.

Comments

  1. Jeff says

    July 21, 2009 at 2:01 am

    Dave! Man, congrats on making it home safely. Can't wait to hear about your thoughts about being stateside again.

  2. Karl (from Dewey) says

    July 21, 2009 at 10:13 am

    Welcome home dude! What's next?

  3. Karl (from Dewey) says

    July 21, 2009 at 5:13 am

    Welcome home dude! What's next?

  4. Jeff says

    July 21, 2009 at 7:01 am

    Dave! Man, congrats on making it home safely. Can't wait to hear about your thoughts about being stateside again.

  5. Anil says

    July 21, 2009 at 12:09 pm

    Nice sunset pic, from the plane that's pretty good. They can be tough to get right.

  6. Anil says

    July 21, 2009 at 7:09 am

    Nice sunset pic, from the plane that's pretty good. They can be tough to get right.

  7. Erica says

    July 21, 2009 at 1:15 pm

    What an amazing journey, David! Thank you for sharing it with us!

  8. Erica says

    July 21, 2009 at 8:15 am

    What an amazing journey, David! Thank you for sharing it with us!

  9. Leo says

    July 21, 2009 at 2:13 pm

    Welcome back Dave! your observations in Orlando were killing me! :-) It's also good that you pointed out the diversity we do have here in the US as you really don't see that in other countries.

    Hit me up soon.

    Leo

  10. Leo says

    July 21, 2009 at 9:13 am

    Welcome back Dave! your observations in Orlando were killing me! :-) It's also good that you pointed out the diversity we do have here in the US as you really don't see that in other countries.

    Hit me up soon.

    Leo

  11. Derek Webb says

    July 21, 2009 at 9:51 am

    Congrats. You made it. Very nice blog, m8. Especially your financial breakdown - helps those of us who are about to go to those places a better idea of what we'll be spending.

    I'll predict it isn't long before the travel bug itches at you some more. Usually 2-4 months for me. =)

    Derek

  12. Dave says

    July 21, 2009 at 5:57 pm

    Hey Karl - yep, I made it full circle! Already saw Phil and Laura over the weekend. Next up, I'm trying to figure out the cheapest cell phone/plan to buy. :)

  13. Dave says

    July 21, 2009 at 12:57 pm

    Hey Karl - yep, I made it full circle! Already saw Phil and Laura over the weekend. Next up, I'm trying to figure out the cheapest cell phone/plan to buy. :)

  14. Dave says

    July 21, 2009 at 5:59 pm

    Hey Leo, I'll catch up with you soon.

  15. Dave says

    July 21, 2009 at 12:59 pm

    Hey Leo, I'll catch up with you soon.

  16. Dave says

    July 21, 2009 at 6:01 pm

    Thanks for the feedback Derek. I know it won't be long either, but first I have to get my finances in the position to be proactive. My detour in Medellin was worth it, but it means my next trip is that much farther off.

  17. Dave says

    July 21, 2009 at 1:01 pm

    Thanks for the feedback Derek. I know it won't be long either, but first I have to get my finances in the position to be proactive. My detour in Medellin was worth it, but it means my next trip is that much farther off.

  18. Derek Webb says

    July 21, 2009 at 2:51 pm

    Congrats. You made it. Very nice blog, m8. Especially your financial breakdown - helps those of us who are about to go to those places a better idea of what we'll be spending.

    I'll predict it isn't long before the travel bug itches at you some more. Usually 2-4 months for me. =)

    Derek

  19. Event Reisen says

    July 22, 2009 at 10:48 am

    Your post is very well crafted. Great photos, nicely taken. You enjoyed each and everything in this journey. Am I rite? Thanks for sharing your wonderful experience. Really I enjoyed this article.

  20. Event Reisen says

    July 22, 2009 at 5:48 am

    Your post is very well crafted. Great photos, nicely taken. You enjoyed each and everything in this journey. Am I rite? Thanks for sharing your wonderful experience. Really I enjoyed this article.

  21. Brock says

    July 23, 2009 at 1:45 am

    Dave,

    All I can say is congratulations on making it happen. Really! You should be so proud of yourself.
    Heck I haven't met you (yet) and I am darn proud of you.

    Even this posts increases my excitement for my own adventure!

    Cheers,
    Brock

  22. Brock says

    July 22, 2009 at 8:45 pm

    Dave,

    All I can say is congratulations on making it happen. Really! You should be so proud of yourself.
    Heck I haven't met you (yet) and I am darn proud of you.

    Even this posts increases my excitement for my own adventure!

    Cheers,
    Brock

  23. Dave says

    July 24, 2009 at 4:34 pm

    Thanks Brock, I've definitely lost perspective on how big a deal it is. I mean before my trip, I'd only met a few people who'd been gone so long, but once I was traveling, I met a lot of people on 6-12+ month RTW trips. But more so than that, I met a lot of people doing regional circuits like Australia/SE Asia, India, Latin America, etc.

    If you can hit 5 of the 7 continents outside your own on a trip, you're in a small percentage. In all that time, I didn't meet a person who'd made it to Antarctica.

  24. Dave says

    July 24, 2009 at 11:34 am

    Thanks Brock, I've definitely lost perspective on how big a deal it is. I mean before my trip, I'd only met a few people who'd been gone so long, but once I was traveling, I met a lot of people on 6-12+ month RTW trips. But more so than that, I met a lot of people doing regional circuits like Australia/SE Asia, India, Latin America, etc.

    If you can hit 5 of the 7 continents outside your own on a trip, you're in a small percentage. In all that time, I didn't meet a person who'd made it to Antarctica.

Dave at Ahu Ko Te Riku on Rapa Nui (Easter Island), Chile.

Hi, I'm Dave

Editor in Chief

I've been writing about adventure travel on Go Backpacking since 2007. I've visited 68 countries.

Read more about Dave.

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