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In Cali I visited the Vasquez family with whom I had remained in contact since our meeting in 1993. On Saturday we went to the family's country house for the weekend. Leaving the Cauca Valley we climb through the mountains towards Calima Lake some 80 kms north of Cali.
My camera's battery died and I had to go to Buga to replace it. It was a good occasion to have a look at the San Pedro Cathedral and its miraculous statue of Christ which all the pilgrims behind me are visiting with reverence. The temple vendors are also there of course.
This simple village church, also in Buga, contrasts with the magnificence of the touristic cathedral.
It is difficult to imagine that the potential for violence is everywhere when you look at this quiet Buga street typical of small towns in Colombia. No place is safe from the ongoing war between the government forces, the narcotraficantes and the guerrilla.
Naturally, in this climate of violence, common crime unrelated to drugs or politics is more violent and more frequent than in a well policed society. Travellers can however take comfort in the thought that this violence is not specifically aimed at tourists like in some countries like Egypt.
The weather could have been better but the lake was beautiful even without the sun. More and more summer houses and recreation centers are being built but much of the lake shore is still pristine as you can see here.
Most of the development is on the southern shore of the lake. Darien on the north shore, where my friends house is, has kept its charming rural character.
There is only one house here but there is enough land in this fenced and guarded compound for several Vasquez families to build their own summer place away from Cali's heat and noise.
Here I am with Myriam Vasquez, her sister Maria Elvira and her daughter Myriam 2 with her husband Juan Carlos.
We drove back to Cali after a lovely weekend at the lake and stopped at a roadside restaurant for "arepas caseras", a cauca speciality cooked in this rustic oven.
Here is a good bunch, having a good time. I love Colombia in spite of the insecurity for the people are wonderful.
From here I flew to Panama and back to Cartagena to get my charter flight back to Montreal.
