Milly's [gay] Guide to Bogotá, Colombia

It's been a little while. Just completed my last week in Bogotá, and it was hectic. There was so much going in both Bogotá and Wellington that the blog got ended up being pushed to the backburner. But it's okay, I am back now. So, what's been happening since you last heard from me? Mostly just finishing up everything. Lots and lots of goodbyes. There was an exhibit we did, but there's a separate post coming on that. We also went to Modern Art Museum and the Gold Museum, and both of those were epic. I did a second trip up Monserrate to do the bird trail. Apparently some species of hummingbirds don't have legs, which is a fact that is haunting me. And, of course, 30+ hours of travel back to New Zealand. I had been told that Santiago Airport is a "shithole", but when we were there the first time I didn't see it. After an 8 hour stopover however, my opinion has shifted. Why is there nowhere to refill your drink bottle? Why is the airport the same shape as ...

 Would this really be a gay guide to Bogotá if I didn’t go to the biggest gay club in the world? For a first clubbing experience, Theatron was certainly an experience. Last night I went to the biggest gay bar in the world, Theatron, located right here in Bogotá. Boasting around 13 different different rooms, it would be an insult to writing a blog about queerness in Bogotá without touching on this place. First impressions were fantastic. I was enjoying exploring all the various floors and was having a good time dancing. There was such a great variety of music from floor to floor, with interesting themes, great cocktails, and an excessive amount of Heineken ads. To think that I was in this massive club, designed for and filled with other queer people, how could I not be having a great time? But then, it happened. The alcohol wore off, and all of a sudden, I was aware of my surroundings. A Colombian told me that “party in Latin America is loud as hell”, and they did not lie. T...

Warning: this contains spoilers for Queer (2024). Okay, so maybe it wasn’t James Bond James Bond. But it was Daniel Craig. And they’re pretty much the same person. Last Sunday I had the experience of watching Luca Guadignino’s Queer, directed by the same guy who made Call Me By Your Name and that weird ass cannibal movie [1] . The movie was based off the 1985 novel by William S Burroughs and is a sequel to his semi-autobiography Junkie. It centres around queer, American immigrant William Lee [2] , played by Daniel Craig, living in Mexico and falling in love with a much younger, seemingly heterosexual man. Oh yeah, and a lot of gay sex. [3] After viewing this movie, I was left with this overwhelming feeling of what-the-fuck-did-i-just-watch. I couldn’t tell if I’d just watched an absolute masterpiece or a complete and utter waste of my time. Now, after sitting on it for a few days, I can say I am leaning towards the latter. This film wasn’t terrible, there was a fair amount to...

  So, a little bit more information on my scholarship. For my remaining two weeks, I am staying with the University of the Andes, or Universidad de Los Andes, or Uniandes. During this time, I am doing Spanish and Theatre. Having now attended Uniandes for about 2 weeks, I have certainly developed some opinions. My first impression of Uniandes was “wow, this place is beautiful.” Walking across the campus felt like walking through a botanical garden. The Andes were right there, with a gorgeous view of them with Monserrate sitting right at the top. Although the buildings varied in architecture, many had that traditional, beautiful Spanish look. Others tended to have a bit of a mall-ish feel, but still retained spectacular views of Bogotá. In terms of queerness, Uniandes gets a big tick from me. I have met many openly queer people, seen signs on bathroom doors encouraging students to use the bathroom which best aligns with their gender identity, and even queer couples doing couple...

Over the past few days, I’ve been quite unwell. This has been entirely my own fault. I’m going to put it bluntly- I’ve been constipated. I treated it like it was something to be embarrassed about. What was really embarrassing was putting off getting help because I didn’t want others to know. I could barely bring myself to tell my tutors, the main people who are supposed to be looking out for my health. In fact, the only reason I did is because it was getting so bad I almost had to go to after-hours. Treating it this way has lead to various consequences. I’ve been in even more constant pain than usual. I tried to just have a “trooper mindset” and pretend nothing was wrong, but all that lead to was me being practically bedridden in pain and unable to eat the moment I got home. I’ve had to miss out on doing some activities too; yesterday we were supposed to do a tour of the local museums but I was too unwell. Even worse, I haven't been able to work on my blog! If I have gained a...

 Hello friends and family, First and foremost, I just want to say thank you for all the support so far! I was meaning to get something a bit bigger out this morning but life has been hectic. Anyone who's travelled internationally before knows that it can be a lot of work physically and mentally. Over the past 5 days I have had some of the most amazing experiences, seen some of the coolest places, and taken my first steps towards a lifelong caffeine addiction. However, it's been a lot.  A few members of my group have become unwell with colds, and I fear I soon might them. I've been feeling a wee bit sniffly these past few days and my throat's a bit scratchy. The altitude (more on that soon) has certainly taken it's toll on me, and if it wasn't for my lord and saviours Ondansetron and Acetazolamide [1] , these past few days would have been spent puking. Not speaking Spanish has also made life that wee bit more challenging, but the people of Bogotá are extremely ki...