Hi, I am Manuel, and I am Italian. If you are planning to visit Colombia, I have 6 things to
tell you that you must avoid here in Colombia. The first thing you have to avoid is don’t think
that you can pay for everything, everywhere with a card. Whether it’s a debit card or credit card.
Because in the big city a lot of shops accept cards, but you can find shops, especially in villages or
small towns that do not accept cards. So, you have to bring cash with you just a little bit,
but you will need cash when you go to such places. Alright, so
the next thing to avoid here is if you have a date or a meeting with someone,
don't think they will arrive on time. Especially in Bogota, due to traffic and also,
it’s in the culture it is normal to arrive late. It could be a 10 minutes delay, however,
in my experience in Bogota it is also 30 minutes. So, if you have to meet someone, don’t think
they will arrive on time. Sometimes they do arrive on time specifically in Medellin,
usually arriving on time, but it is not very common. So, you should be aware of this.
Well, the next thing is don’t think that you can communicate easily with your English here with the
people. You have to know a little bit of Spanish because if you know the basics of Spanish,
you can have a different experience here communicating with the people easily.
And you can also discover a lot of new things. So, it is important to learn
basic Spanish because you will not be able to communicate easily with people
in English. I can tell you this because when I went to Latin America for the first time in 2013,
in Brazil I knew only the English language and it was so difficult to communicate and ask people
about simple things. A lot of times people have tried to help me,
but they didn’t understand and also didn’t know the English language.
So, it is important to learn Spanish, and then you will have a great experience here in Colombia.
Don’t forget the umbrella. That’s because the weather in Colombia
and especially in Medellin and Bogota is crazy.
You can go out with the sun but in 30 minutes the rain starts. So don’t forget to take an umbrella
If you are in Colombia, one thing that I want
to suggest to you is to avoid taxis 100%.
Prefer to use Uber because it's safe and with that, you get to know where you are going and how much you are going to pay. Usually, people are friendly but
with the taxi, for example, in Bogota according to my personal opinion, when I took the taxi,
they tried to charge more also, if I was with other Colombian friends. Generally, in my opinion,
Bogota taxi drivers are not very much friendly. But in Medellin, the situation is pretty different
because you can find a good taxi driver and a bad one. And sometimes you can find people when
it is 6 pm. They don’t want to go to some places because of the traffic and too many cars.
But if you take Uber it is always okay, so this is really important to use Uber because it is safer
and great in all aspects. Taxis can be used in situations like if you are in a little town
like in San Gil because there will be no Uber and there is no airport. Only you can take a taxi,
but the taxis are safe, and the drivers are very spontaneous and friendly. They will charge the
same amount because when I tried one time and took a taxi with a friend, it charged like 5000 pesos,
and then I took the taxi alone and paid the same amount. So, this is also another thing
to avoid in Colombia. Try to avoid taxis most of the time and prefer traveling through Uber.
Another important thing that I learned here in Colombia was when I came here for the first time.
It's no DAR DE PAPAYA, the meaning is simple that,
don’t put yourself in a position where people can take advantage of you. Like going out with a fancy
watch or showing other people that you have money.
Just go in normal conditions like in a simple t-shirt like this. And when you feel
some danger, then you should pretend to be more confident. This is very much important
when you are walking on the streets. If you feel like the road that you have is not good,
just change your way. It is very crucial to pay attention to these things because it will help
you a lot when you are staying in Colombia. If you like this video, give a big thumbs up,
and don’t forget to share your thoughts in the comments and tell me what you want
to see in the next videos. Subscribe to the channel and we will see you in the next one.