I Made it to Medellin

I Made it to Medellin

May 16, 2012 · by · in , ,

So as you may have read on my Facebook or here on my blog I was planning on moving to Medellin, Colombia for 6 months for an internship with the website Postmasculine. I have some great news. I’m here, I’m safe, and it’s absolutely beautiful here.

I’m typing this post from the bar on one of our patios (there are 3). This particular one has a bar, hammock, hot tub, and is almost as big as the first floor of my apartment in Salem…We live in a 4th floor penthouse in the  El, Poblado district of Medellin. It has all of the ammenities that I can imagine a person needs to live. There are 4 bathrooms, a kitchen, 3 patios, 4 bedrooms, a living room, a laundry room, and some large hallways to tie it all together.

The views are stunning. We have a 20 ft. sliding glass door in the kitchen/living room that goes to another patio and when I look out it I see some of the most beautiful scenery in my life. There are tons of high rise towers in the valley below and enormous mountains hovering over. I haven’t seen many mountains that large in my life. Flying in I saw a ton as well. I can’t get over how beautiful and green everything is around me in this country.

So far I’ve really enjoyed the food as well. I had a burger and fries when I got here and it was amazing. The meat tasted so different and it was so much fresher. Same with the tomato on top. I’ve never had a better tasting tomato. Same with the orange juice I woke up with. It’s all so fresh and tasty here I can’t even describe it.

The people here have been unbelievably friendly so far. The language barrier has been tough to say the least. I know very little Spanish and when people talk to me I mostly just say “no entiendo, perdon” which means “I don’t understand, excuse me”. Everyone has been great about it though and does their best to communicate with me to the best of their abilities. I’m trying to learn as fast as possible. On the bright side all of the ATM’s have English as an option. That’s very kind of them considering that less than 10% of the population speaks it.

On the flip side of things it’s been great getting to know the guys here so far. Mark the owner of Postmasculine is a really cool guy and has shown me around a bit. We picked up our Dutch analytics and marketing intern//achievement psychology masters student Philip (apartment pics on his blog) late last night and he is awesome as well.

I’m holding off posting my first Facebook album until he gets here as to not ruin the surprise if he gets to check the internet in between flights.All we are missing is Tim, the copywriting intern from New Zealand. He originally had a 37 hour trip but it turned into a  47 hour one… He won’t be here until later on tonight. Poor guy, I can’t imagine traveling by plane for that long.

So far this entire experience has been amazing. I’ve been here for less than 24 hours but I’ve already seen so much. I’m very excited about this opportunity to learn a new language, culture, and trade.

Thank you so much to all my friends and family that have loved, supported, and helped me make this transition. I already miss you all so much. You will never know how much I appreciate everything you’ve done for me.

Until next time, Chao!

 

Zac Champigny loves the internet and hopes to be a big part of changing the world with it. Currently he is an Associate at the Startup Institute in Boston

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