General Info

[Fun Luvr]

Anybody tried " check-mig" ?

I have a flight to Bogota in a week and tried a fake registration and it seems that many tabs are not working; on you tube comments there are many negative reviews; some even lost their flight.

Check-mig works fine. I have used that site three times, both entering and leaving Colombia.

[BigButtDetecto]

Anybody tried " check-mig" ?

I have a flight to Bogota in a week and tried a fake registration and it seems that many tabs are not working; on you tube comments there are many negative reviews; some even lost their flight.

[Fun Luvr]

Until last night, I thought by using the Cabify app, I could avoid any taxi scams. I was leaving Hooters going to Laureles. It was raining pretty hard. DiDi and Uber showed more than double their usual fares. Cabify was cheapest. A taxi driver accepted my request, but then it changed to another driver, after showing the first driver was on his way. When the driver arrived, he had my name and what I thought was the correct address. He showed me the address on his phone. I just glanced at it and it looked correct, and I told him it was in Laureles. What I didn't notice was that he had changed "CL" to "cra". He went on Poblado Ave instead of the autopisto; but I've had other drivers do that, so that didn't concern me. When he started going up the hills out of the central Medellin area, I asked him if he was going towards Laureles, and he assured me he was. He even showed me on his GPS that he would end up in Laureles. After a few more turns going in the wrong direction, I told him something was wrong. He stopped and showed me he was going to cra 37 instead of CL 37c. That was on the opposite side of Medellin from Laureles. With the Cabify app, it doesn't show the route after the driver makes a pickup, nor does it show the request. You can look at "Journeys", but that shows what the driver input. Since I didn't have any proof of what I requested, I ended up paying an extra 10 mil. That's cheap for a lesson learned.

[Questner]

I did a forum search on the keyword 'Yelp' and no results came up so I'm asking here. What do expats or even Colombians in Medellin use to find businesses? Basically, what's the equivalent of Yelp over there? Is Google sufficient?

https://www.paginasamarillas.com.co/

[Suburge]

I did a forum search on the keyword 'Yelp' and no results came up so I'm asking here. What do expats or even Colombians in Medellin use to find businesses? Basically, what's the equivalent of Yelp over there? Is Google sufficient?

[JohnReter335]

You can message girls, without actually friending them.

Yeah if its about to just sending messages to the girls, yes you can send it without making friends of FB.

[Osteoknot]

You will be better off if you can run a small American business or enterprise remotely from here in the good ol' US of A and have some kind of connection in Colombia so that travel and expenses back and forth are tax deductible. If you live on the east coast even better because all of Colombia is in the same time zone. How's that for a nebulous, non-specific answer, jajajaja? Ostee Out. P.S. Unless it changed since COVID for some weird reason, USA and Colombia have a free trade agreement that eliminates tariffs and removes barriers.

Sorry. I was not clear, I meant you run your American business from Colombia. Late night posting. Tired. Drugs & alcohol may have been involved. Chicas. After you have been here awhile and learn the ropes and Spanish then you can try your hand at opening a business here. That's what I am doing. I have two small part time businesses that generate enough essentially passive income to pay all my living expenses here now. I just need a phone and Internet to check in and if problems arise. If I don't get too lazy I will start something here once I am fluent. I found a lawyer in my hometown in USA who is from Medellin. That is solid gold.

[Osteoknot]

If anyone is feeling charitable, the craziness and tumult of 2020 have forced me to re-evaluate my life (like most of us). I have decided, post-Corona--maybe around 1 year from now, I want to move to Medellin--and live there for 1/2 of each year. Maybe eventually full time. But for now, 1/2 the year.

BUT, I have to make some $$$ while living there. Any ideas? Does anyone have any information about how to find / train for online / remote work options? Business ideas for Medellin? It seems like all 'local' jobs do not pay at all. So, the trick is to find ways to make money from a non-Colombian based company-while living there. Or figuring out some import / export way to make money-legally! Other friends who know Colombia tell me owning a business there is a nightmare. But, its got to work for someone??

So, any ideas? Thoughts? I figure I need to make about 3 k a month to live the lifestyle I would want to while there. I know people can live there for cheaper.

So, where are all the smart people at? I need help! LOL.

You will be better off if you can run a small American business or enterprise remotely from here in the good ol' US of A and have some kind of connection in Colombia so that travel and expenses back and forth are tax deductible. If you live on the east coast even better because all of Colombia is in the same time zone. How's that for a nebulous, non-specific answer, jajajaja? Ostee Out. P.S. Unless it changed since COVID for some weird reason, USA and Colombia have a free trade agreement that eliminates tariffs and removes barriers.

[Just Incognito]

Did anyone find it difficult to open a 2nd FB account. They seem to restrict it pretty well now. Any advice?

You can message girls, without actually friending them.

[LatinaLover#1]

Is that what they led you to believe? It is TV. They have to make it interesting.

I have been through immigration probably literally 1000 times and have never been assumed to be doing what you say you saw in the show. You think some mf that has only been through 2 or 3 times could be so lucky? I have even told them on multiple occasions that I was wherever fucking hookers.

Most people they catch like that is because they have been tipped off or are already under investigation by another agency, not because they assume and have it out for them.

I have even come back with a bunch of bootleg movies, software, and clothes and they went through my bag looking for drugs. They didn't give a damn about the bootleg merchandise.

True, most of the time it's somebody they know or they got a tip. Best advice is if questioned, tell the truth, because they most likely know everything already anyway. When they slide your passport on re-entry you would be amazed at how much they about you. Stay away from drugs and underaged girls and you'll never have a problem.

[LoveItHere69]

Where can I get cheap Tadalafil (generic Cialis) in the Botero / Centro area? The prices I have found seem higher than I had expected and read about. Please PM me and after a week I will post the best answer so as not to clog the Board. Thanks. I tried powersexcolombia pills and they did 100% nothing. I forgot I had tried it last year with same results. Stupid memory. Need pills for that too.

Centro girls are less quality compared to during the lockdowns 3+ months ago (2 other guys I spoke with mentioned the same thing). Could be because the 2 week millionaires now. But I have only been back 9 days and in a few weeks that can change quickly with girls coming and going.

Much stronger police presence compared to 3+ months ago. Many foreigner tourists. Three months ago you could see someone getting robbed nearly every night between 6-8 pm. Hell it was almost guaranteed. I have spent Friday, Saturday, and two other nights out until 8:30 and saw nothing.

[Mr Enternational]

It was just very interesting to watch CBP agents assume the worst (the passenger having sex with less-than-legal-age girls) in order to conduct a search and then have to be convinced through their own investigation that the passenger hadn't committed any sex crimes while in Colombia.

Is that what they led you to believe? It is TV. They have to make it interesting.

I have been through immigration probably literally 1000 times and have never been assumed to be doing what you say you saw in the show. You think some mf that has only been through 2 or 3 times could be so lucky? I have even told them on multiple occasions that I was wherever fucking hookers.

Most people they catch like that is because they have been tipped off or are already under investigation by another agency, not because they assume and have it out for them.

I have even come back with a bunch of bootleg movies, software, and clothes and they went through my bag looking for drugs. They didn't give a damn about the bootleg merchandise.

[FlcnHvy]

Did anyone find it difficult to open a 2nd FB account. They seem to restrict it pretty well now. Any advice?

[Quagmire1974]

Have any of you been watching the latest season of "To Catch A Smuggler" on NatGeo? They had a marathon of the show last night (Sunday 7 February) and there were several interesting interactions between passengers returning from Colombia and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents at Miami International Airport. One interaction of interest was an older guy who had a huge sheet of black plastic (to keep the bed clean, he said), sex toys, and a shitload of hard drives and electronic equipment in his luggage. He was briefly detained while CBP agents viewed the pictures that he had saved on his laptop. In the end, he was released and allowed to continue on his way. It was just very interesting to watch CBP agents assume the worst (the passenger having sex with less-than-legal-age girls) in order to conduct a search and then have to be convinced through their own investigation that the passenger hadn't committed any sex crimes while in Colombia.

[Nil Admirari]

If you got tested on Monday afternoon your Friday afternoon would be 96 hours, South Carolina reports between 48 and 72 hours turnaround time. I would think the same in Florida but not sure of the turn around time there. Ask one of the techs what they think when you get in line. Myself, I would with first thing Tuesday morning so I would be pretty sure I'd have it by Friday before my travel. You could always go to a clinic on Thursday afternoon and pay the fee if your not sure. My girl got her's inside the 72 hours. Got the test Midday Friday and she had it by Monday 6 am when she woke up, that was inside the 72 hours and over a weekend so I don't think the labs were working diligently on Sunday Hope this helps you guys save some money for pussy).

A question I hope that Board Members can answer--and which I imagine may be of interest to other BMs looking forward to a return to the Happy Mongering Grounds of Colombia. I'm traveling to Medellin from the US in about two weeks, and had been having trouble finding a clinic that can promise a turnaround time for PCR test results that I could rely on to meet the Colombia 96 hour window. Then, yesterday I spoke with a testing clinic promising results in just 30 minute. However, the representative I spoke with noted that some Countries don't accept tests performed using supplies manufactured by the Company (MESA BIOTECH) that they rely on for this speedy turnaround--and advised me, before scheduling an appointment, to check on whether Colombia has been rejecting PCRs using test kits manufactured by this company. (FYI: Here's link to MESA BIOTECH website: https://www.mesabiotech.com/).

I'm waiting for MESA BIOTECH to return a call I made to see what they could tell me. Question: In the meantime, does anybody out there know:

1. Whether the standard / typical document one gets from testing centers to confirm a negative PCR even mentions the name of the testing kit manufacturer?

2. Whether Colombia border officials are rejecting PCRs based on the manufacturer of the testing supplies? If so, which? Mesa Biotech? Other? (I recall another BM recently mentioning another manufacturer of rapid PCR supplies by name).

Any intel on the above would be much appreciated--why, con suerte, hasta pronto, nos vemos en Colombia.