The Totem of Journeys

Kyoto (Japan) 14,382 km

The Japanese city with thousands of Zen Buddhist temples, visited one December (a year I no longer remember) with a very high fever and unceasing snow. It taught me resilience.

Bandar Lampung (Indonesia) 19,891 km

Planet Earth has a circumference of nearly 20,000 km which means this city is the closest to the antipodes of Medellín. It taught me curiosity.

Angkor Wat (Cambodia) 17,927 km

The magical place of Cambodia, arriving from the city of Siem Reap one New Year with a rundown motorcyclist. It taught me sin.

Piura (Peru) 2,160 km

A coastal city of Peru near Mancora. Marketing studies were carried out in its depths, among dust and poverty. It taught me surprise.

Zanzibar (Tanzania) 12,790 km

Fantastic African beaches in the nation where my father did charity work. It taught me respect.

Sydney (Australia) 14,352 km

The city of my dreams, the city that kept me awake all night to obtain residency visa. It taught me illusion.

Vancouver (Canada) 6,528 km

It was the time when everyone wanted to live in the city with Canada’s mild climate. It taught me heartbreak.

Bora Bora (French Polynesia) 8,566 km

The dream islands in the Pacific where I always wanted to travel since childhood. It taught me passion.

Ushuaia (Argentina) 6,835 km

The southernmost town in the world—but don’t tell the Chileans. It taught me difficulty.

Jaisalmer (India) 14,821 km

On a trip to Brazil, I saw a photo of Jaisalmer in a newspaper and fell in love. The following month I was on a train in the middle of the Thar Desert to live that desire. It taught me possibility.

Yiwu (China) 15,718 km

The largest order made by Coop Italia forced me to stay months in this city, struggling with the most mysterious and deceitful China. It taught me fear.

Curitiba (Brazil) 4,891 km

The city that competes with Medellín to be the most innovative in the continent. Paraná is Brazil’s Antioquia. It taught me struggle.

Sansepolcro (Italy) 9,309 km

The Italian town of my school, my first love, my doubts and unhappiness. My parents and friends live and will live here. It taught me dissatisfaction.

Valparaiso (Chile) 4,380 km

Pablo Neruda always accompanied me in my heartbreak. It was a time of tears. It taught me poetry.

Phuket (Thailand) 18,267 km

If Colombia didn’t exist, I would escape as a fugitive to Thailand. This beautiful island full of contradictions like Patong and Theravada Buddhism. It taught me contradiction.

Faro (Portugal) 7,591 km

The Algarve is a beautiful region of Portugal, crossed by car with two friends, one Argentine and one Paraguayan. It taught me affection.

Copenhagen (Denmark) 9,280 km

The city so perfect that people fail to be happy even though they already are. Walking from the airport to Tivoli. It taught me aging.

Basaseachic (Mexico) 3,398 km

A waterfall that can only leave you amazed between Hermosillo and Chihuahua. 30 bus hours that were worth it. It taught me tenacity.

Tel Aviv (Israel) 11,484 km

The most agnostic city in the most orthodox country. Rich and vibrant. It taught me lies.

Faroe (Denmark) 8,261 km

At 14 I collected its stamps, I loved the cemeteries at the edge of the sky and the green mountains. It taught me disappointment.

Santorini (Greece)  10,300 km

After watching the movie Mediterraneo, who doesn’t want to visit the islands of the Aegean Sea? It taught me perdition.

Istanbul (Türkiye) 10,715 km

My first world meeting with Johnson & Johnson. The meeting was ridiculous but the stay was wonderful. It taught me change.

Prague (Czech Republic) 9,473 km

My first trip on a small bus with Italian friends. We had no money, but we sang with a guitar to collect alms. It taught me generosity.

Medellín (Colombia)

The city where you arrive for the wrong reasons and stay for the right ones. It taught me the smile.

El Paují (Venezuela)

A cliff into the Amazon, beyond Roraima and Canaima. Pure magic and spirituality. It taught me horizon.