Medellin Reports

[Srr300]

Hello all,

I had a question for anybody who has recently visited Medellin. In regards to the mandated covid vaccine. At what point will I be required to show proof? Am I required to pull up my vaccine info on my states website or can I just show the original card? Also will Colombian officials be inputting my info into a date base to confirm my vaccine, or is it as simple as just showing my card, and send me on my way?

[Knowledge]

I've been very lucky to not have lost or had a passport stolen. Years ago I was on a business trip when a colleague had his rental car broken into and his passport was stolen. He had to stay behind for several days and take a flight to the capital to get a replacement at the consulate. I treasure those reminders that don't cost me any pain.

I'm old school, and not technical.

I have three phones in Colombia. Two of them are USA "I" phones, and with Verizon. And I also have two spare Verizon SIM cards I brought from the USA as you mentioned.

The two "I" phones basically stay locked up, except when I'm travelling around the Country.

My USA phones are my lifeline to my family / business in the USA, and I know I'm paying a lot for them, but need the security of not losing contact with the USA.

To illustrate how much of a problem it can be for a visitor to lose an American cell phone in Colombia, I have a buddy that last month had his American cell phone stolen in Centro.

He basically was hosed, being cut off from the USA in regards to all his contacts and other things like online banking, online boarding passes, until he returned home.

So your advice is good for others to think about as I have done exactly as you suggested, having immediate back-up in the event of losing one of my American cell phones.

However, when I'm in Centro, and most places in Medellin, I have a $ 20 USD Nokia burner phone with a Colombian number registered with Claro.

It costs me less than one USD dollar a month to maintain.

Again I'm old school, and don't need a smart phone to navigate and conduct my activities in Medellin, yet know most need a smart phone and / or are totally lost or handicapped without one..

[Knowledge]

Surfer and others who need to access contacts associated with a certain number, US or otherwise, can pull a contact file and set up an account on the domain (msn, gmail, yahoo, etc) of your choice. Once that account is linked any of the smartphones you own you can access them from any of those smartphones. So Surfer you have the spare SIM, that is by far the most important piece. You can recover your service independently of a phone that might get lost, stolen, or damaged. By the way, you aren't really an old fart Luddite until you resort to buying minutes from the cigarette / tinto / candy vendors instead of carrying the burner phone. You are the ultimate Centro rat because your dates have better phones than you. LOL!

It doesn't really matter what country you purchase your phone in as long as it's unlocked. For example I have an Unlocked Huawei P30 I purchased in Mexico. When I'm in Mexico I have a Telcel sim card that I use and when I'm in Colombia I have a Claro sim card. And when I'm in the US working, the telcel will roam off of T-mobile and I also used to have a prepaid AT&T sim card that works in it as well as a GCI sim card in Alaska. The bottom line is you just need one phone and wherever you go you buy a prepaid simcard and you swap sim cards and it works flawlessly. The Claro sim card litterally cost me I think 3 or 4 k COP and you can load it up with a 6 K recarga. All you people buying extra phones and carrying 2 or 3 phone are just wasting your money. Also to stay connected to the US you can use apps like Talkatone to make unlimited calls to the US thru your data or wifi connection, regardless of where you are in the world.

[Gabacho]

I'm old school, and not technical.

I have three phones in Colombia. Two of them are USA "I" phones, and with Verizon. And I also have two spare Verizon SIM cards I brought from the USA as you mentioned.

The two "I" phones basically stay locked up, except when I'm travelling around the Country.

My USA phones are my lifeline to my family / business in the USA, and I know I'm paying a lot for them, but need the security of not losing contact with the USA.

To illustrate how much of a problem it can be for a visitor to lose an American cell phone in Colombia, I have a buddy that last month had his American cell phone stolen in Centro.

He basically was hosed, being cut off from the USA in regards to all his contacts and other things like online banking, online boarding passes, until he returned home.

So your advice is good for others to think about as I have done exactly as you suggested, having immediate back-up in the event of losing one of my American cell phones.

However, when I'm in Centro, and most places in Medellin, I have a $ 20 USD Nokia burner phone with a Colombian number registered with Claro.

It costs me less than one USD dollar a month to maintain.

Again I'm old school, and don't need a smart phone to navigate and conduct my activities in Medellin, yet know most need a smart phone and / or are totally lost or handicapped without one.

I thought about upgrading my burner phone to a cheap smart phone, but I like having all my contact information on my primary USA phone number.

My Colombian burner phone is more just for emergencies then anything else.

My situation is perhaps unique, I'm just an old fart, and maybe should step up to the plate and just get a Colombian smart phone. I know they are in-expensive, and data is cheap.

But you know the saying, you can't teach an old dog a new trick.

Another alternative for visitors is to get a cheap Colombian smart phone upon arriving, and just use it in Colombia, this is what my buddy did.

So my advice to other board members here is very simple. If you you only have a USA cell phone in Colombia, and don't have a back-up phone you can activate within Colombia. You need to be very cautious about losing it.

I have basically only two things of value when travelling abroad, my Passport and my USA cell phone in that order.

It doesn't really matter what country you purchase your phone in as long as it's unlocked. For example I have an Unlocked Huawei P30 I purchased in Mexico. When I'm in Mexico I have a Telcel sim card that I use and when I'm in Colombia I have a Claro sim card. And when I'm in the US working, the telcel will roam off of T-mobile and I also used to have a prepaid AT&T sim card that works in it as well as a GCI sim card in Alaska. The bottom line is you just need one phone and wherever you go you buy a prepaid simcard and you swap sim cards and it works flawlessly. The Claro sim card litterally cost me I think 3 or 4 k COP and you can load it up with a 6 K recarga. All you people buying extra phones and carrying 2 or 3 phone are just wasting your money. Also to stay connected to the US you can use apps like Talkatone to make unlimited calls to the US thru your data or wifi connection, regardless of where you are in the world.

[DirtyDJ]

Anyone know of a good cigar spot? I found one in Parque Lleras with no selection and what they did have, they were charging 80 mil a stick for!

[JjBee62]

So I guess I would want to avoid the meter maids because they are definitely clock watchers! BaDumTiss!

That one deserves an award. Great joke.

[JjBee62]

There is a police station at Botero near the metro station stairs. AT the time there were small groups of police (20+ total) standing around during shift change outside the police station. Some have guns some do not and different uniforms because there are different levels of police (newbie in training, foot patrol, motorcycle).

Thank you for not being there and telling me I am wrong based on the simple location given as Botero. I never mentioned what she was wearing. I assume you personally know the only Filipina face looking girl I am speaking of right because you know everything else about damn near everything on the planet?

Where did that come from? My response was concerning the cop JohnnieWalker said he picked up, it had nothing to do with the cop you saw.

Even if I was talking about the one you saw, read it again. "I believe" is how my post begins. What part of "I believe" makes you think I'm telling you, or anyone else they are wrong?

Let's go one step further. Assume I said "The cop you're talking about probably belongs to the transit police." Do you consider that an attack? Whether she's one of the transit police, or a member of the national police doesn't change anything. She still looks the same. Your experience was still the same. There's nothing in there questioning the accuracy of your report. And that's forgetting that I wasn't even talking about your report.

A simple response, if I had been talking about the cop you saw, would have been "No. She was wearing the national police uniform.

You can take or ignore this advice. Don't read every response as an attack directed at you. Most aren't.

[Srr300]

Hello all,

For those who have recently visited Medellin:

As for the required covid vaccine to enter the country, at what point will I be required to show proof of vaccination? Also does the vaccine need to be registered online or can I simply show them my card? If I'm able to show my physical card. Will Colombian officials attempt to input my info into a database to confirm my card or will they just glance at it and send me on my way?

Also, do I require booster shots to enter the country?

[Nounce]

...I often wonder what happens when you don't have the $$ when you go to pay them...

I was with two pinays one time. One in the bathroom stole from my pant pocket and left the exact amount for me to pay them. This is not the first time I met them so I left my guard down.

[Nounce]

... Is Loutron in Medellin the same? What would a full HR, all inclusive go for? ...

Loutron is like a casa. The price is fixed at around 300 K COP, sex included. I think you can just go to Hotel M directly.

[Huacho]

I am in Medellin for the next three days and am looking for some of the best FS girls money can buy.

Go to Costa Rica.

[Hunglow1625]

They are talented.

It blows my mind these chicas will steal the very $$ you are going to pay them with for their services.

I often wonder what happens when you don't have the $$ when you go to pay them because they have hidden it on their person? They call the Police? It makes you want to hide a Rat trap in your belongings so that they get their greedy fingers snared and will think about trying that on the next guy.

[Surfer500]

I thought you were going to get a spare SIM and an unlocked smartphone you don't mind losing. Why continue to inconvenience yourself this way? You can activate a spare SIM within minutes of realizing your primary phone is lost, stolen, or damaged beyond use. An hour of inconvenience at a mobile phone store the next time you are in America will take end the worry and deprivation. Depending on the carrier you can get a spare at one of their retail outlets or at a big box retailer or electronics store of the Walmart or Best Buy variety.

I'm no tough guy. I don't want to have my phone stolen and I would never put up a fight to keep it in the event of robbery. I just prefer the convenience of my dual SIM phone with always on data service.

I'm old school, and not technical.

I have three phones in Colombia. Two of them are USA "I" phones, and with Verizon. And I also have two spare Verizon SIM cards I brought from the USA as you mentioned.

The two "I" phones basically stay locked up, except when I'm travelling around the Country.

My USA phones are my lifeline to my family / business in the USA, and I know I'm paying a lot for them, but need the security of not losing contact with the USA.

To illustrate how much of a problem it can be for a visitor to lose an American cell phone in Colombia, I have a buddy that last month had his American cell phone stolen in Centro.

He basically was hosed, being cut off from the USA in regards to all his contacts and other things like online banking, online boarding passes, until he returned home.

So your advice is good for others to think about as I have done exactly as you suggested, having immediate back-up in the event of losing one of my American cell phones.

However, when I'm in Centro, and most places in Medellin, I have a $ 20 USD Nokia burner phone with a Colombian number registered with Claro.

It costs me less than one USD dollar a month to maintain.

Again I'm old school, and don't need a smart phone to navigate and conduct my activities in Medellin, yet know most need a smart phone and / or are totally lost or handicapped without one.

I thought about upgrading my burner phone to a cheap smart phone, but I like having all my contact information on my primary USA phone number.

My Colombian burner phone is more just for emergencies then anything else.

My situation is perhaps unique, I'm just an old fart, and maybe should step up to the plate and just get a Colombian smart phone. I know they are in-expensive, and data is cheap.

But you know the saying, you can't teach an old dog a new trick.

Another alternative for visitors is to get a cheap Colombian smart phone upon arriving, and just use it in Colombia, this is what my buddy did.

So my advice to other board members here is very simple. If you you only have a USA cell phone in Colombia, and don't have a back-up phone you can activate within Colombia. You need to be very cautious about losing it.

I have basically only two things of value when travelling abroad, my Passport and my USA cell phone in that order.

[JjBee62]

Since we're on the subject of theft, I'll add my advice / experience. All theft attempts (successful and unsuccessful) I've experienced in Colombia were from street girls from Centro Medellin and Santa Fe Bogota. I've never seen an FB girl attempt thievery or maybe I'm lucky.

1. One girl rummaged through my backpack while I was in the shower. Backpack was empty so no dice for her.

2. One girl stuffed her hands in my pants, which was lying next to both of us, when I was coming. This is the time when a guy's brain is overloaded with the orgasm, but I just happened to see her reaching into the pants pocket. Nothing in the pants pockets so nada for her. She also tried the same thing while she's on the cowgirl position.

3. Daniela (as mentioned from my previous post) also stole money from my pants pocket. In my Airbnb at the time I had a mirror in my bathroom where I can see most of the things that happen behind me as I was using it. But I stopped paying attention for 20 seconds. She used her body to block my view and took some money. After this I stopped leaving any significant amount of cash in my pants.

4. I left about 30 mil worth of cash on a nightstand..

I do know of a few Facebook girls who have stolen from guys, but they aren't that common. Most of them understand that their reputation can quickly be ruined and will try to avoid any bad publicity.

Thieves, along with the recently mentioned tortures and murders, are more likely from Tinder. It's anonymous. On Facebook they have friends, family and quite a bit of their personal information. That makes them much easier to track down. On Tinder, they just delete one account and open another.

[Sargon76]

I believe the police officer mentioned belongs to the transit police. Those are the ones in blue enforcing things like pico and placa. Effectively meter maids..

So I guess I would want to avoid the meter maids because they are definitely clock watchers! BaDumTiss!