Preserving the Heritage and Culture

Over Easter weekend, a group of us walked up the mountain-
side above Barichara to see a very very old house and enjoy
the view. A bit hazy and I slipped a bit as I was taking the shot.

Barichara is about to face some serious challenges in the weeks and months ahead. A small village that has been designated an historical monument, it is also one of the cleanest, prettiest and culturally diverse places to be found in Colombia. (There are at least nine more I'd like to see and which are being promoted by the department of cultural history.) And as is the consequence of attraction, there are people with money coming in to build. Not all of them are ex-patriots, but rich Colombians who want to 'get away' from their city lives in this remote (sort of) place.

But with these affluent people comes change, change which is not particularly desirable in all cases. It was with foresight that a law was passed in 2006 which prohibited removal of old roads, old stone fences and demolishing of heritage plants and places. Unfortunately, that hasn't stopped some folks from moving ahead and doing what they want to do to serve their own interests.

This preservation group gathered in front of the
cathedral in Barichara for a Heritage walk in March 2012.

Recently a group aiming to bring this issue of violation of preservation law met in Barichara for a walk in the countryside and to point out what damages are occurring because of this lack of the law being enforced. Over the loud noise of the cicadas in the park, a conversation with one of the group informed me that an old road, paved with the old large stones from 300 years ago, had been ripped up for a new road for cars to drive on, completely altering both the landscape and the past. People who are building here want some of these old stones in their houses and because they are willing to pay for the 'piedras,' (rocks) the demand apparently makes it possible for this theft of the past. It is very sad to think that colored paper with numbers on it can obliterate a far richer history.

One thing I've noticed over the past few seasonal events is that the 'tourists' (all those people who come in from the outside, whether from Colombia or some other country) seem to be afraid to smile. The ones who drive here in huge vehicles look grim as they try to maneuver the narrow and sometimes bumpy streets. The others walking around look as if this was a duty posting, not something they are enjoying. People! Why are you bothering to come here if you can't be happy? Baricharians used to smile all the time, but I notice it takes a few days after everyone leaves before the smiles come back. I cannot save the smiles all by myself, folks. If you are coming here, please help me out by smiling - at least once in awhile.

This is one of the very old houses scattered around Barichara that are of
great historical value and should be protected from vandals and other
elements of change. It is on private land, but not all the others are.

Also, it appears that some people are attempting to stir up a pot with claims that new people are wanting to change the culture, the traditions of Barichara, lodging complaints about various things. I won't go into them here because they don't deserve acknowledgement except to say that no one in their right mind would try to arrest the crowing cock for making too much noise, or issue an eviction notice to frogs for croaking past midnight, or to even attempt stopping the ringing of church bells which serve many functions in this pueblo. The real issue is that of fear: fear that with changes what is now known and regular will be something very different in the future. It is also fear that those changes will leave long-time residents of Barichara disenfranchised in some way.

I fully support, and always have, the tide floating all boats; bringing everyone along in a good way. It is up to all of us, new residents and those long established here, to work together so that no one feels left out and everyone commits to a partnership of both keeping Barichara the clean and charming village it is now and also making sure regulations and laws are enforced to prevent the very wealthy from destroying the very element that brought them here in the first place.

This is the Datura, also sometimes known as Angel Trumpet.
My research shows that it might better be categorized as
Brugmansia as South American plants are more woody, tree-
like, and having pendulous flowers. Delicate scent. 

ENOR-moth progress

Half an hour out of Bogota, we were still in the mountains and climbing
up into the clouds and mist, with over seven hours ahead of us due to road
conditions. It was a long, long ride after a long, long ride.

I’ve been back “in country” for really four days. I can’t count the first day since it was spent getting from the airport to the hotel and into bed, collapsing after an 11-hour bus ride from Jacksonville, FL to Ft. Lauderdale (and no sleep at all!), as it was the least expensive way to transport myself and my baggage to Spirit Airlines.

I chose Spirit this time because the fares were incredibly inexpensive. Guess what? Everything comes with a price... including cheap fares. They nickeled and dimed me nearly to death, charging me huge fees for even the first bag, and the final cost was pretty close to what it would have cost me to fly on Avianca or Delta with less hassle. Guess I won’t do that again soon.

Well, I won’t be doing it soon anyhow as I have my visa and can stay for up to a year now...depends on whether I go to Colorado this summer or not.

Gratefully I am back into my artistic mode, speaking Spanish daily and today I am off to a ceramic class that will last for about a month - free! As a resident I am entitled to take a variety of classes at the ‘taller’ at no cost... yippee!!!

Tomorrow or the next day I am starting an art project using oil paints, converting a sketch I made last year into a full-sized painting. All these efforts are geared toward my goal of having enough creative works to show something off by the end of my year here, to prove that my time was not wasted and to prove that I really am the artist I have always felt that I was.

This is also an ENORmoth (sorry) bug... measures at least
8 inches across and moves enough air by flapping about
that I confuse it with the more silent bats.

The trip from Bogota was mostly in the rain, as March began the rainy season here. It is mostly cloudy in Barichara with rain at night, sometimes very light and sometimes with more force. But the rivers are flooded and creating more problems after only a three-month hiatus from the desperate situation late last year.

My casa was dusty and strewn with leaves, spiders had moved back into residence and this is also the year of cicadas, which means they make very, VERY loud noises and sometimes come into the casa. So I have been kept busy sweeping and dusting and getting settled again. But this time I can really unpack as I do not have any deadline to dance to and it feels really wonderful to wake up to the sun and my new life here. 

This is one HUGE cicada, in my opinion. I think he is
considering using my art supplies.