What do you know about Colombia?

Lynne says...

What do you really know about Colombia? Do you imagine it to be a dangerous place? If you go you will no doubt be kidnapped or robbed at the very least. Or maybe someone will plant a kilo of cocaine in your backpack as you leave the country and you will end up spending the rest of your life in a filthy prison.

I imagined Colombia to be like this until we arrived here a few weeks ago. Colombia is still a dangerous country with a great deal of problems but there is a tourist infrastructure here and if you are sensible, there is a great deal to be discovered.

Here are a few things you might know about Colombia:

1) Colombia produces 80-90 percent of the cocaine market
2) 55 per cent of the population live below the poverty line
3) Andres Escober, a defender on the national football team, was shot 12 times in 1994 after he scored an own goal in the World Cup

Here are a few things you might not know about Colombia:

1) Colombians suffer from a violent, crime ridden stereotype - as a result they go out of their way to make you feel welcome "Thank you for believing in Colombia" is a common greeting
2) Colombia is the world's largest exporter of cut flowers and the second largest exporter of coffee
3) Colombia produces the largest percentage of the world's emeralds (50 percent)
4) The population is 43 million
5) Colombia has the second richest economy in South America after Chile
6) There are 3 million displaced people
7) Colombia is named after Christopher Colombus even though he never set foot in the country
8) Colombia is the largest recipient of US foreign aid outside of the Middle East and the third largest overall