A lovely day for a bike ride

Respira Profundo - it means, "breathe deeply." It's all part of Medellin's initiative to promote a healthy environment, where people can enjoy being outdoors and breathing the fresh air. Once a month they hold an event on the Museo de Arte Moderno de Medellin grounds where they have live music, booths where people sell fresh food items and local products from their farms outside Medellin, and areas where people enjoy their own picnics outdoors. It's really a great way to promote an active and healthy lifestyle, something that is not non-existant, but does take some searching to find in Medellin.

The scene at a Respira Profundo event in July 2010

With 20 year-old buses shooting out plumes of black smoke every time they pass you by, fried empanada shops on every corner, and sidewalks so crowded that pedestrians take to the street to pass, the city is not exactly a model for healthy living. But with active groups like Respira Profundo popping up, along with cycling groups and more health-awareness clubs, people are starting to take notice. The local TV station here Telemedellin is helping to promote Respira Profundo events, and has its own show about mountain biking trips in and outside Medellin, called Trochas.

Giovanni and I have been part of the cycling world for about a year now (well, he likes to remind me that it's something he's been trying to promote for 2-plus years), making it an effort to go out every weekend on our bikes, especially on Sundays when the city closes down the main avenues and opens up the lanes for biking, roller-skating, and running. We get up early and depending on our mood and the day, go for a 2-hour long up-hill trek, or head down the main streets, which are flat and full of people exercising. This is my favorite part of the week. Seeing so many people out on their bikes - you would never know so many bikes existed in this city! During the week you hardly ever see bicycles on the streets, weaving in and out of traffic, because it is so dangerous, tiring, and dirty (my personal thoughts). Bike-lanes only cover certain parts of the city, and even where you can find them in somewhat decent conditions, they are raised and next to the sidewalks, so you consistantly have to dodge people or yell at them to get out of the way (I have yet to acquire my bell, and I am bad at yelling, so I do more of a grumbling/coughing "EH!" People usually get the point).

So I guess you could say Giovanni's made something of a name for himself in the cycling world. He goes to weekly meetups, helps motivate people to get out on their bikes, and is part of a few groups. So Telemedellin invited him to their studio a few days ago to just talk about, from what I gather, this whole cycling initiative. After almost 2 hours he calls me to tell me how it went and to say, oh by the way, I've gotten you involved so be ready to appear in a few episodes of this cycling show. Whaaaat? I guess the whole American/Colombian couple thing that Gio and I have going really perked up the Telemedellin producers and they want to film us when we're out on our bikes the next couple of times. Oh, I need to talk about how much I love cycling and Medellin, and all of that. Ok, no problem. Honestly this is exciting, and it is a different angle, which I guess TV producers and news reporters are always looking for, but I just hope that it doesn't take away from the fact that we still need better cycling routes in the city and more incentives to buy a bicycle as a means of transportation (instead of a motorcycle, for example, which are a dime a dozen here). And when that happens, better laws requiring people to use the proper gear and awareness programs for drivers who think they are always in the right. We are no San Francisco or Amsterdam, but Medellin is doing its best to catch up to the environmental standards of its peers.