Talking about playing soccer in cities about 2.500 m:

I just loved this picture!

Shakira in Mexico....

This was a concert I was looking for to attend for a long time... and finally the perfect timing appeared, it was in Mexico city, in the second biggest square in the world, the famous Zocalo, and it was for free!!!

Sustainable shopping...

I was checking this site: We are what we do looking for ways to act in a more sustainable way, and I found a very easy way to make this world a better place... avoid plastic.

For a while I was thinking of the hundreds of plastic bags that I have at home pilled up behind the washing maching, I was trying re-using (I use them to bring my lunch everyday to the office), but after checking this web, it made a click, besides re-using I can try rejecting and explaining people the reasons why plastic is not a good idea (education)...

So, the last time I went to the supermarket I brought a paper bag with me and put all my items there, I politely said to the cashier that I did not need one more plastic bag, that I had brought my own bag in order to contribute to the environment... I think she did not understood the point very well.. but it felt so good to do this small thing... then I thought that I could bring to the supermarket some of the plastic bags I have at home at least for my personal usage... although maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea to have a bag/plastic deposit for clients, so they can recycle it afterwards... suddenly some more ideas appeared and it makes more and more sense to me.

Some facts about plastic:

• It takes approximately two billion barrels of oil to service the plastic bag industry in this country alone
• A plastic bag can take up to 500 years to decay

It is amazing to realize how many simple, effortless things you can do, and how big is their impact if more and more people start implementing them... hope you also get involved!! :)

ABN AMRO What is the deal?

The news are everywhere, ABN AMRO (the bank where I am doing my internship) is being sold.

But the question that remains in the air, is who is going to buy it? Not because no one would have appetite for it, but all the contrary, there are at least 4 banks that have showed how starving they are for our businesses.

Last monday, it was announced that ABN AMRO and Barclays had come to a selling agreement, creating a new bank that would be owned 52% by Barclays and 48% by ABN AMRO, creating the biggest/strongest bank in the world. The offer was valued in €67.000 m. Additionally ABN agreed to sell La Salle bank, their bank in the United States, to Bank of America for $21 billion.

Until then fine... everybody thought that this was a fact and the sell was going to be completed, but as it was also expected the consortium formed by RBS (Royal Bank of Scotland), Santander and Fortis made his call.

They offered €72.000 m, but conditioned to include La Salle bank in the package (this is the most atractive piece for RBS). With this offer speculation increased and the certainty of who will get the bid, from one side Barclays represented the best option (supported by the management board) for the continuity and sinergy that it can bring to ABN, also shareholders were adviced that this would be the best option for them.

From the other side, the "consortium" is not giving up, and has offered the 70% of the offer in cash (very atractive for shareholders), and had threaten ABN to put in hands of shareholders (instead of the ones of the management board) the decision to buy,

So here my question would be, would shareholders go the easy way accepting short-term benefits (cash), regardless it would mean the break up of a bank that has stand strong during almost two centuries, OR will they be interested in creating long term value taking advantages of the sinergies that can be created with Barclays, walking the sustainability talk for which has been awarded and recognized during the last years?

Only time will answer this question, while the answer come, we can be nothing but spectators, hoping that decision makers could be concerned about other stakeholders different to the ones that owns the stocks and who will be greatly impacted by this decision.

Michoacan... a state that worths the visit!

Last eastern Mario and me travel to Michoacan (like 3 hours from DF), we stayed most of the time in Morelia, but we had the opportunity to visit Patzcuaro and Janitzio two unique places of Michoacan.

I found Morelia, very beautiful, it is a small city that conserves the colonial spirit and body, the historical centre is enriched by the many buildings that stay as if we were still living in the XVII century, but with most of the benefits of contemporary times.

I can't save adjectives for the people in Michoacan, they are so kind and helpful, and at the same time so proud of their history, although pretty conservative, they are open to welcome the tourist and offer them a great stay in their towns...

Some pics from the trip:
left: the hotel "La soledad"
right: Palacio Clavijero



Pics from Janitzio:
left: the island
right: street markets in Janitzio

More Carnival Stories... yo te ame con gran delirio!

April 1st, good day to celebrate Barranquilla's carnival in Mexico... why not???

When my friend lyz invited me to be part of the Carnival of Barranquilla that would be celebrated in Mexico, I did not think it twice, I said COUNT ME IN!!! I never danced in a carnival in the 21 years I lived in Barranquilla, and I knew that I'm not the best Cumbia dancer that could represent my city, but hey I was in Mexico, and they dance cumbia as salsa.. so WHO CARES!!!!

The idea was to bring the carnivals to the colombian community in Mexico, and of course to mexicans to give them a sense of what celebration of carnivals really is (read the story of Veracruz below). So sponsorship was got, and more groups were included, invitations were sent to other latin communities and some Bolivian, Venezuelan and Brazilean people joined us in our celebration.

We had dances, music, delicious food and hundreds of people dancing during daylight regardless the hot sun and then the rain that came over us during the afternoon... good times!

More pics: at the left with Cami and at the right with Mario

Unexpected visit!

Some weeks ago, Rita came to visit me in DF after attending the AXLDS (AIESEC conference) in Guanajuato, we were together about 18 hours in total, but we did all possible to update each other about the moves that our lives have taken since last time we met. Time can pass but our friendship stays firm and strong!

Here a pic of Rita and me in my office...

Carnivals in Veracruz...

Traveling to Veracruz last february I discovered a city that mixes colonial arquitecture, beach and carnivals, in my search for identification I thought of it as a combination between Cartagena in Barranquilla.. only that different :)

The city was VERY crowded, so I did not particulary relaxed during this time, but hey who is looking for relaxation in the middle of the carnival?? crazy me...

Carnivals in Veracruz, are really interesting, it consist of 3 days parades, only that they are exactly the same, same groups dancing, same cars, same all.. so I guess they do it to give people more opportunities to see them (or maybe it is just lack of creativity). Parades, are kind of similiar to the ones in Barranquilla, the distance that the parade marches is about 5 km, the streets are closed for cars, and people stay in each side of the road, giving space to the folckloric groups, costumes, and celebrities to take over the street with music and color.

Given the fact that for the next day we would see the same parade, and the beaches besides of not being very nice were completely packed we decided to go to the acquarium, which mexicans claim to be the biggest one in Latin america (btw, what is the thing/complex with brazileans and mexicans with size???). I don't know if it is but I really liked it, there were "rayas", sharks, nemos, and many other animals from the ocean.. but not dolphins :(

P.S: Mexicans be prepared for the next biggest acquarium in latin american project that will take place of course in Rio de Janeiro - Brazil... it seems like it is a neverending battle!!!

Some updates...

I just realized that I haven't written so much in my blog during my stay in Mexico, I guess is a combination of not having time in the office, and not being able to upload my pics, but this week I was able to overcome these two challenges, since my boss is out of the office (so I don't have to work 12 hours a day!) and my roomie bought a computer that I could use yesterday night to upload my pics, so.. here I go.

Bosque de Chapultepec

It claims to be the biggest green area in Latin America built in an urban zone, and it surely is. It has a lot of attractions: A very interesting zoo that keeps the animals in a habitat very similar to their original one, a big lake (artificial one), a very nice castle (where former presidents and independecy heroes used to live), a wonderful musuem (Museo Antropologico) that describes perfectly the old tribes that used to exist in different parts of the country, and lots and lots of green. I think every part of the bosque deserves its own post but I just wanted to give you a sense of how especial this place is.

This Bosque, is visited for some hundreds of thousand of mexicans and foreigners every weekend, unlike most parks in Brazil, people visit them not to make sports (like running, biking, skating, etc.), more likely mexicans will eat "tortas" (their version of sandwich), tacos, or yes.. fruits, only that their fruits will contain chile (in powder) and lemon! very unique!!

Tchauzinho querido...

When I arrived to mexico, the first familiar face I saw was him.. Filipe, who had arrived only 3 weeks before to Mexico city, and who would be my mate for trips, cinema, parties, and much more.

Yesterday in the airport, it was not easy to let you go, and even if it sounds like cliche, there is a big part of you with me (and it weights about 30 kilos!!!!) :) :)

I will treasure all the time we spent together my dear, I know life will put us together again in the same land, I wish you all the best, and be sure that I will miss you tons!
beijao enoooooorme!!!

The earth is moving... my first earthquake!

well.. I actually did not feel it, but while i was sleeping, I heard someone screaming downstairs: EVERYBODY LEAVE THE HOUSE!!!! so I had to wake up, since it was dark outside the window I only could see a shadow of someone running to the garage door, and I thought Oh sh.. we are being assalted!!! (again!! since I was already assalted here in Mexico, just one block from my house!)
I woke up my roomie and we went to meet the others, finding out that what really attacked us was a 6.3 earthquake that lasted 30 seconds but that thanks God it did not make major damages however it was enough to make people go to the streets in Pijama at midnight!
After the earthquake there were about 9 more, with a smaller intensity, and unfortunately I think I will have some more, since Mexico is very susceptible to this kind of incidents, however I only pray they are not as strong as the one in 85 that almost destroyed the city (high buildings, old houses, and sadly many people)... especially when they say that these events tend to be repeated every 20 years... (so.. maybe it is about time...)
Anyways, this is my quick update, I'm fine, happy, working, and living... the earth keeps on moving!

Otro triunfo para Betty...

this post goes in Spanish for my colombian fellows!

En una noche en que se enfrentaba la industria del cine mexicano (que vive uno de sus mejores momentos) y la cultura telenovelistica tan caracteristica de Mexico pero esta vez con un fuerte componente colombiano, Betty la fea, o mejor La fea mas Bella acaparó la atención de todo Mexico.

Mientras los directores, actores, guionistas y fotógrafos mexicanos nominados al Oscar vivían una de las experiencias más importantes de su vida, al ser protagonistas de la 79 edición de la entrega del premio más famoso del cine, en México la dos televisoras más importantes peleaban por ganar la audiencia.

Así, Televisión Azteca apostó a la transmisión en vivo de la ceremonia de premiación del Oscar, mientras que Televisa, en un hecho inédito en la historia de la televisión nacional, programó en domingo y en el mismo horario (19:00 horas) el final de la telenovela La fea más bella, que protagonizaron Angélica Vale y Jaime Camil, y que la población mexicana siguió fielmente desde hace meses.

El final de la telenovela La fea más bella acaparó la preferencia de los televidentes la noche del domingo, pues superó al programa competidor, la 79 entrega de los Oscares, por 33.5 unidades de rating, llegando a su punto más alto de audiencia a las 9:15, cuando tenían 48 puntos de rating y 67 puntos de share, es decir, en algún momento de la noche, 67 de cada 100 televisores encendidos estaban monitoreando el final de La fea.

Marca un hito...

• La fea más bella duró trece meses y se convirtió en la telenovela de más altos ratings en los últimos años


• Cinco veces fue cambiada de horario debido a su creciente sintonía


• Es la única novela que ha terminado en domingo


• Nunca antes el final de una telenovela había durado tres horas y media

Candelaria's day

Here I am again discovering new things from Mexico, today I was surprised with the announcement that we would have TAMALES sponsored by AAB (my bank) in the cafeteria... the reason?? Today was the dia de la candelaria, and to celebrate it Mexicans eat Tamales and Atole, two very "typical" mexican foods.

Well, to my surprise Tamal is just what we call in Colombia "BOLLO" some corn based stuff that is wrapped in Corn leaves. Of course the Mexican ones had chili and Mole, which means they were HOT!!!

What is this tradition about?? well I have to go back to January 6, el dia de Reyes (the three kings or three wise men), a day when children get gifts from these kings (again!!! since most of them also received gifts in xmas from santa!).

In the afternoon, family and friends gather to share the "Rosca de Reyes" , which is a traditional wreath-shaped bread that is made only during the first days of January. On that day we had Rosca de Reyes at work offered by the bank, and then at home offered by AIESEC members :)

The Rosca is served with chocolate caliente (hot chocolate), and tamales. Hidden inside this delicious rosca, are several small figurines, of Baby Jesus. Each person cuts a slice of the rosca, and whoever gets the baby figurine has to invite everyone present to a new party on February 2, Candelaria day.

On February second, Candelaria day, the many Baby Jesus figurines are taken from the nativity scene to the church to be blessed. Practically all the markets will restore, paint and dress these dolls for the occasion. This year the Catholic church asked mexicans not to dress baby Jesus with Charro or Soccer player dress since according to them the image was not a toy and respect should be showed!

Apparently, this particular tradition comes from the Mexicas (an acient indigeneous grou) and it was "catholized" after the colonization, for Mexicas the 2nd of Feb was the first day of the month and the day when they honored the Tlaloques, representants of the Rain god, Tláloc. This day they used to sacrify children that they dressed with special outfits in order to pray for good crops.

SOCCER IN MEXICO

Just like in Colombia or Brazil, Soccer is like the national sport here in Mexico... so I was very curious about going to my first game.
I had to admit that the experience was very different here in Mexico, as you see in the pic, games are one of those activities to attend in FAMILY, yes, they take all the gang to the stadium, dressed with the colors of their favourite team, they eat tacos, tortas, carrots with chile (hot!), quesadillas and all mexican typical fast food available...
The game was Cruz Azul vs Pachuca, Cruz Azul is one of the teams from Mexico City, and Pachuca is the team where three colombians are playing, so guess for whom I was cheering?? :)
The game was really nice, it was the first of the season but we had the chance to see 5 good goals, 3 of them made by Cruz Azul which means that Pachuca lost, but I still had a lot of fun!
The weirdest thing of all was the show in the break, we had a group of fighters "luchadores", who played soccer with some random people from the audience, only that the rules of the game were kind of different, allowing all the acrobacies and special moves like "tijera", "salto mortal", to quote a few of the complex fighter moves that we are used to see in cable from MExican TV stations.
I think I will try again this experience, now I'm looking forward to see the CHIVAS of Guadalajara, according to some people, the best team in this country... I'll let you know!

Año Nuevo en Acapulco
I'm one month late with the post but in order to satisfy your curiosity, let me tell you about ACAPULCO!
Getting there took us about 6 hours in car from Mexico, it was sooooo nice to see the sea again and such a relaxed/informal environment.
As we were driving around the city, I could enjoy the beautiful views of the beach and the bays, mixed with the glamour of sofisticated hotels and houses located around the beach. In fact some famous people in Mexico have huge houses in Acapulco, like Luis Miguel or Thalia for example.

The center of the city has plenty of options for bars, discos, restaurants, making night life very active in this city! Actually more than for having nice beaches Acapulco is nowadays famous for the crazy and wild parties that take place there.


My friends and I stayed in a beach located at 30 mins from the center, it was called Pie de la Cuesta, it was very quiet, taking into account that half of mexico city was in Acapulco, so it was like an oasis in the middle of the madness for new year's eve.

Dos colombianos fueron elegidos entre los líderes jóvenes más destacables del planeta

Se trata de la directora de 'Amigos del Chocó', Catalina Cock, y el codirector del Banco de la República, Juan Mario Laserna, quienes fueron destacados por el Foro Económico Mundial (FEM).
Un total de 25 de jóvenes latinoamericanos han sido incluidos en la lista de 250 "Jóvenes líderes mundiales", difundida hoy por el FEM, en la que se incluyen personalidades de 70 países.

(noticia completa en: ELTIEMPO)

yeah, those are excellent news, I'm sooooooooooo proud of my country and especially of this young woman who is working everyday to make from this world a better place.
Catalina, is an ASHOKA fellow who is tackling the environment issue, with innovative ways to avoid deforastation involving the communities affected. I had the pleasure to meet her last year in our EXPLORA meeting in Colombia, where she was a speaker and shared with us the experience of being a social entrepreneur.
It is hard to put in words how excited I feel with this recognition, and I only hope this can inspire more people to change the world... yeah, I'm still a dreamer, but this kind of people are the ones that feed my dreams and make me think it is possible to reach them.

Xmas in Mexico

My 4th xmas in a row out of town, again a time to realize that friends can be family too (although not replacing them, I missed you guys)

we exchanged gifts, offered food from our countries (Czech Rep, Germany, Colombia, Brazil, Spain, Panama, England, Bolivia, Ecuador, Chile and Mexico!).. my speciality this time was turkey with mushrooms and almonds sauce... not typical from Colombia, but I had to do something with the Turkey I got from work (thanks ABN) :) but we also had NATILLA and I tried to offer some buñuelos, but I had to learn that Queso Crema is not a good option for buñuelos :( so we had to pass on buñuelos this time.

XOCHIMILCO

Xochimilco lies 28 km south of Mexico City. With its network of canals and artificial islands, it testifies to the efforts of the Aztec people to build a habitat in the midst of an unfavourable environment (as they did with what today is Mexico City too). Its characteristic urban and rural structures, built since the 16th century and during the colonial period; have been preserved in an exceptional manner.

As usual, Hana and Filipe were part of this journey, so we woke up early in a saturday morning to discover the beauties of Xochimilco.

The whole city, or to be more precise "village", still looks like the colonial times, it is beautiful coloured, the streets are small, and even if it is a touristic city, it keeps the simplicity of mexicas, and it is amazingly cheap!

The main attraction in Xochimilco are the trajineras that is the name they give to the boats that take you around the channels of the city in a very typical mexican style, in fact while you are in your boat you can get a serenata by mariachis, northern bands or instrumental music, you can get mexican food served in your boat, or simply bring from home food and your sound system and start the party in your own boat!!

Acuerdate de Acapulco... Remember Acapulco...


Although I decided it at the very last minute, today I'm heading to Acapulco to spend new year's eve. I'm priviledged I know it and I thank God for it :)
This city has been in my mind for so many years, and I know is the dream of my mom, my cousin ofelia and many more to visit this city, I can't believe that it is actually happening, and I promisse to enjoy this trip on your behalf! :)
Hope you celebrate this new year in peace and filled with happiness wherever you are. God bless you and happy new year!!



(pics stolen from Filipe's post) soon my own will come!

Posadas: The mexican way to prepare for xmas!

One of the main traditional events that occur in december here in Mexico is the Posadas. This is something similar to what we do in Colombia (the novenas), as it is an event that takes place everyday since the 16th of december (exactly 9 days before xmas).

Posadas, recall the journey that Jose and Maria did in order to find a place to give birth to Jesus, knocking every possible door to spend the night, they couldn't find any place until some sheepers gave them refuge.

And as religious as it can be, Posadas are actually very fun; basically families, friends and neighbors get together in a house, and traditional food are served ( mexican tamales), and when everybody has arrived they divide in two groups to start the act, one group stays inside the house representing the owners of the house and the other group goes outside to represent jose and maria, they sing some songs (canticos) which main versus says:

"En nombre del cielo os pido posada, pues no puede andar mi esposa amada". In the name of Heaven, I ask thou shelter, since my lovely wife can not walk anymore"

the owners of the house deny shelter for a while (singing other versus) until they finally realize who they are and open the door singing:

"Entren santos peregrinos, peregrinos,reciban este rincón no de esta pobre morada sino de mi corazón". Come in saint peregrines, and accept this corner, not of this poor house, but from my heart.

(if you want to know the complete lyrics click here)

After this ritual, the piñata game starts, it consists of a shaped balloon filled with candies or fruits. In order to open it someone has to blind his/her eyes and try to break the balloon, it usually takes several trials before someone can actually break it and then the party starts (yes alcohol is part of the party!!)

My second posada in Mexico was organized by the bank I work for, as part of their CSR activities, they did an alliance with a foundation and sponsor a posada in a foundation for children in risk (abandonned, living with poor families, etc), it is basically a school run by nuns where children live during the week where they recieve education based in moral/religious principles.

So as one of the volunteers from the bank I went there to share some love with these georgeus kids, playing and teaching them a bit about Colombia. Besides playing with piñatas, they recieved some gifts from the bank and were offer a nice lunch!

Although I enjoyed a lot the day, I still think that this kind of activities don't offer a sustainable solution to the issue, as after this day the lives of these children will go back to the "normal" state, I strongly believe that more engagement is needed to actually improve these kids life, and I definetely hope that the bank assumes education (or any relevant topic) as an issue to be tackled and implements a planed and structured way to be a corporate citizen.