Social Issues and Weather

I have been in Colombia a little over 3 weeks.  In those three weeks, I have had maid service for almost everything until we came to this apartment.  A lot of people have maids and drivers.  They are not necessarily rich.  However, if you are a professional (which then makes you well off in comparison), then you are expected to have, no other way to put it, servants.  It has been such an eye opener.  I am an American who comes from humble backgrounds.  My father was a doorman and my mom worked as a teacher's aide before I was born.  Their parents were servants and factory workers and a fisherman.  I see the servants here and I talk to them, hang out in the kitchen with them and ultimately we became friends.   Their children are lucky to get jobs with them and work in  the kitchens, cleaning rooms in hotels, etc.  My grandmother could not read or write and yet her grandchildren include lawyers, doctors, nurses, hotel managers, and various other professions that she could only dream her grandchildren would become.  There are some serious barriers to becoming a professional here in Colombia if you come from a poor family.  If you aren't born into the right family, you are out of luck.  We are so fortunate in the U.S. to really have all the opportunities available to us to study and become successful in whatever we choose.  This trip has allowed me to be grateful for all that I have and all that I can give my daughters.  Stefania's life will be so different than if she would have stayed in Colombia.  Racism, classism are alive and well everywhere but it is still pretty blatant here.  Bogota especially.  Cali is more diverse and Black professionals were prevalent because Stefania's lawyer and one of her doctors was Black.  I did not see any Indigenous professionals but I haven't visited cities where they are prevalent.  They are everywhere but they tend to be very poor.  My daughter is indigenous and will exceed her biological mother's dreams for her.  Angel and I have both made that promise to her (though we haven't met her or been in contact with her).  We left her letters at the orphanage if she ever goes to find out about Stefania.  I do think Colombia is on the right track though.  I think things are changing, slowly but surely.

Again these are my observations and they could be totally wrong.  I am an outsider and the intricacies and history of Colombia are their own.

Now on to the weather.  Bogota is going through a rough winter.  Lots of rain. (though all pictures I have ever seen are of Bogota in a cloudy haze).  I could not live here just because of the depressing weather.  Rain, wind, my least favorite things.  We get scolded for not having anything more than windbreakers or sweaters.  Apparently it is "freezing" and when we tell them we are from the Northeast of the U.S. they apparently think the "cold" of Bogota is worse.  High today 66, low 46 with a light drizzle.  Bogotanos take them themselves a little too seriously and need to lighten up a little when it comes to the weather.  We have been scolded about the girls jackets a little too much.  My girls just experienced a winter of over 20 snowstorms.  I think they can hang in 50 degree weather.  Everytime we go out and ask the girls if they are cold, they look at us with a weird look and say, "uh, it's nice out."  We are just sarcastic New Yorkers I guess.   Now poor Stefania has never been in cold weather before being a Cali girl but she gets all the layers so she can be cozy.  She likes being outside so I don't think it affects her too much.