No longer a war zone, now a tropical paradise.

The plane ride from Miami to Medellin seemed rather short, but I dozed off through most of it (until I dozed off too much and almost hit my head on the beverage cart as the flight attendants rolled by.) As we landed, the elderly Colombian lady sitting next to me crossed herself and whispered a prayer and I felt especially jaded and impious that I had thought nothing of landing safe and sound.

I stepped off the plane onto the tarmac and was instantly encased by warmth. I could not have been more relieved, as I thought it would be a bit chilly here. Such a nice break from the frigid, windy weather of the tunnel-like avenues/streets of Manhattan.

Colombia is rather different from what I had pictured. Because of Medellin being known for having been one of the most dangerous cities in the world in the 80s, I thought it would be poverty-stricken and destitute. However, I found the opposite. I have also been to Ecuador and Peru before, and considering Colombia is situated right above these two countries, I thought it would be the same. While they do share some similarities, Colombia is much more beautiful. It's more lush (I'm told by a native that this time of the year isn't as lush as it usually is!) and colorful. There are trees with bright colored flowers on them (for some reason, tree flowers are very unique to my senses. I guess I'm used to seeing flowers on the ground) and the landscape is amazing. Medellin is situated in a valley between the rolling, green Andes mountains.

I was picked up from the airport by a wife and husband who are producing the shoot. They were extremely friendly and hospitable and brought me to a Colombian restaurant that one of their friends owned. We ate empanadas and these little fried balls of potato with different spreads (the owner laughingly told me that "everything in my this country is fried!" Which I didn't find as funny as he did seeing as I have to model lingerie tomorrow.) So, I didn't over indulge myself in the tasty food but I did try a bit of everything.

I checked into the hotel a bit early because I haven't had a full night's rest in two days and I might just look like a zombie. Which won't look so great in a picture.

Now I must do homework. I am the ultimate in multi-tasking.