Bogota, Friday

1247 Woo. Got up about 1130. Need to Skype parents and want to be at some tower block for viewing 6pm ish so don't want to be Skyping then. And we've got a power cut; netbook works while battery lasts but of course the wifi is out. FFS.

1345 In some small place for arepa with ham and cheese. Wifi/power didn't come back so came out on epic quest to locate shop bought postcards in other day as it had a postbox and not seen one elsewhere. Finally located it by retracing steps must have taken on way up there from Plaza Chorro Quewhatsit. They have diet soft drinks of local variety here, having 'Colombiana ligera' which is slightly weird (it's a dark orange) and hard to describe but OK.

Think place is 'Arepas Rellenas Donde Fercho'. Arepa nice if not immensely substantial but for about 4k with the drink can't complain.

1433 Back at hotel via supermarket for fruit/veg/water and to break a 50k. Still no power and they seemed to be fiddling with a petrol generator just outside front entrance. Yay. The one day I'm under orders to Skype *and* had plans for 6pmish.

Will do some laundry then go out for a proper meal (once arepa had a bit of time to digest) if power remains off.

1523 Wandered, bit of struggle to find decent restaurant, went in one ok-but-cheap looking place but most dishes 20-25k, so left after saw menu. In this other place getting churrasco; no diet soft drinks so having a guava (I think) juice (with no sugar; dunno if that's normal or cos I asked about sugar-free drinks).

1558 Place Molina-Sazon. Not amzing - steak rather gristly - but OK. Didn't seem to get charged for the juice, bill 13k. Not worrying about that, maybe it's included.

1806 At Mirador Torre Colpatria, in queue to get in. Not ideal but meh. Went to net cafe after eating, online checkin gave reassuring message about 'your flight details have changed, please call us' but since it implied you can't check in more than 36h in advance not too worried yet. Shit timing that tomorrow is the only 'safe' day to go up Montserrate and the day I need to check in for flight and deal with any fallout if there is a problem, esp as Montserrate has to be earlyish. (Stuck between two couples in queue. The one in front is OK but I keep getting kissing noises from the one behind.)

Skyped parents v briefly from net cafe w zero privacy but power back on when got to hotel so called again, surfed til came out to walk over here.

In hindsight might have been better to have less time in BA at start of trip and more now, since as-is tonight is really (and even then tomorrow morning squashes it a bit) the last fully open night of the holiday. After tomorrow it's really just a slow, drawn out return to the UK. OK I might visit one museum and have a coffee or something in BA on Monday but it's hardly going to be fun. But then again I had perfectly good reasons for not absolutely dashing out of BA at start of holiday. I think it doesn't help that while I will doubtless want to return BA, I do like it and I would like to have a fun night out there, still haven't cracked that, it isn't that novel to me any more so I didn't want to invest say four days at start *and* four days at end out of my limited time. (If I had 'unlimited' time then that would have been the easy solution of course, though in reality even were I comfortably-well-off-but-not-insanely-rich [FFS, couple in front starting to get kittenish] retiree with no time constraints, travel insurance considerations might have mandated booking a return flight before leaving home and then I'd still be torn between getting as much time in as possible in new places vs not having a somewhat shitty brief stopover in BA with attendant airport hassles, just as I am now.)

Might have been better to do asymmetrical flights but when I booked my plans were fuzzy and financially it might have made sense to have flown via BA both ways. But from a pure convenience point of view would doubtless be better if I were returning to UK direct from Bogotá (put the accent on for once to show I know it's there).

Queue is shuffling forward but could be a while before I get in. Tis OK, I don't have any plans for tonight beyond "because it's the last night" trip to 360 between say 9 and 12 - have to be up early of course, unless I say fuck it to Montserrate on this trip - will highly likely be revisiting Colombia and thus almost inevitably Bogota, barring major life changes, and I don't think missing it would be a deathbed regret, and the walk back is sufficiently short and busy that I don't have major security concerns. Not to say I *am* going to say fuck it to Montserrate tomorrow but you never know. Assuming I get up here tonight I will have had a good view over the city.

I still need to finish writing up yday but tis OK.

OTOH I have to do something to take my mind off the queue. Let's write a bit more. I got to the entrance and since I was willing to have it in Spanish got taken in on a solo guided tour almost immediately. Would have preferred a bigger group so didn't feel compelled to 'play social games' with the guide - I'd rather walk round and listen and observe - but still. Then left to own devices tho not clear exactly how free I was to wander anywhere. Loads of souvenir stalls and concessions and shit down there, tho not v busy.

It is pretty impressive and quite cool if not OMFG WOW! Bit eerie when you get on your own down there. 3D film about the site a bit naff but OK - and 3D is still a bit of a novelty to me - and sound & light show on ceiling of big cavern OK if not amazing. Oddly single coolest thing I nearly missed as not on guided tour and tucked behind a concession - a huge rectangular pool of water billed as a water mirror. It was so still it was very reflective and with the unusual surroundings and lighting etc it took me a while to convince myself it wasn't just a pit/hole in ceiling of lower floor with no water in (since ceiling was rock and hence could equally pass as floor of a pit).

I already said I walked back through town and v nice and wished I'd had more time there and I opened yday on bus and if I didn't say yday it took ages again on TransMilenio back then it did (but I got a seat, when a Jnn finally turned up after loads of D10s which went from same part on platform at Portal Norte) and I think that's about it.

1843 Still queuing the middle of this U-rated orgy (OK, it's not that bad). I hate queueing. However, I have nothing else pressing to do and doing this may free me up from doing Montserrate this time round if I want. Incidentally, it is only open 6-9pm Fri and something similar Sat/Sun, so I couldn't have come here 'off-peak'.

Need to be careful not to talk myself out of doing Montserrate for nothing. I am not sure I want any socialising at 360; however if I do socialise I might risk staying out late even if it jeopardises the trip to M. If it's just a quiet solo beer then I need to avoid staying up all night for no really good reason.

2013 Back at hotel. That was pretty cool, though the bars a bit obtrusive; even with face right up to them they're too narrowly spaced to become invisible.

Walk back quite good too, v busy, nice urban sort of vibe. Heard Shakira "Whatever, Wherever" or whatever it's called (in Spanish) and "Eye Of The Tiger" at couple of points on walk back.

2052 OK, heading out so will send this now.