Participation in an education exchange project led by Tulsa Community College provided us with the opportunity to travel to Colombia.
Not far from the Caribbean coast, in the same part of the country that was home to the writer Gabriel García Márquez, is located the pleasant city of Valledupar. Although a mid-sized city, its historic center maintains the character of the small town it once was.
the art
Although the city is not large, it's very active art scene is impressive. Fundamental to traditional arts in this area is the accordion, and the sculpture above wonderfully captures the spirit the music that it produces.
The music of Valledupar his very specific to the region of Colombia where the city is located, and just as with the case of country music in the United States the music genre boasts many legendary figures.
Although in modern time the Vallenato music of Valledupar was dominated by male performers, this is rapidly changing.
This lady is a patron of the arts and works to preserve the traditions of the community. She lives in a home in the city center that has been in her family for 200 years.
In the older part of the city the walls make good canvases for public art, as you can see from this work found on the side of an abandoned building downtown.
The old architecture of the city center makes an excellent setting for commercial photographers working on advertising projects. Here we see a model taking a short rest break during a photo shoot.
Route 66 holds romance for people the world over. Here we see street art celebrating the highway's fame. It made us feel at home.
Decades of peeling and faded paint on this old wall has created a lovely abstract work of public art.
The traditional weaving of the native peoples of the region follows a limited color palette, but the designs may differ greatly.
This is another view of our statistic colors on a decaying urban wall.
At first glance, this building appears abandoned ...but there are indications that perhaps on the weekends it may function as a kind of nightclub.
City Life
This is the exterior of the lovely (but small) hotel where we stayed.
On the day of our arrival we met in the afternoon in the courtyard of our hotel with leaders of the local organizations involved in our visit plan out the details for our schedule. This is good work if you can get it!
Lots of work is still done by hand, and hand pushed carts are still common to see.
Street vendors set up their stands under the shade of sidewalk trees. In Valledupar life is not been trapped in traffic jams, at least in the old city center. Incomes may be lower than in the United States, but the style of life, and the pace of life, produce a quality of life that many Oklahomans would envy.
Vallenato music attracts people to Valledupar from all around the country. Here is a big selection of souvenirs available for sale.
Valledupar is a place for the arts, and even these construction workers seem to be striking and artistic pose.
In a world where everyone is in a rush, the natural pace of life in Valledupar seems very attractive.
Spectacularly delicious fresh fruits can be delivered to your door.
The Water
In the mountains above the city there are cool mountain streams. This lady is a leader of one of the indigenous communities with which we met during our visit.
The banks of the river attract everyone on the weekends.
The cold river water makes for a stimulating outing with your friends.
People are uniformly open and welcoming.
Climbing the rocks for a dive into the river water from above attracts adolescent daredevils.
It seems like a long way down from the top of the boulder, especially when you're going headfirst.
Away from the main area of the river closest to the city, the scene can become much calmer and more serene.
For those who choose not to go in the water the park area adjoining the river reminds me of America of an earlier era.
flowers
Everywhere the flowers of Colombia decorate the environment.
Even a flower fallen on the floor can be beautiful to look at.
The warm year-round temperatures allow for varieties of flowers that we don't find in Oklahoma.
These are flowers that we do find on sale in Oklahoma, but there are only an indoor plant in our climate.
To visit our page with notes about education, click here.
all photographs by
Rodger Randle
Rodger Randle
