I'm in Medellin & this is NOT an episode of Entourage

Pablo Escobar helped to form the Medellin Cartel, which controlled 80% of the cocaine shipped to the U.S. in the late 1980’s and 90’s. Because of this, in 1985 Medellin, Colombia was named the most dangerous city in the world.  Colombia quickly became the world’s murder capital with 25,100 violent deaths in 1991 and 27,100 in 1992. At his height, some say Escobar was making on average 1 million dollars a day. He was named one of the ten richest people on earth by Fortune and Forbes magazines. He built a zoo outside his house for his wife for her birthday and lived a extremely extravagant lifestyle. Escobar was responsible for the construction of many hospitals, schools and churches in western Colombia, which gained him popularity inside the local Roman Catholic Church. He worked hard to cultivate his "Robin Hood” image, and frequently distributed money to the poor through housing projects and other civic activities, which gained him notable popularity among the poor. His rise to infamy cost the lives of three Colombian presidential candidates, an attorney general, a justice minister, more than 200 judges, dozens of journalists, over 1,000 police officers, and hundreds of innocent people. After the assassination of Luis Carlos Galán, a presidential candidate Pablo Escobar turned himself into authorities. He negotiated to go to prison if he built a prison solely for himself. He was confined in what became his own luxurious private prison, La Catedral, where he eventually escaped. Some say he paid off officials and literally walked out the back door. Finally, he was caught and shot to death by members of a special police unit in 1993. The Robin Hood image that he had cultivated continued to have lasting influence in Medellín. Many there, especially many of the city's poor that had been aided by him while he was alive, lamented his death. That was Medellin then and this is Medellin now…

July 19, 2012

The Colombian Flag and the Medellin Flag

Our day began at the mayor of Antioquia's office. Medellin is Antioquia's capital city and the second largest in the country. We were supposed to listen to a lecture by the mayor himself, but he is currently in Bogota meting with the president involving issues about education. Instead we met with Alfonso, who has been in charge of public education policy for more than 8 years.

The goal of this lecture was to explain policies to promote equity and access to education.  Education remains keystone of this administration. Today more than 60% of Medellin’s budget goes to improving the education system! The administration feels that one way to continue to improve this city is by educating the youth and making them aware of the opportunities they have in today’s society. Many children need to be aware that lifestyles of crime, gangs, and drug trafficking are not their only options!

16% of the people within Medellin live in poverty (have no basic needs- electricity & running water), but outside the city 60% of people are living in poverty. This is a tremendous inequity.  The quality of education is much less in these areas and the violence is much higher. Medellin is the most developed region, but there are other communes just outside the city that are extremely poverty stricken. Some of these towns have no electricity or running water. Inequality is closely related to three topics: 1) lack of education 2) corruption  (highest levels of corruption are in outer regions) 3) living in violent environment.

There are several strategies in place to strengthen education: 1) Transform physical space of schools. Many are old and lack basic needs like bathrooms. 2) The quality of teachers. Try to encourage teachers to participate in professional development and obtain a masters degree 3) A program called “The Olympic Games of Knowledge” is where students compete and share knowledge 4) Create safe and comfortable conditions so students stay in school. Bullying, gangs, and discrimination are still big problems in many areas, especially in the outskirts of Bogota. By creating schools that are safe havens for children, they will be motivated to go to school and finish the appropriate academic programs. 

Next we visited Benedikta Sur Niedan School, which has been open for six years. This particular school is in an alliance with a local Montessori school and a private school. With the support of the other schools the administration and staff at The Benedikta Sur Niedan School feel they have made much progress over to improve the quality of education. Soon the Benedikta Sur Niedan School will be under review and hopefully will not need the support of the other school and will be able to operate independently. This school houses early elementary and high school students early in the day. Around noon these students go home for the day and from 1 PM to 6 PM grades 2-5 attend classes. The school year starts in February and ends in November. Students get several vacations each year in December, April, and June. Some classes may have up to 54 students! 

The local university works with high school students. The university gives teachers & students scholarships to further their education. Many students that attend the school are from poverty stricken communities, but the goal of this school is to give these children the same opportunities as the wealthier children throughout Medellin. The administration of the school is committed to adjust the curriculum to meet the needs of the students, not just to teach academics, but also social responsibility to the student. 

The view from the school yard        

Some of the students asked me to sing a song in English. Since I don't sing I took out my iPhone & played some Rihanna. They proceeded to point to me and said, "Lady Gaga!" Not sure if they wanted to hear Lady Gaga or thought I was her, but either way it was adorable! 

Third Grade Classroom 

Jessica & I with a group of students 

The electric stairs

Our next stop, one of the most fascinating parts of my trip thus far, was visiting the electric stairs of Antioquia, Medellin. Before the electric stairs, people high up in the hillside and residents of Comuna 13 had to climb up to 28 flights of stairs a day to reach the center of the city. I can’t imagine how difficult this task must have been for the elderly, handicapped, and kids going to school. Areas like this, with little access to the city, have been some of the most dangerous in the past, especially in the days of Escobar. Crime such as gang violence and drug smuggling were and in many areas still are common for those who live in areas like this that don’t have easy access to the city. 

 Thanks to a massive, outdoor escalator constructed by the Colombian government and funded by architects and entrepreneurs from several other countries, this project (with an estimated cost of over $6 million dollars) has helped the people in these communities get into the city in just minutes. The third phase of this project is still under construction and there is hope that it will be completed within the next month. After that there are plans to reroute public buses to the bottom of the escalator, therefore people using the escalator will have easy access to transportation inside the city. An estimated 10,000 people a week travel on the stairs. In recent months architects from Haiti have come to observe the stairs. The stairs are a simple solution for a problem that has been going on for years. Hopefully, the idea of the stairs spreads to other parts of Colombia and other countries, giving job opportunities and easy access to many that would have never before had the chance.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJMdDZTj16M

Murals painted by locals (some even gang members) line the walls by the electric stairs 

A view of Medellin from Comuna 13 

Some of the people that live way up top still have to climb some stairs to get to their houses. 

Before the stairs everyone from this neighborhood had to climb the stairs in these narrow walk ways.

The final construction. 

My lunch: Chicken with a creamy white cheesy mushroom sauce, yuca, potatoes, bread, and sangria! Don't know the Spanish name for this dish, but it was muy delicious! 

In the evening, a few of us went out in search of some good food and found health foods restaurant.  Emily and I split a grilled chicken wrap and a Greek salad!

Tomorrow is Colombian Independence Day and apparently today is a huge part night! The streets were packed! It reminded me of a combination of NYC on Thanksgiving Eve and New Orleans on a regular week night. Women were dressed to impress. I have to admit, I'm a little homesick! Miss my loves, trendy girls, and wished you were all here to experience such amazing days! My night ended the panoramic view from my hotel rooftop. I can't get enough of the mountains, city skyline, and fresh air!
Till tomorrow....