Medellin a Succes!

Yesterday was the final closing of the "IX Juegos Suramericanos Medellin 2010", the greatest South American games in all history! I have to give it to those paisas, they did a great job in the making of those games. Every single aspect of the organization was perfect, and I think everybody agrees they were the best games that have ever been made in this part of the continent.

The games took place from March 19 to March 30 in Medellin and other nearby towns. The organizers worked day and night to get all the coliseums ready, new ones built, old ones refurbished, and all transportation and logistics set. An Olympic Villa was built for the thousands of athletes that would be coming, and the whole city was prepared for the event. A fantastic inauguration took place in the Atanasio Girardot Stadium, and the competitions started.

At first, nobody expected Colombia to win anything. The big favorites to win the games were Brazil and Argentina. Everyone thought Colombia would be fighting third place with Venezuela (not a very good image for the host country). But bets started changing as competitions took place. In cycling, weightlifting, bowling, boxing and skating, Colombia swept with no mercy. It was also a surprise in many sports like archery, taekwondo, judo and other sports. For example, it is the first time in history that Colombia beats Brazil and Venezuela in archery (my father participated in the team final and they won the gold medal!). Even in sports that are heavily dominated by other countries, Colombia was able to show strength and progress since the last games. Swimming for example, is mastered by Brazil and Venezuela, but Colombia made a good presentation with more medals won than what they had planned for. In the end, every single Colombian athlete helped Colombia triumph over all the other countries. Thanks to them, Colombia was able to win a South American Competition for the first time in history!

There were so many things I loved from these games. One of them was Llin, the Games’ official mascot. It was a weird bird (some combination between a rooster and a parrot) that was created by the kids of Medellin. I loved how cute and funny he was, and it was very important for the image of the games. The official logo was also great. There was a competition in Medellin to see who could make the best logo for the games, and a 21 year old woman won with the beautiful and symbolic logo she created. I also loved that Colombia was able to win the games, and that sport in Colombia is becoming strong enough to compete against world monsters like Brazil and Argentina. It's the first time Colombia makes me feel so proud, and it shows all of us that think Colombia is only about bad soccer (because we honestly suck at it), that there are other sports out there that actually leave Colombia in a very strong position in world ranking (one of the few world records beaten in these games was by a Colombian skater, because Colombia is probably the best country in the world in race skating). Finally, what I loved the most was the great image Medellin left for this country. They proved they are capable of organizing top quality events, and foreigners saw how beautiful and developed Colombia is (at least Medellin, because Bogota is a nothing against Medellin, and if the games had been in Bogota, they would have been ruined completely. Honestly, Bogota could never have done half the job Medellin did). Everything went better than anyone could have imagined, and I'm sorry for Santiago de Chile: they have to work VERY hard to beat Medellin in 2014.

ASDF Movies

Some days ago, a friend presented ASDF Movies to me. It was kind of random, because we were in Chinese class and the teacher wasn't there yet (he had gone somewhere and still wasn't back) so we were really bored. Then we thought about the first thing every single person thinks in times of absolute boredom: watch YouTube videos! He wanted to show us something called ASDF movies, and insisted it was totally hilarious. Unfortunately, YouTube in the school is blocked, and there was no way we could bypass the security block. So the first thing I did (actually one of the last ones I did before I went to sleep. I am quite busy these days) was go on You Tube and search for the video. I really didn't think of it was going to funny. I actually didn't know what to think of a video that was called "ASDF movie". Still, I was so curious to see what was so darn funny to him. So I searched it on YouTube and found what I have posted here. I personally have to agree it is the funniest set of random things set in a video, and it really is absolutely awesome!
These are the two movies made by TomSka (you can ignore the first fifteen seconds of the video, because they have nothing to do with TomSka).

All You Need is Second Chance

Not to anyone's surprise, today there was another horse-back riding meet. No really, every weekend there is some kind of horse-back riding activity. This time, it was just a "paso de pista", an informal competition which is usually easier than official meets. There are no official judges, and some rules aren't followed so seriously. For example, you don't need the uniform jacket, lack boots and white breeches. Instead you can use any polo-styled shirt and breeches. To many riders, these types of meets are the perfect moment to dare to try higher courses or start new horses because of the relaxed environment. Well not this time! To me, this has been one of the hardest and toughest competitions I have ever experienced.

First of all, everything was a mess from the moment we arrived to Guaymaral. My course had been built on the grass stage, which can be used for Derbies (not a good place to build a course where amateurs are going to jump). I really don't know what was happening to the builder that morning, but his mind wasn't very set on the ground as he was supposed to be. As a friend likes to say, "He was not all there." The course was all wrong from the first jump. Some stride counts weren't right, other jumps were too close to each other, then others had too many weird tricks. Who in their right mind could think Amateur 0.80-0.90 riders are capable of going through a water obstacle? I certainly can't (because Luna is afraid of water). Apart from that, the Amateur 1.00m tie brake course was built along the 0.80-0-90 one, so everything was a tiny bit crowded. Googies (my teacher) had to go over the whole course (and I mean all of it) and fix the mistakes. God praise Googies! He saved us all from terrible, sad deaths, caused by a crazy course builder that can't distinguish between Open Championship Professionals and beginning Amateurs.

Second of all, the paddock was a terrible chaos! Suddenly it was full of horses performing all possible activities a horse can do with a rider: walk, trot canter, eat grass, jump, kick, stand on two feet, bolt, neigh, whine and everything else possible. A girl I know fell off her horse and got a little bit stepped on (nothing serious happened to her, fortunately). Another girl finished her course but the horse ran off, she fell, and I think because of terror, she fainted and I'm not sure when she woke up. I really felt the air was very tense, and it made me nervous.

 As I made my way through the mayhem, I warmed up and was ready to do the course. I started and was so happy because Luna was jumping perfectly. I could feel myself soar as she jumped each obstacle effortlessly. But there was something wrong with her. Every time I got close to the far side of the grass lane, she stood her ears up (the way she always does when she's about to bolt) and got really tense. I held on to the right reign and ignored it. I continued with my course and went on to the seventh jump. This was a double with one stride in the middle heading straight to the far side of the grass lane. I had to make Luna go fast because she's got a very small stride and there were four long strides to get to the double. I was heading right on to 7a when suddenly Luna takes off to the left, terrified by something that was moving at the far side of the grass. There was a split second after that where so many thoughts came to me at the same time. I was extremely angry with myself for letting Luna get off the jumping line, because I know it's my fault. I couldn’t believe Luna had done this to me again, after so many refusals less courses during the year. I remember I also thought about going to that grass line and get rid of whatever stupid thing that had Luna so freaked out. During that time, I managed to make a perfect turn and push her into the jump (I might add that we managed to squeeze two strides between the double and not even touch the obstacle). I successfully finished the course, but I had a huge lump of anger that wouldn't go away. I sat on Luna's back, fuming away on that stupid mistake that had cost me a perfect course, a bit of my self-esteem and a bit of my confidence. I finally decided I couldn't be angry for too long, so I just got over the anger (but not over the pain). But suddenly, Googies came with a message that would make me recover, “do you want to try again?" A second chance is just what I needed to get over the incident. I would be able to try again and get rid of that terrible feeling that I was a pathetic rider. In effect, I redid the course, and this time, I was prepared to get Luna serious and head on to the double without a second of doubt. I really appreciated that opportunity, and it meant a lot to my self-esteem and my connection with Luna. This was just another experience that will hopefully help me become a better rider. I just have to say second chances are the best!

Taking Off

Today was a very special day for me. I mean, every day has something interesting I want to remember, but this one is one I will keep with me so I can tell my grandchildren when I am old (something my grandmother loves doing every weekend we visit her). As I was saying, today was very special; because it's the first time my dad lets us take the car alone! Honestly, he didn't have a choice. He was very busy training for the South American Games that will be in Medellin in a week or so (he classified in archery because he is one of the best archers in Colombia. He even participated in the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles) and my mother had to take my little sister to her first basketball match. We needed to go ride our horses in CESPO which is at the opposite side of Bogota where my sister was playing. We took the car (my big sister driving) and we drove across Bogota. We successfully made it to CESPO, went to our grandmother's house to have lunch, and went back home without getting lost! (Thanks to the iPhone's GPS, this is exclusively managed by me, the navigator). I'm so sorry with my dad, because he was so nervous. Not for my sister's driving skills, because he trusts her completely, but for the huge mass of drivers that go out on Saturdays. 90% of them are completely clueless about good driving. Seriously, in Bogota you have to be aware of angry buses, crazy taxis, and furious old ladies who lack that little voice that tells you to be careful. He died about 20 years ago. In any case, we were able to sort everything out, and we proved to our dad we are capable of taking care of ourselves on the road.

There wouldn't have been a problem at all if we still had the horse-back riding and the polo field in our club (which is a step away from our house), but some stupid idiot called Enrique Peñalosa worked his ass off to take it away from us. I really don't know how he did it. The Country Club is private property, but he somehow managed to claim it as public property and turn it into a park! Supposedly the mayor (Alcaldia de Bogota) should pay the Country Club for that land, which by the way is worth like 35,000,000 pesos ($20,000), but they have only paid 5,000,000 pesos ($2,000). I found out the process in which they are taking the club is completely illegal. Still, the game is not over yet; because Peñalosa lost the mayor elections to Samuel Moreno, which promised he would give it back. The weakling hasn't been able to live up to his promise, because communist politicians would critize him and say he gave the "rich people" their land back. It's unfair, but the worst part is the taking won't end because Peñalosa isn't going to stop until he gets rid of the whole Country Club. As soon as he gets over the polo field completely, his next move is the golf course, and next the whole club. For people that think this would teach the rich people a lesson, I think they are fooling themselves, because not only would the rich people loose, but the whole city would be affected.. First, Colombia would loose it's most famous golf course, which has already hosted countless international tournaments, including the PGA a few weeks ago. Second, there are about1000 employees working at the Country Club. Where would they go? Third, Bogota would loose one of its largest green areas that help balance the toxic fumes from the millions of buses that contaminate our city. The pureness of the land would be ruined by anything else they want to put on top (another reason Peñalosa has to destroy the club is to make a street on top of it). Fourth, it would promote government corruption in the country. The government would be free to abuse power in any way they want, without any consequence. Colombia is already corrupt enough, and it's inconceivable they can go taking land to their delight.

I really hope Peñalosa doesn't get away with his scheme, and somehow justice will be able to save our beloved Country Club.

Double 0

This weekend there was a show jumping championship in Pueblo Viejo. On both days I did great! I came clean on both courses, and on Saturday I won third prize on the raffle (on Amateur .80-.90m, those riders who had 0 faults in total go on a raffle to sort the prizes, on most tournaments). For me, this was a very important triumph (not because of the third prize) because this was precisely the place where I fell about three months ago. I previously commented on my problems with Luna the last championships of 2009. The climax of her refusal habit came on the last competition, where on the ninth jump she stopped dry and I went flying off her neck. This weekend, however, I was determined to do my best and give her no chance of refusing to jump. Fortunately, everything went well. Luna was working in her best behavior, and together we were able to finish both courses successfully! I certainly hope we can keep it up, and I hope I can learn how to avoid mistakes that make things difficult for Luna. After all, most of failed jumps are the rider's fault, and I really need to work on doing things right. In any case, I have promised to do my very best, no matter how hard I have to try.


This is a video of Saturday's course. I thank Roberto Santamaria for filming me!

The Pro Am Tournament

Yesterday was an awesome day, not only because there was no school because of the Transportation Strike, (which by the way made this entry possible), because the Pro Am Tournament took place in my club (Country Club de Bogota). Celebrities from the whole country were playing golf on the golf course I glance at every morning form my window. Camilo Villegas, Juan Pablo Montoya, and other huge characters were playing golf downstairs, a few meters away! I personally couldn't believe it myself, and we decided to follow the players during their round. (Note: this tournament was sponsored by Helm Bank- the bank where my mother has worked for the past 25 years- as part of their publicity campaign to display their new image). In effect it was true! We saw a bunch of PGA players (which by the way came for the PGA Nationwide Tour which begins tomorrow in my club. Yes, my club is very special), almost got hit by a TV host called Calero, and watched the world famous Camilo Villegas play. Man, is he awesome! I honestly can say I have never seen such a powerful drive in real life. You wouldn't believe the size of his muscle arms. The typical golf player is fat and rather wimpy. Well I have to say Villegas is anything but the typical golfer. He is tall, thin and, as I mentioned before, has incredible arms (wow, I think I'm taking too long on the description). Anyhow, I thought the experience had ended there. We had to go to our swimming training and later go home and go to bed early so the shock of having school again wouldn't be so hard. We certainly didn't expect what was coming next.

I mentioned earlier that my mom's bank was the one sponsoring the tournament. While we were mercilessly massacred by our swimming trainer (I think he got over excited with the golf event. His passion is golf, and he always stares away to the start of the thirteenth hole with a wispy look), my mom was able to get invitations for the inauguration party. Surprisingly (no wait, not surprisingly, because she always makes the impossible possible), she got some for us! We got in just in time to see Andres Lopez, the most famous and extremely hilarious comedian Colombia has ever seen. I stood on tip toes the whole show, utterly stunned I could actually see him in real life. There are simply no words to describe my happiness. But things just get better. I noticed that every time he made a joke about Nascar, there was someone in front of me that kept giving him the thumbs up. I realized then that Juan Pablo Montoya was standing about a meter away from me! After the show, he sat down, and we were dying for a picture with him. But I thought, “sure, he's going to give you, a snooty fan, a picture." Suddenly, he stood up and started to walk slowly towards Lucia. He made a quiet sign and before I understood what was happening, he went and hugged Lucia! This was completely stunning, and seriously, I'm not making this up. All I could do was stare amazed as Lucia started babbling everything we had planned to say ever since we new Juan Pablo Montoya was coming to our club. Hopefully he understood something, and he asked if we wanted to take a picture with him. We did (I think I looked horrible, but I don't care. I have an official picture standing next to Montoya!), and then we got out. It was just too much emotion in too little time. I mean, this is exactly the guy I woke up early on Sundays to watch race the Formula 1. I saw him win Monaco, and every time I wished he'd do well. Now I see him in Nascar racing those stock cars at 300mph. He inspired us to start racing; this is my personal hero and I have a picture taken beside him in the most awesome party I've ever been too.

I think that was too much happiness for me in one night, because I have never had so many awesome things happen to me at once. I declare that night I was the happiest girl in the world (apart from Lucia; she got hugged).
I may post the picture with him later, as soon as I can get my hands on it!

Pen Pen TriIcelon!!

Probably no one knows this game well (probably you don't know it at all), because it's for Sega Dreamcast, Play Station's competition. But it's such a great game! It's about penpens living in Ice Planet that race against each other in a course with various styles of racing: sliding, walking and swimming (it's like an ice Triathlon). Every year they hold a big TriIcelon race to see which penpen is the best racer!


The Penpens are:

Sparky: very energetic, happy and loves speed.

Tina: cute and extremely proud of herself.

Mr.Bow: a Pendog that is quite reckless and a little dumb.

Back: a Penwalrus, loves to rest and nap, but when he wakes up watch out!

Sneak: the Penoctopus. He likes to be the clown and has a very good sense of humor.

Jaw: a Penshark that is very wild and tends to get rough at times.



Ballery: a Penhippo, very cute and childish, but very aggressive when racing.

Hanamizu:? Nobody knows what he really is. He has skis and is faster than any of the penpens, but he seems dull and doesn't really know what's going on.



The penpens get to race on four courses:

Sweets: owned by Mrs. Cream, the mayor of Sweets Town.

Jungle: owned by Unga Pongo, a leader of the jungle land.

Toys: owned by Bambi Mask, who built Toys Land for the penpens.

Horror: owned by Horror Man, the lord of all the ghosts in Ice Planet. He is 4771 years old.



Seriously, we have spent whole days playing this game, and the songs are so catchy! Again, since I suck at videogames, most of the times I see my sisters play, but this summer, I learned to play it better, and I actually got to beat my sister -doesn't matter which.

I hope that someday you can come across this game..it's really awesome!