‘Colombia’
Avalon, $19.99
Travelers are rediscovering Colombia after the country’s decades under a cloud of drug trafficking and guerrilla activity. What to do and where to go? For a start, author and longtime Colombia resident Andrew Dier suggests touring the coffee region, visiting such cities as Cartagena, Medellin and Bogota and the various colonial towns. But there is much more.
Colombia has many music and dance festivals, like Feria de Cali, a weeklong celebration of salsa concerts and programming during the last week of the year, and the Festival Internacional de Tango is held each June in Medellin. On the other hand, nature lovers might prefer a trek to the Andes Mountains. The highest mountains in Colombia, however, are not part of the Andes but rather the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountain chain on the Caribbean coast.
In Bogota, art lovers would appreciate the Museo Botero, a museum dedicated to the work of Medellin-born Fernando Botero, the singular artist who painted portraits of corpulent Colombians as well as sculptures of equally plump animals and birds.
A major international tourist destination, Cartagena has its share of chic hotels and “glitzy Miami-style condominiums” but also a large number of “shantytowns” that have cropped up during the last two decades as some 100,000 displaced people, fleeing violence elsewhere, have converged on the city, Dier notes. Nevertheless, the historic district of Cartagena — the Old City — is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
An entire chapter is devoted to the Amazon and the plains of Los Llanos, the latter region synonymous with cattle ranching and “the cowboy way of life.”
Dier encourages visitors to sample regional foods, especially arepas, the ubiquitous corn-based pancakes that accompany most every meal. Each region has its own distinct type. Dier also suggests walking tours (like the walking tour of downtown Medellin).
California has its wineries, but Colombia has its own specialty too: coffee. The coffee region, Dier writes, is surrounded by lush tropical vegetation dotted with “beautiful haciendas and towns.” In fact, he says, Colombia’s famous coffee region “is almost Eden.” To get a feel for the area, he suggests visiting a coffee farm and, if possible, staying overnight. Organized coffee tours are available. (And, for those who want to get their hands dirty, the family-run Finca El Ocaso on the outskirts of the pueblo of Salento allows visitors to plant a coffee seed, strap on a basket to harvest the beans and grind the coffee pulp.) Juan Valdez coffee shops, the Colombian version of Starbucks, can be found throughout the country.
Dier is smart and practical about safety. He recommends that visitors do not hail taxis on the street, refuse drinks from strangers at nightclubs and bars, and leave valuables (including expensive cellphones) in the hotel safe.
‘North Korea’
Bradt, $29.99
With the uproar over Seth Rogen and James Franco’s film “The Interview” still reverberating in the news, it may come as a surprise to learn that North Korea has become a travel destination — of sorts. Various operators offer organized and specialized tours (ranging from golf tours and mountaineering tours to wildlife expeditions, among many others). In this third edition — and reportedly the only guide allowed into the country by North Korean authorities — author and freelance journalist Robert Willoughby offers information on accommodations, eating and drinking, shopping and night life; alas, the latter, it should be noted, is confined to mostly late-opening bars and karaoke in hotels.
In addition, Willoughby provides a thorough background on the country and its history and politics, including a discussion of juche, the sociopolitical philosophy that governs North Korea, and the rise of Kim Jong Un, the current supreme commander and the topic of Rogen and Franco’s controversial comedy. Willoughby also discusses religion, culture and music in North Korea.
Do check out the all-important cultural etiquette section before you go.
