5 Quotes by Bryanna Plog

I have found that my best travel experiences happen when I rely on strangers instead of guidebooks, and when I immerse myself in a place instead of trying to remember a list of rules that will supposedly make me safer or more fulfilled.

Colombians might live in one of best places in the world to grow coffee beans, yet their cups of coffee come from dehydrated granules in tiny plastic packages. This is the definition of tragedy.

Whenever it dipped under 80 degrees, it was cause for celebration—time to write home with the news, dig my jacket out of the closet, and try to quell the impulse to sing Christmas carols.

It was apparent that the ladies vying to be Miss Colombia had to first go through a stringent competition of poise, talent, and debate on who had the best abs and biggest breasts to win the right to represent their department. They received lots of cheers from the crowds—and lots of open stares from all the police guarding the boulevard.

At family gatherings in the United States, two off-limit subjects are almost always put together in the same phrase: no religion or politics. While in Colombia, the former was embraced (“What do you mean you aren’t Catholic?”) but the latter was taboo. While it may be the only reason that Colombia (or Columbia) makes the international news outside of prostitution or scandals, Colombia’s political problems, drug trade, and civil conflicts are forbidden subjects for most Colombians.