Colombia (Lonely Planet, 5th Edition) - Jens Porup [254]
If you do need to make a claim on your travel insurance, you must produce a police report detailing loss or theft (Click here). You also need proof of the value of any items lost or stolen. Receipts are the best bet, so if you buy a new camera for your trip, for example, hang on to the receipt.
Colombian law stipulates that hospitals must treat you, whether or not you can pay. If you don’t have the Spanish to insist on this right, you may have difficulty getting treatment. You will, in any event, get more prompt assistance with a fistful of cash.
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INTERNET ACCESS
Colombia is a wired country. There’s internet almost everywhere, and it’s cheap – rarely more than COP$2000 per hour. In smaller towns and remoter destinations there may not be banda ancha (broadband), but rather dial-up or a satellite link. Most internet cafes are open long hours, from 7am to 10pm, but with more limited hours on the weekends. Most cafes provide a range of related services such as printing, scanning and faxing, and some offer cheap international calls.
Most hostels and many midrange to top-end hotels offer wi-fi. Shopping centers often have free wi-fi, and the major airports also have wi-fi, although it isn’t free.
As always, you should consider the security implications of using the internet while traveling. Besides the risk of having a laptop stolen, keylogger trojans are a real risk in internet cafes – be very careful in choosing where you access your online banking. You may also like to set up a trip-specific webmail account, or use an account with fastmail.fm, which lets you generate one-time passwords that expire within the hour, making them virtually useless to a digital thief.
For internet resources, Click here. Where the internet icon () appears in reviews, it indicates that there is internet service available, either wi-fi or desktop, and usually (but not always) both.
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LEGAL MATTERS
If arrested you have the right to an attorney. If you don’t have one, one will be appointed to you (and paid for by the government). There is a presumption of innocence and you can expect a speedy trial.
The most common situation that most travelers find themselves in involves drugs. It is illegal to buy, sell or consume drugs in any quantity. However, the Ley 30 de 1986 specifies that simple possession of small quantities of drugs is legal. The legal limits are marijuana (20g), hashish (5g) and cocaine (1 g). Be aware that the government is trying to change this law. Further, spouting law to underpaid cops is not likely to improve their moods.
If you do get caught with drugs, the best thing to do is obliquely suggest a bribe. ‘En mi país, se puede pagar una multa (in my country, you can just pay a fine).’ The standard bribe for possession of small quantities of drugs is around COP$500,000 to COP$1,000,000. The sooner you pay the bribe, the cheaper it will be. If you wind up back at the station, you’ll have to bribe everyone there too, though not all cops can be bribed. You really don’t want to see the inside of a Colombian prison. Play it safe; you’re better off avoiding drugs in Colombia.
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MAPS
It’s difficult to find detailed maps of Colombia outside the country itself. Check with good travel bookstores and map shops to see what’s available. In the USA, Maplink ( 805 692 6777; www.maplink.com; 30 S La Patera Lane, No 5 Santa Barbara, CA 93117) has an excellent supply of maps. A similarly extensive selection of maps is available in the UK from Stanfords ( 020 7836 0189; www.stanfords.co.uk; 12-14 Long Acre, London WC2E 9LP).
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ORIENTATION
Colombian cities, towns and villages have traditionally been laid out on a grid plan. The streets running north–south are called Carreras,