Flying to Colombia

Getting to Madrid

With a 0920 departure from Santiago de Compostela to Madrid and connection to Bogota, I had to wake at 0540.  I left the room at 0610 for the walk to the bus stop, which I had located yesterday.  The streets were somewhat busy with people who had been out partying.  The taxi stand had a long queue so it wasn’t an option if something went wrong with the bus.  Uber’s website suggest that they operate in this city but it wasn’t correct.

I missed a turn on my walk to the bus stop, but still managed to get there a few minutes before the bus around 0630.

At the airport after 0700, check-in and security were easy with no queues.  With the lounge here temporarily closed, I paid for a breakfast of a small baguette, cut fruit and a freshly squeezed orange juice.

On board the Iberia A320neo, we closed up on time but waited 10 mins before the aircraft powered away under its own “steam” without a pushback truck.  There was no inflight service on board this flight of 1h15 so I don’t know why the crew bothered with donning their aprons.

The scenery turned from green in the north to desert as we approached Madrid.

Connecting to Bogota

My flight from Santiago de Compostela parked at the furthest gate at Madrid airport’s T4.  The long walk and train ride to T4S took about 25 mins after which I queued for immigration for another 20 mins.

The 1h30 min connecting time was barely adequate as boarding had just commenced when I got to my gate at T4S.  Fortunately, this gate was one of the nearest at T4S.  I couldn’t even entertain the thought of going to the lounge!

I was in one of the later groups to board.  A red flight flashed as I scanned my boarding pass.  I was directed to another staff member to check my vaccination record.  I’m guessing most passengers are Colombian nationals and it isn’t a requirement.  I only had to show my barcode; it wasn’t scanned or validated in anyway like last year.

The A350 was very warm inside but soon after I sat down, I could hear the ventilation come on.  I was lucky to have got a redemption ticket on this flight only 3 months in advance as it was chocka block now.

The crew didn’t check for people’s seats being reclined before take-off.  They were in the galley chatting when the Captain came on the speaker to ask for them to take their stations for take-off.  The plane started moving and the roar of engines could be heard.  The crew scurried to their seats front and back.

As it turned out, the roar was from another plane and we had a little more time before the aircraft sped down the runway for take-off.

The seating on the flight seemed tight in terms of legroom.  The meal didn’t look good but was very delicious.  We had a lentil salad, highly tasty chicken stew with rice and cake.  The second meal before landing was a delicious half of a cold chicken wrap and a mini chocolate muffin.  The crew never came round with water or drinks through the cabin at all.

Free internet was available for Iberia’s frequent flyer customers, of which I wasn’t.  It wasn’t till late in the flight that I realised I could sign-up online on-board.  I did that and chatted to Kim to check up on his arrival into Bogota and getting to the hotel room.

Arriving in Bogota

As we descended through 12000 ft the aircraft wheels came down. I though it was a bit strange and rather high but the ground looked near.  I knew that Bogota was at high altitude but hadn’t registered that it was at 8000 ft, which is 1000 ft than Sana’a in Yemen, my favourite highland city.  The temperature was 14 degC.

We landed 5 mins late at 1510.  Rather frustratingly, my roaming didn’t seem to work.  I had paid about NZD20 for a higher package that included Colombia in addition to Europe.  The queue for immigration had stretched from the immigration hall to the gates.  I managed to get 30 mins free internet during the 1h50 wait to get to an officer.

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The process with the officer was quick and friendly, with questions regarding the duration and cities of my stay.  Once downstairs around 1705, my luggage was off the carousel, on the floor beside it.  I managed to find an ATM without a fee and withdrew the largest amount possible.

I realised later that Kim had changed money at the airport.  The rate was much better than at Los Angeles but for USD215, he lost USD32 compared to the true exchange rate.  Even if he had picked the wrong ATM at the airport, with a local fee, it would have been much better.

I hopped into a yellow taxi around 1725 because the white prepaid taxis were wanting COP80000.  The yellow taxis go by meter and the 35 min ride cost me COP50000.  The same yellow taxi booked on Uber would have been COP25000 but it was all too hard without internet.

I got to Casa Aranjuez around 1800.  It was an unmarked property.  I rang the bell, Kim answered the door and the taxi driver offloaded my bag and took my payment.

We took dinner at a local fast-food place, having a chicken breast fillet and a fried rice.  With the altitude, we could feel the exertion from the walk uphill.  Resting in bed, both of us had cramps in our calves.  Kim had it in one leg while I had them in both.  I almost never have cramps.

Despite the time difference with Europe, I needed half a sleeping pill to sleep.  And due to the time difference, I woke through the night and needed another half to take me till the morning.