Wander onto almost any Bogotá plaza and you'll be struck by the multitude of pigeons. Love 'em or hate 'em - and lots of people do hate them - you can't miss them.

I thought a lot about my first article for the Colombian Official Bloggers. Shall I talk about myself? Why I decided to settle down in Colombia? Maybe pick my favourite places? Surely after more than 2 years of extensive travelling in the country I can consider myself an expert. Those would be natural options, I could even make something interesting out of it. But no, not the first post. For this post, I would like to share an emotion, something unexpected that deeply touched me. After all, this is what Colombia is about.

The Pasaje Rivas, a central Bogotá market which offers the essence of Colombianness, commemorated its 120th anniversary this week. The L-shaped pasaje connects Carrera Decima to Calle 10, and is full of souvenirs, furniture, clothing and lots more. Its vendors are proud that the pasaje pioneered the retail trade in Bogotá.

Though I thoroughly enjoyed Santa Marta’s beaches and historical sights, let’s not pretend that one of my favorite things about my trip to Santa Marta wasn’t the eating part. Food is way up there on my list of reasons to travel, and Santa Marta has lots of great things both to eat and drink.