Think about the country of Colombia. For many people, images of kidnappings, political corruption and violent drug lords come to mind at first mention of this South American nation. Yet Colombia is also well-known for its coffee beans, emeralds and tropical landscapes.

While dedicated readers of international news may be aware that some of the country’s notorious problems have abated in recent years, many adults continue to associate the country with danger. Truth be told, Colombia is still wrestling with its problems — by no means is it a peaceful paradise. So what would drive a smart, well-traveled, American couple to uproot their lives and relocate to Colombia?  

Catherine and John Geisen-Kisch have been living in Cartagena, Colombia for a year. They live in the old city, a barrio built when the city was founded in the sixteenth century; its old stone walls are standing still. Categena is a coastal community and Catherine and John have a view of the Caribbean from their apartment balcony. They spend their free time exploring the city, trying new food, and chatting with street vendors. The local people are friendly and eager to make the acquaintance of a foreign couple, and living in a new environment, admitted John, is a novelty. “The daily grind is an adventure,” he said.

Catherine agreed. “I think you tend to have more new, varied experiences when you’re out of your usual routine,” she said. “I was a little skeptical of moving to Colombia at first,” she confessed, “but things have changed a lot in the country in the last five years. I don’t mean to undersell what’s going on”—she acknowledges there are still problems with violence and political corruption—“but the country is largely very safe.” She mentioned the influence of the current president, Álvaro Uribe. “People in general love Uribe,” she said. There’s a common perception that he’s made the country safer.”

Global Travelers

Colombia is not the first stamp Catherine and John have earned in their passports. In fact, their desire to live in a different country can be traced to an around-the-world trip the pair took a few years ago. Living in Minneapolis at the time, Catherine and John were well-established in the city. They owned a home and were gainfully employed. John worked at the corporate Best Buy offices and Catherine worked on urban planning issues with the Minneapolis City Council. “I loved my job,” Catherine said.

Nevertheless, both of them wanted to see more of the world. They had traveled, but not as extensively as they wished, so they planned an around-the-world trip. Their journey started in Africa; they spent nine months there in various countries, including Zambia, Tanzania, Kenya and Cameroon. Then they moved on to the United Arab Emirates, Nepal, Myanmar, Thailand and Cambodia.

They ended up in Laos, where Catherine had secured a three-month internship with the United Nations. While Catherine worked for the UN, John picked up some work as a substitute teacher at an international school, a gig that started him thinking about becoming a teacher. Teachers are needed all over the world and certified, English-speaking teachers who are willing to work overseas are in demand. If John were a teacher, he could kill two birds with one stone: He and Catherine could travel and work. Teaching could feed their nagging wanderlust.  

But really, how did they manage such a trip? What about their jobs and their house? What about the cost? “I think there’s a misperception that you need a big pile of money to take this kind of trip,” said John. “You just have to make the decision to go, and then do what it takes to make it work.”

In Catherine and John’s case, this meant they saved money, sold many of their possessions, quit their jobs, and rented out their house while they were away. They decided to extend their trip while on the road, taking out a home equity loan to finance it. “We’re going to be paying that off for awhile, but it’s worth it,” John said.

The Road to Cartagena

When they returned from their two years of travel, Catherine started a consulting business specializing in urban planning and community development while John decided to pursue his new interest in teaching. He enrolled at the University of Minnesota to earn a master’s in education.

Before he was even done with his certification, John and Catherine went to an international teaching job fair in Iowa, just to test the waters and see what kind of overseas work might be available when he finished his studies. Both were pleasantly surprised when John was offered a position on the spot — a job teaching high school physics at an international school in Cartagena.

The position was scheduled to start in six months, which didn’t leave John and Catherine much time to prepare for their relocation. They sold many of their belongings, crammed the rest in their basement, and hired a property manager to oversee and rent their house in their absence. John left for Cartagena on August 1 of 2006; Catherine followed a week later.

Life Abroad

Acclimating to life in Cartagena has been challenging. Because of his position at the school, John had a built-in network of colleagues which helped smooth his transition to his new environment. Spending so much time at the school, however, has made it harder for John to learn Spanish; he spends his entire work day teaching in English.

Catherine moved to Cartagena without a job, planning to search for one once she arrived. This meant, however, that she lacked a ready group of new friends in her new home. Yet Catherine already spoke French when she landed in Colombia and has, therefore, had an easier time picking up Spanish.

Catherine and John are still getting used to some aspects of their new home, including the food. Although they can eat cheaply when they visit area cafés (about two US dollars for the special of the day), the local foods are often fried and contain lots of starch. This diet, Catherine said, “…is not what our stomachs are used to.” Once, Catherine invited some Colombian friends to their apartment and served a fresh, American-style salad. She got funny looks when she placed it on the table as in Colombia vegetables tend to be buried in rich stews. It’s proven expensive, Catherine added, to cook in Cartagena like she would cook at home in Minnesota. A simple bottle of olive oil, for example, can cost $20.

John bought a cell phone when he arrived in Colombia and discovered another cultural divide: The phone’s manual didn’t give any instructions for retrieving voice mail messages. He started talking to native Colombians about it and learned that people in Colombia basically take every single phone call they receive, no matter when it comes through. For example, if you’re giving a presentation in a meeting and a call comes in, you take it. This happened during a presentation that Catherine was giving. At one point, two women were on their cell phones in the conference room. Although this seemed like the height of bad manners at first, Catherine and John have since come to accept it as common practice.

New Routines

Some of the cultural differences, however, are welcome changes. “I think time is one of the most valued resources in the US, and it’s just not like that in Cartagena,” said John, commenting on the slower pace that he thinks is characteristic of a coastal city. Catherine agreed. “I think we’ve learned to relax a little better,” she said.

The more laid-back culture is also reflected in people’s clothing, particularly in women’s apparel. Women in Cartagena tend to dress in revealing clothing, even in the workplace, and cosmetic surgery among the wealthy is common. Catherine recalls a female lawyer she met whose professional ensemble included a plunging neckline that highlighted her chest. “The culture you’re in tends to affect you in ways you don’t expect,” said Catherine, admitting life among the plastic-surgery-loving women of Cartagena has affected her, too. “In Colombia, I’ve noticed that I’m buying more skirts and dresses,” she said. “I kind of appreciate that women are allowed to be more feminine in this culture.” 

John appreciates his new commute. His daily routine avoids traffic all together. Instead, he walks 15 minutes along the beach to get to his school. Like Catherine, John has noticed that professional women in Cartagena tend to dress in form-fitting, revealing clothing – even high school teachers – a style trend that certainly isn’t encouraged in the United States. Despite their low-dipping necklines, John has observed that female teachers get just as much respect as their male colleagues.

John teaches at an international school, which is a private school in a foreign city that boasts a student population from around the world; classes are largely taught in English. An American businessman living and working in France might send his children to an international school in Paris. A British diplomat living and working in Japan might send her children to an international school Tokyo. In Cartagena, however, the students at the international school mostly come from wealthy Colombian families. The students are motivated, John said, yet he had hoped to work with a more diverse group of kids.

The question of work continues to challenge Catherine. While John has been teaching physics, Catherine has been tutoring students in English to make some money. When asked if she likes tutoring, she diplomatically replied, “It’s not my field.”

Catherine usually meets with students in their homes, she explained. The kids are generally from rich Colombian families and occasionally that wealth brings with it a dose of attitude. Used to having servants in his own home to pick up after him, one of Catherine’s students refused to use a coaster during a tutoring session. She insisted, hoping to promote good manners, and the student slipped a candy wrapper under his sweating glass. When Catherine gently pointed out that it wasn’t a sufficient coaster, the young man flung it to the floor.

What Lies Ahead

Despite the occasional frustration, Catherine and John like Cartagena. Yet what are their plans for the future? Have they been seduced by Colombia, never to return? Do they miss home? “We love Minneapolis, but we both want to do more traveling,” said John, adding he also wants to continue teaching. “It can be pretty lucrative to teach overseas,” he said, and mentioned the Middle East and Southeast Asia as possible future destinations for the pair.

Meanwhile, Catherine and John will be in Cartagena for at least another year, and are planning to enjoy the time they have. “I think we spent the first year just adapting to the environment and the culture,” said Catherine. “I think the second year will be characterized by further understanding.”

Have any of their friends or family come to visit, or are they too influenced by the bad press Colombia tends to get? John’s mother did visit, but other friends are still intimidated by the country. “We got an e-mail from a friend saying, ‘you’re so brave,’” said Catherine, “Like we’re in the middle of a war zone. But really, we’re so insulated in Cartagena. We kind of feel like we’re in la-la land.”