Welcome to this virtual magazine on economics, culture and society in Colombia
What others say about Colombia
Colombia: Colombiamoda 2007 finished succesfully. Fibre2fashion.com
Order to turn prison that housed narco-trafficking kingpin into religious site. By Mike Ceaser. An infamous Colombian prison named "La Catedral", once home to narco-trafficking kingpin Pablo Escobar, soon will be turn into a center of prayer (Catholic News Service).
Salsa Music, Lifeblood of Cali. You step through the darkened entranceway, leaving the tropical night behind. Suddenly, waves of sound crash over you like ocean surf. Breaking out in a sweat, your heart pounds to the rhythm of bass, bongos, bells and brass. The walls seem to pulsate (...) (hfvyspksquy)
Spotlight: President Álvaro Uribe of Colombia. By Karina Robinson. Bogotá: President Álvaro Uribe is widely credited with transforming the Colombian economy, bringing greater security and fostering one of the most welcoming business enviroments in Latin American. But many people know him only as a wagging finger - an index finger, to be exact (...) (Herald Tribune)
Round 1 Interview: Camilo Villegas. By ASAP Sport. Thank you, Camilo, for joining us here in the media center at the BMW Championship, another great start to your week like last week, and you're slowly inching your way up that FedExCup play off list. You're in 34th, so feeling pretty good (...) Playoffs.
Cartagena, Colombia -- Symbol of a Nation Transformed. (...) Cartagena has become symbolic of broader progress in Colombia. In the past couple of years, a host of international notables, including Mick Jagger, Queen Sofia of Spain and Julio Iglesias, have come to Cartagena on vacation. The number of cruise ships docking this winter season is up 50% from its low point in 2002-2003 (...) (Shared Responsability)
Chaos in Colombia as Torres Stops Holt in Eleven. By Keith Idec. Barranquilla, Colombia - In what rapidly turn into a dangerous enviroment for virtually everyone inside the Jumbo Saloon Country Club early Sunday morning, Kendall Holt's championship dream was washed away amid a donwpour of beer, soda and water (...) BoxingScene.com.
The Most Dramatic Fight in Colombian History: Ricardo Torres. By Jaime Castro Nuñez: I was born in Muncie, IN, but I spent my childhood in Montería, a fluvial port along the banks of the Sinú River in Northern Colombia (...) East Side Boxing.
Colombia: Colombiamoda 2007 finished succesfully. Fibre2fashion.com
Order to turn prison that housed narco-trafficking kingpin into religious site. By Mike Ceaser. An infamous Colombian prison named "La Catedral", once home to narco-trafficking kingpin Pablo Escobar, soon will be turn into a center of prayer (Catholic News Service).
Salsa Music, Lifeblood of Cali. You step through the darkened entranceway, leaving the tropical night behind. Suddenly, waves of sound crash over you like ocean surf. Breaking out in a sweat, your heart pounds to the rhythm of bass, bongos, bells and brass. The walls seem to pulsate (...) (hfvyspksquy)
Spotlight: President Álvaro Uribe of Colombia. By Karina Robinson. Bogotá: President Álvaro Uribe is widely credited with transforming the Colombian economy, bringing greater security and fostering one of the most welcoming business enviroments in Latin American. But many people know him only as a wagging finger - an index finger, to be exact (...) (Herald Tribune)
Round 1 Interview: Camilo Villegas. By ASAP Sport. Thank you, Camilo, for joining us here in the media center at the BMW Championship, another great start to your week like last week, and you're slowly inching your way up that FedExCup play off list. You're in 34th, so feeling pretty good (...) Playoffs.
Cartagena, Colombia -- Symbol of a Nation Transformed. (...) Cartagena has become symbolic of broader progress in Colombia. In the past couple of years, a host of international notables, including Mick Jagger, Queen Sofia of Spain and Julio Iglesias, have come to Cartagena on vacation. The number of cruise ships docking this winter season is up 50% from its low point in 2002-2003 (...) (Shared Responsability)
Chaos in Colombia as Torres Stops Holt in Eleven. By Keith Idec. Barranquilla, Colombia - In what rapidly turn into a dangerous enviroment for virtually everyone inside the Jumbo Saloon Country Club early Sunday morning, Kendall Holt's championship dream was washed away amid a donwpour of beer, soda and water (...) BoxingScene.com.
The Most Dramatic Fight in Colombian History: Ricardo Torres. By Jaime Castro Nuñez: I was born in Muncie, IN, but I spent my childhood in Montería, a fluvial port along the banks of the Sinú River in Northern Colombia (...) East Side Boxing.
More Days Off? Better Move to Colombia. By Phyllis Korkki. Labor Day was made a national holiday in 1894 as a way to honor American workers and to give them a rest. And they still need it. (...) But some countries welcome an excuse for a break. Colombia has 18 holidays, for example, and Lebanon has 17 (...) The New York Times.
Colombia's Newest Park Protects Rare Wildlife, Indigenous Peoples. Bogotá, Colombia, August 31, 2007 (ENS) - The government of Colombia has created a new national park for the protection of one of the greatest areas of biodiversity in the country, inhabited by such rare and endangered animals as the Andean bear, jaguar, puma and tapir (...) ENS-Newswire.
El Libertador, Simón Bolívar. (...) As a tribute to one of the greatest heroes of all time, I have translated one of his speeches, his final proclamation at the Hacienda de San Pedro Alejandrino in Santa Marta, Colombia on 10 December 1830. "Colombians! You have been witness to my efforts to establish freedom where tyranny previously reigned (...)" Club Hispánico.
Colombia's Villegas leads the way. Tiger Woods made his FedEx Cup debut at TC Boston, but Camilo Villegas made his mark shooting an eight-under-par 63 to take a two-shot lead after the opening round of the Deutsche Bank Championship on Friday (...) Sportinglife.
A success story in a small Colombian town. From Chris Stubbert. Think of small-town Colombia and you might picture dirt roads, under-development infrastucture, insecurity, corrupt local politicians, and poor-quality education and healthcare. Yet if you took a look at the April 30th publication of Revista Dinero, you might think again. Castilla la Nueva, located 3 hours from Bogotám in Meta department, is rapidly moving away from that image. (...) Plan Colombia and Beyond.
Colombia plans to scrap paid exemption for universal army draft. By Helen Murphy and Andrea Jaramillo. Colombia plans to end a system that allows draftees to pay the government in lieu of military service as the country confronts a shortfall in active duty troops, Defense Minister Juan Manuel Santos said (...) Bloomberg.
Share gusher. Bogotá. Until a few years ago, news about Colombia's state-owned oil company Ecopetrol, tended to appear on the newspaper pages chronicling the country's internal conflict, rather than in the business section. Its pipelines were a favourite target of leftist rebels. But on August 27th Colombia's president, Álbaro Uribe, turned up at the Bogotá stock exchange to launch, with a bang of the gavel, the sale of up to 20% of Ecopetrol's shares (...) The Economist print edition.
C.P. recommends Blogs about Colombia:
Good Times in Medellín, Colombia. The Transformation of Medellín Today.
Colombia is a multi-ethnic country in South America. Its official name is the Republic of Colombia as a state in the north-west of South America. Its capital is Bogotá D.C. Other important cities by order are Medellín, Cali, Barranquilla, Cartagena de Indias and Bucaramanga. The official language is Spanish (Colombia is the third largest Spanish country of the world after Mexico and Spain), but there are also many indigenous dialects throughout the territory. The form of government is the Republican with a president, a Congress and a Supreme Tribunal of Justice. The actual president of Colombia is Álvaro Uribe Vélez. Colombia gained independence from Spain on July 20, 1810 and was recognized on August 7, 1819. The total area of the country is 1.141.748 km2 (440.839 sq mi) and 8.8% of it is water being the 26th country of the world by dimension. Its population by 2007 is 45.600.000 inhabitants being the 28th country of the world by population. Its GDP (PPP) is US$337.286 billion, per capita is US$7,565, its Gini is 58.6, its HDI is 0.790. The currency is the COLOMBIAN PESO (COP). Colombia is located in the UTC-5 time zone. The Internet code is .co and its calling code is +57.
Recommended references
EDWARDS, Sebastian y Roberto Steiner. On the Crisis Hypothesis of Economic Reform: Colombia 1989-91. Cuad. econ., dic. 2000, vol.37, no.112, p.445-493. ISSN 0717-6821.
Colombia, Country Briefings. Economist.com, Global analysys. Daily. The Economist Newspaper Limited, 2007.
MONDRAGON, Hector. The Disastrous Economics of Counterterrorism in Colombia. Znet Daily Commentaries. September 12, 2002.
Losing Latin America. Review and Outlook. The Wall Street Journal, May 4, 2007. Copy pdf in the official Website of the Colombian Embassy in Washington.
ROMAN, Mauricio. Economist Discusses Colombia. The Tech Online Edition. Massachusetts.
FARZAD, Roben. Extreme Investing: Inside Colombia. BusinessWeek, The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc.
When Colombia Calls, You Travel - Colombia Travel Information
Once a very untouchable country, Colombia today is more open to international travelers than it has ever been. The soaring peaks of the Andes and the motley ecology of the lowlands contributes to the indefinable nature of this ever-evolving nation. You will be able to swim in the Caribbean, hike through the Amazon, climb to exhilarating heights and, at the end of the day, sip premium coffee and cocoa with the locals.
The independent nation of Colombia is located in the northwest corner of the South American Continent, just across the Canal from Panama. To understand the infinite diversity of Colombian travel, one must understand its size and neighbors. Colombia is more than twice the size of France and is the only South American country to have a border with both the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Airfare to Colombia is also a fantastic place to start in South America as Colombia shares borders with Brazil, Ecuador, Panama, Peru and Venezuela.
Sweet and Soulful City Life in Colombia
Travel to Colombian cities is a magical vacuum of time where colonial Spanish balconies hang regally over plazas next to modern commercial complexes along stone paved streets. For a uniquely urban Andean experience, visit the capital city of Bogota? at an elevation of 8,660 feet. Airfare to Colombia through Bogota? is also quite common. The city is rich with Colombian history and culture, as well as posh nightclubs, swanky restaurants and some unique boutiques. Make sure to visit the Museo del Oro where spectacular gold and precious gem items from numerous Hispanic archaeological sites have been preserved.
Cartagena is one of Colombia?s most famous and most photographed cities. Located along the Caribbean, visitors get to enjoy monumental Spanish architecture and exotic plazas within the old wall of this World Heritage Site with the gentle ocean breeze in the background. Dining and nightlife feature prominently in Cartagena's cultural dynamics. Also, the Ciudad Perdida, or Lost City, is a must see for history buffs and relaxed vacationers alike. The remains of this indigenous community date from the 11th to the 14th century. The Lost City is one of the largest Pre-Colombian settlements and requires an exhilarating 6 day hike through thickly forested hills and valleys. This is a real hands-on way to become acquainted with the countryside!
Can´t Get enough of Colombia
When you book your airfare to Colombia, be aware of the vast and wondrous national parks, wilderness reserves and sparkling stretches of beach. Map out your itinerary and then your flight accordingly, as Colombia is expansive. If a private hammock on the beach is your ideal stay, do not miss the lavish beauty of El Parque Tayrona. For the avid divers and snorkelers, spend a few days among the whales and sea turtles of Isla Gorgona.
