{"id":5791,"date":"2012-12-11T17:18:40","date_gmt":"2012-12-11T22:18:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/seecolombia.travel\/blog\/?p=5791"},"modified":"2016-05-05T11:58:18","modified_gmt":"2016-05-05T16:58:18","slug":"see-colombia-travel-welcomes-azzam-alkadhi-its-newest-blogger","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/seecolombia.travel\/blog\/2012\/12\/see-colombia-travel-welcomes-azzam-alkadhi-its-newest-blogger\/","title":{"rendered":"See Colombia Travel welcomes Azzam Alkadhi, our newest blogger"},"content":{"rendered":"

Before I get into how I ended up living in Colombia, I first wanted to talk about
\nhow I recently found myself, seemingly out of my control, running up the Torre
\nColpatria, Colombia\u2019s tallest tower.<\/p>\n

A friend signed me up and paid and so there was no going back. As this is my first
\npost and none of you know me, you could be forgiven for not understanding the
\ngravity of the situation. I am not an athlete. Sure, I play football every now and
\nagain, but I also smoke, eat ridiculously unhealthy food and always opt for the bus
\nover walking. In short, I am terribly unfit.<\/p>\n

I had 10 days to prepare for the event. My training consisted of one 15-minute run
\nand a whole heap of empanadas. Every time I saw the building, which I had hardly
\nnoticed previously, I was hit by a pang of terror. I was going to die in that tower.<\/p>\n

\"After<\/a>
After running the Colpatria Tower in Bogota, Colombia<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For all my cowardice, however, it really wasn\u2019t that bad. I survived. And, what\u2019s
\nmore, I managed to do it in about eight and a half minutes. Don\u2019t get me wrong, I
\nwon\u2019t be doing it again, but it is nice to know that I could if I wanted to.<\/p>\n

As for why I\u2019m here, it\u2019s a similar story amongst foreigners in Colombia. The
\ncountry grabbed hold of me and wouldn\u2019t let me go. I first came here in 2005 for
\ntwo weeks and had been aching to come back ever since. I finally managed to
\narrange another two-week trip earlier this year but, as is so often the way in this
\ncountry, I couldn\u2019t bring myself to leave at the end of it.<\/p>\n

\"Azzam<\/a><\/p>\n

So I set up shop in Bogota, a gritty yet lively and culturally rich city and have been
\nenjoying the fruits of my decision ever since. Now all I can do is look forward to the
\nplentiful opportunities that Colombia has to offer over the coming years.<\/p>\n

Azzam Alkadhi<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Before I get into how I ended up living in Colombia, I first wanted to talk about how I recently found myself, seemingly out of my control, running up the Torre Colpatria, Colombia\u2019s tallest tower. A friend signed me up and paid and so there was no going back. 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