Christmas Traditions: Candle Party!

One of my favourite Colombian traditions is lighting candles on December 7. It's originally supposed to celebrate the rise of Virgin Mary to Heaven––yes, we're a deeply Catholic country––but to me it was more like a fun excuse to play around with my friends, eat good traditional dishes, and spend time with my family.

Although this year I skipped the whole traditional dishes/family time this year, I did have the chance to light some candles and celebrate with one of my closest childhood friends, who happens to be visiting for a few days. We also tried to remember our childhood days when we used the candle wax to do huge balls and other figures, but apparently that's an ability that goes away as you grow up... We failed completely when trying to do out figures!

But we did have a lot of fun, and I'm glad I have her with me for a few days. It definitely makes me feel less far from home!

Love,

Photography: Laura Beltran-Rubio

What Football Means To Me –A Note On Nationalism

Illustration: Donald "Drawbertson" for CR Fashion Book

When studying the history of fashion, nationalism is definitely a key issue, as it helped build unify diverse peoples into one single State. Caterina de Medici exported her typical Italian style, resulting in the first steps to achieving the worldwide phenomenon now known as Made in Italy. Elizabeth I translated the English wealth into her beautiful clothes, showing her power through fine jewellery and materials in her dresses. The Spaniards –and later on the Dutch– showed their strong religious beliefs in the austerity of their garments, without willing to leave behind luxury, which was achieved through the use of materials. And Versailles, the magical paradise of the French courts, showed the power of the nobles and their fashionable lifestyles. 

Fashion and nationalist styles have definitely helped build a common culture in many countries, which might have helped these nations subsist through the years. But nationalism need not be exclusively a fashion phenomenon, and not even the political monster that took humanity into several wars in the past. Nationalism, I believe, can also be achieved through sports, and what better than football, now that we're in the middle of the FIFA World Cup?

Today was Colombia's first match in the championship. Many believe this game showed how Colombians can stand together and hold hands when talking about football and being united for just one match. People talk about second opportunities and peace, all in the context of football.

Of course, I do believe in all these things. And more than anything else, I believe in a better future for my beloved country. But why can't we show this same group work and tolerance to each other in our daily lives? Why can't we hold hands when trying to end the internal conflict, or when trying to help the poor –who actually comprise a huge percentage of the country's population? Why can't we give second chances to those who were part of the country's conflict? Why can't we fight more intensely to actually achieve peace?

Before going to sleep last night, I was thinking about Colombia's performance in this World Cup. I was thinking about Colombia winning today's game––and maybe even winning the Cup! But what I really liked about the idea was not partying or having red, blue and yellow painted on my face. It was the idea of taking our first step into the social reconstruction of the country. I think Colombians need to see that we have something in common, something that unites us all, regardless of social or ethnic background, cultural beliefs, and education. And if football can bring this to us, I really hope we can win the World Cup!

We might not have––yet?––a common fashion to export––although I have seen espadrilles, bags and other accessories that are part of traditional Colombian outfits out in runways lately––but I believe we can become a peace reconstruction example. We have a bright future ahead, and hopefully football can be the beginning of Colombia's path to achieve greatness!

Love,

Friendly Evenings

One of my friends is moving to LA next month, so we went for dinner last night as a sort of good bye. One of the things I love the most about her is how she's willing to pursue her dreams at any cost, and after graduating as a lawyer, she's finally taking the risk and chasing her dreams in what less than the City of Angels!

Since there's no much time left for her to hang out in Colombia, we decided to go to one of the restaurants she says she'll miss the most: Crepes Artesano. Nothing big or fancy, but the perfect cosy atmosphere with healthy food for a cold and rainy evening with a friend.

We had a great time talking about life, about our dreams, about Coachella, and––naturally––about moving back and forth from New York to LA to see each other, as soon as I establish myself in NY in the fall. We also had some great food.

I chose to eat a Gandhi, which is a crepe with indian flavours and curry––my favourite––, together with lemonade flavoured with some peppermint to top up a very aromatic meal.

She ate a crepe with turkey and cheese, which looked absolutely delicious!

Unfortunately, we didn't have space in our tummies for dessert, so we had to skip it this time. I would say our dessert was all the sweet talk about this new phase of our lives that will be starting soon!

Love,

Photography: Laura Beltran-Rubio

Theatre Festival

I usually moan about how the cultural scene in Bogota is so small and useless. But I must be honest and admit it's actually quite good––although you have to really engage and search for the events that are taking place all over the city––and it's been improving lately.

One of the things I believe has contributed the most to the development of a cultural atmosphere in the city is the Theatre Festival, which occurs every two years. This time, it took place during the past two weeks, and I loved going around the streets with my lovely sister to see some of the shows.

Love,

Eat Like A King!

One of my best friends loves joking around saying that she's never ashamed to go out and eat like a man whenever I'm around. According to her, I'm one of the women who eats the most in her social circle––apart from her!

Although I do try not to over eat, there's nothing better than allowing myself to indulge in huge meals every once in a while. That's exactly what I did yesterday, when I went out for lunch with my mum and my sister. Here's what we got:

We started with one of the best versions of the focaccia I've ever had in my life. It's honestly one of my favourites!

We then moved on into some fried calamari.

And then shared a sirloin strip steak and chicken with BBQ sauce, together with mashed potatoes and salad.

Finally, we shared an ice cream and a passion fruit cheesecake.

Oh, and we had a summer drink to celebrate the start of the sunny days. By that I mean I drank a San Pellegrino Aranciata!

Love,

Photography: Laura Beltran-Rubio

Learning Photography

I told you yesterday my beautiful sister had to do some photography project during the weekend. We went to one of the public libraries in the city, which is a truly beautiful place.

After we had brunch and came back home, we had the chance to look at the photos my baby sis had taken. Although she is a beginner, I actually like her photos. Don't you?

Love,

Photography: Maria C. Beltran

Receiving The New Year

For New Years Eve, I wanted to share some time with my mum and my sister, while doing something calmed and relaxed. So instead of going out partying, we went for dinner at La Mina Steak & Lobster (which is located at the JW Marriott Bogota hotel), one of my mum's favourite restaurants in Bogota.

The menu consisted of six dishes, all of which were absolutely delicious.

We started with crunchy crab claws with a thai peanut sphere over smoked panka hot pepper.

Then we had a foie gras terrine, with bagel crunch, lychee foam, and balsamic syrup.

We moved into a warm prawn ceviche with sweet potato and manchego cheese dauphin.

By this moment, we were ready to cut all the flavour out with a red fruits and ciroc vodka sherbet.

Have I mentioned there was a saxophonist playing live all the time?

Our main dish consisted of two parts: salmon with osceta prestige caviar over cilantro mashed potatoes and red wine vinaigrette, and Surf and Turf (i.e. steak with green pepper sauce and garlic stone crab), with potatoes stuffed with corn.

I chose to drink some Chardonnay with my supper, which was absolutely perfect! I think this might be my favourite type of white wine!

Finally, for dessert, we had a pistacchio crème brulée––which was my favourite––a chocolate cake and some sort of grape flan with ice cream. I must admit that this was probably my least favourite part of dinner, in part because I was full by the end of my main dish, but also partly because I didn't understand the flavour of the flan.

Naturally, with all that food, we needed to have some herbal tea to help our digestion.

At this point, we had already spent around three hours eating, and we finished just in time to cheer the New Year. We drank some champagne and saw the fireworks in the hotel's terrace...

...Just before going back home to sleep happily, with our bellies full––until yesterday around 2pm!

Love,


Oh, and my mum and my sister wish you all a Happy New Year!