Colombia Calling - The English Voice in Colombia

I am particularly pleased to be able to introduce my listeners to Harold Stephenson of Crook Town, County Durham in the UK in Episode 133 as we are discussing the little known successes of English journeyman futbol coach Jack Greenwell.

The mind boggles when you think of the distances travelled by Jack Greenwell, a miner with a genius footballing brain from a small market town in the north of England, and how his life must have been when you think that he was born in 1884 and over time became one of the most successful coaches of Barcelona, then with Universitario of Lima, Peru, later the Peruvian national team in Hitler's Olympics in 1936 and then in Colombia with Barranquilla and then finally before his untimely death with Santa Fe in Bogota in 1942.

With Stephenson we are able to learn more about Greenwell's life and his movements and indeed with my own investigations we come to some conclusions about the incredible life he led at this time.

Episode 133 is very special to me as Jack Greenwell is someone whose life is almost an enigma and who should really be heralded and lauded in the halls of fame in the footballing world, but, to most he is an unknown.

Buried in an unmarked or pauper's grave in Bogota, Greenwell's story needs to be told.

Direct download: RCC_133.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:04am EDT

Jared Wade is a hard man to pin down, Colombia Calling has been trying to get the Associate Editor of Bogota's City Paper (www.thecitypaperbogota.com), the expert on the Indiana Pacers on Fanside.com and all round freelance journalist here on the show for about eight months!

Finally, on show 132, we get to chat about how this native of Maine came to be here in Colombia, his life in the big city and his role at the City Paper. We discuss his recent press junket to the back and beyond of the Amazonian region of the department of Vaupes and its capital city Mitu to an indigenous festival.

And finally, after a brief digression regarding the Indiana Pacers, we talk about Colombia today and the significance of the ongoing peace dialogues with the FARC in Havana and what may happen on March 23.

 

Direct download: RCC_132.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 1:12pm EDT

Two estranged brothers adventure through Colombia to fulfill their dead father's will and connect with their family, their father's homeland, and - ultimately - each other. This is Bastards y Diablos (see trailer here: www.bastardsydiablos.com).

Penned by screenwriter Andrew Perez and based loosely on real circumstances & events from his life, Bastards y Diablos takes the audience on a spontaneous, passionate adventure through Colombia

In Episode 131 we get the opportunity to enjoy a frank conversation with Andrew Perez and his connections to Colombia and the inspiration behind this flick which is pulling in the plaudits.

Tune in to hear about Bastards y Diablos, a movie which the Hollywood Reporter calls: "A vibrantly unpredictable, emotionally charged road trip."

And if you want to get involved in the movie and help the cast, crew and producers, here's the crowdfunding page (https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/bastards-y-diablos#/)

Direct download: RCC_131.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:31pm EDT

This week we invite Colombian writer Paula Delgado-Kling back on the show after a long absence to talk to us exclusively about her book which is tentatively entitled: "Stolen Lives, a Memoir of Colombia."

We discuss the need to understand Colombia's history to understand what is going on now with the peace talks in Havana with the FARC, how her family has - throughout the years - occupied a ringside seat during many of the significant events in the nation's history.

Speaking openly about her non-fiction novel and the female protagonist Leonor, we talk about this girl's life as she entered the FARC at age 11 and now as a mother of two struggles to get by. We talk about the significance of April 9 and the Bogotazo and fiery rhetoric of Gaitain and indeed the upsurge in communist sympathies in the area of her family's coffee farm in Viota.

The underlying theme is that of identity and where one fits into the complex narrative that is Colombia. Finally, we share a few words about the potential peace agreement to be signed on march 23 with the FARC in Havana.

Direct download: RCC_130.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:08am EDT

Are you an expat, a short term visitor or an expat? Well, here in Colombia Seattle-born photographer and traveller Gregg Bleakney has been all three! Listen to Gregg's story and hear about he became a travel ambassador from Colombia to the world, set up his successful business http://wherenext.com and find out why he avoided Colombia as he cycled from Alaska to Ushuaia.

A chance meeting in Peru challenged his initial and justified concerns about Colombia and now he's a resident making a difference as his visual agency produces film and still photography campaigns for those who wish to participate in the wanderlusting bug.

Direct download: RCC_129.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 1:14pm EDT

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