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One of the reasons for choosing the Master’s program in Global Urban Transformations (GUT) was the opportunity to do an exchange, something I have wanted to do since my bachelor's but could not because of the travel restrictions followed by the pandemic. So, when the time came for me to go abroad I wanted to go as fast as possible; far not solely in terms of distance but also in terms of mindset, lifestyle, and perspective. I wanted to go to a place from which I could look at the world and see something different, something a bit more real, a bit rawer perhaps, or just something different than the bubble most of us studying in prestigious universities see. 

And there was Colombia and the city of Bogotá… and there was I applying for the Utrecht ľ�ϸ���Ӱ��’s exchange program at La Universidad de Los Andes. I remember the day I received the final results of my admission, and how everything became so real so fast, and a few months later I was in Amsterdam at Schiphol Airport greeting my parents with tears of happiness and fear, anxiety and excitement, contemplating my decision, and asking myself whether it is too late to go back. 

As you might be guessing, I did not go back and had the best time of my life! 

Before coming to Colombia, I did not know much more than the banal stories of Pablo Escobar, drug cartels, criminality, and sex tourism. But these past 5 months have changed my perspective of Colombia completely. 

I would like to start with my host university. La Universidad de los Andes (henceforward Los Andes) is one of the most modern and progressive universities in Colombia and this can be seen as soon as one steps into the campus. Being one of the country’s best private universities, Los Andes has both the facilities and academic capacity to support students in every matter. The official language of the university is Spanish, but most of the staff and students speak English. Professors usually allow international students to submit assignments in English, even though most classes are in Spanish, but surprisingly many readings were in English. Students have access to both high-quality education and academic support, and services including free-of-charge healthcare on campus (general practitioner, physiotherapist, and dentist!), and more than 15 different open sports classes, including swimming, dance classes, and indoor cycling. What is more every other week the university organizes different social events on campus such as food and dance festivals, concerts, public lectures, seminars, and conferences. Having the opportunity to be part of this vibrant university and community has been truly enriching and a great addition to the Global Urban Transformations program.

What rarely comes out in the media, unless, of course, you are planning a trip to South America, and Colombia in particular, is how biodiverse this country is. The mosaic of landscapes in one single country has been completely overwhelming. From the crystal clear blue waters of the island of San Andrés and the city of Cartagena de las Indias on the Caribbean Coast to the central Andean mountain range where the city of Bogotá is found, to the mesmerizing beaches of the Pacific Coast where the jungle meets the ocean, and all the way south to the Amazon rainforest where you can see pink dolphins and sleep in a hammock in the jungle. Colombia has something to offer to every visitor from those of us who love being at the beach with a book every day to those who prefer hiking the mountains of la Sierra Nevada in search of The Lost City. I became evermore aware of Colombia’s natural richness after attending the COP16 conference, held in the city of Cali, where the country’s biodiversity significance was highlighted and a global and regional commitment to conservation strategies and policy goals was made by representatives of 196 counties.

On a different note, what most first-time visitors are fully, and perhaps overly, aware of is the danger, and I would be a liar if I said that there is none. However, following basic precautions such as not being out alone at night in lonely areas, not taking your phone and wallet out all the time on the street, knowing where you are going, and like Colombians say ‘no dar papaya’. Colombia, or any place you choose to go, is one part of your experience, you are the other. 

What was particularly difficult for me in the beginning was the contrast between extremely poor and extremely rich existing in the same city, even on the same street. It was what I found most eye-opening, and it was what gave me what I was looking for with this adventure. It gave faces and souls to everything I had and will read about Latin American politics, economy, culture, and history. The blend of these confronting dimensions - the private university with its swimming pool and private security on one side, and the Indigenous mother of three begging at the corner on the other - is what we are often immune from seeing in the so-called Global North. It is what motivated me to ask more critical questions, to leave my comfort zone and feel uncomfortable with who I am, where I come from, and the privilege I carry with me. But it is also what gives me the courage to look for other ways of doing things, to be creative and open to change both with my academic pursuits and personal endeavours.

This aspect of the experience was particularly relevant to everything studied and discussed during the GUT program. From the Introduction to Global Urban Transformations course in the first semester, to the Politics and Governance and Urban Resilience courses in the third, these confronting realities exemplify the pressing need for resilient urban transformations embedded in inclusive policies and strong governance. We cannot fully grasp the complexity of global urban transformations if we know only a quarter of the globe. This exchange experience has been a step closer to understanding the vastness that it is the world we study, we live in, and the one we love.

In terms of my research interests and master’s thesis writing journey, spending these 5 months in Colombia has been particularly fruitful. In my research I focus on the gender-water-tourism nexus, that is how tourism development disproportionately affects marginalized groups directly and/or indirectly. The site of my investigation is the island of San Andrés in the Colombian Caribbean Sea and I will be conducting fieldwork from February to April 2025. Getting to know Colombian history and culture firsthand has given me a better understanding of the extent and effect of institutional and structural obstacles to equal (re)distribution of resources such as water, and how and why industries of extractive characters, such as tourism, have flourished for decades unregulated. 

This blog post turned out longer than it was supposed to and than I expected … I guess this is what writing from the comfort of my favourite coffee place in Bogotá, Colo, in the company of a cup of coffee and my dearest friend Matilda do to one’s ability to “stick to the point” … after 5 months I have most certainly grown better in salsa, Spanish, and weaving words even more than I used to … In concluding this post I would like to urge those curious enough to wonder “What if I do go there?” - wherever “there” is - to do it, even if you feel scared and you think you are alone, because if I wasn’t scared and alone, I wouldn’t be here writing this today with my cup of Colombian coffee, my dearest friend Matilda, and tears of happiness on my eyes.