Written by Sam Lambert, (Berea College), Student Correspondent for CET Colombia, Spring 2026sp
I’ve been in Cali for about a month now, so I guess you could say I’m an expert at this point! Just kidding. I wasn’t expecting there to be a lot of culture shock, but there have been a ton of little things that I’ve had to get used to. I thought it would be fun to go over ten things that surprised me when I first got here!
1 – Transportation
There’s a public bus that’s fairly well connected called the MIO. Our first week here, we were given bus cards so that we would have access to it whenever we wanted. Each card swipe costs $3,500 COP (just under 1 US dollar), so it’s a super affordable method of getting around the city. Unfortunately, the traffic is so congested that you never know when you’re going to arrive. I have missed so many buses at my connecting station because my first bus was delayed.
However, similarly low is the cost of an Uber. To take an Uber from our apartment to Casa CET usually amounts to about $3 USD (it’s a twenty minute trip). When three or four people need to go to Casa CET at once, it’s just as cheap as the bus, and way quicker!
2 – Motos
Everywhere you go, somebody is riding a motorcycle. For many Colombians, motos are more accessible, economical, and can get them to their destination way quicker. It’s such a popular form of transportation that Uber has an option to be picked up by a moto for half the price of a car. CET students are not allowed to ride on the back of a moto, but we do need to look out for them—oftentimes, motos don’t obey traffic signals. Crossing the road can be dangerous if you don’t keep them in mind, and sometimes moto drivers will hop onto the sidewalk to avoid the worst of the traffic.
3 – Wildlife
My friends and I went out of our minds with excitement when we saw what looked like a baby capybara hopping through the grass. Called agouti, these little guys live at the park a fifteen minute walk from our home! We take a slightly longer detour through that park on our way to the university just in case we spot one.
There are so many kinds of birds that I’ve never seen before. Little yellow songbirds, larger birds with striped tails, and vultures with white heads are just a few of the birds we see every day. There’s a duck pond right around the block from where we live, but more than ducks live there—iguanas and turtles and leafcutter ants frequently cross the sidewalk.
4 – Eggs
Eggs don’t go in the fridge here! Chicken eggs (quail eggs are also sold frequently, though I haven’t tried them yet) go through a different treatment process than they do in the United States and do not need to be refrigerated. It does mean that the contents of the egg are more watery and the yolk is more likely to break, but there isn’t a difference in taste. It also means a lot more fridge space!
5 – Cheese
Colombia doesn’t have the same common varieties of cheese that the United States does, but that isn’t actually the thing that gets cheese a spot on the list. In Colombia, cheese is a frequent component in sweets.
Cheese is often paired with arequipe (similar to caramel) and fruit of all kinds. I’ve eaten it in sweet bread, fried into sweet plantains, and filling a donut. A friend ordered a banana split at an ice cream place the other day, and they asked if she wanted cheese on it. It tastes fine, but the flavor combination is always so unexpected that I have to get around a mental block to properly enjoy it.
6 – Classes
College classes here are commonly three or four hours long, only meeting once a week. That’s a long time to be sitting in one place, but most professors allow for a fifteen minute break in the middle. Only getting together once a week is also strange—it’s easier to lose track of doing assignments with so much time between each class. However, it does make the week go quicker. Each day of the week I have a singular class, but it’s different each day, so every day has its own unique twist that keeps me from getting caught up in the slog of homework and class.
7 – Group Work
Every class I’ve had so far is really big on group work. Back home, most assignments are to be completed individually, with the occasional “discuss with your partner” in the middle of class. Aside from readings, there are almost zero individual assignments or activities. Something as simple as writing a reflection is split into groups, while more complex assignments like presentations are almost never done on your own. While this does lessen the pressure of performing perfectly, it also adds the stress of trying to meet up with other group members when some of us live in different apartments.
8 – Mornings
The afternoon is the hottest part of the day, and the muggy heat builds up quickly. Because of that, a lot of Colombian culture is built around morning activities—classes are frequently in the morning (some held as early as 6am), there are panaderias around every corner for your morning pandebono and coffee, and lines for the bus start to curve around the block. I’m not a huge fan of having class before 10am, but in some cases that isn’t an option!
9 – Uno
If you’re familiar with the card game Uno, you probably play by your own house rules. There are some that are assumed to be canon in Colombia that I had never heard of. One is the rule of 7—if someone plays a 7, you aren’t allowed to talk until a new number is played. For every word you say while a 7 is down, you have to draw a card. Another is the 5 rule—when someone puts a 5 down, everyone has to slap their hands in the center. The last person to slap their hand on the pile has to draw two cards.
10 – The Llamas
There is an elementary school near our apartment buildings. Two llamas live on their sports field, apparently maintaining the grass. When the students have gym class or sports practices, they just play around the llamas. The llamas don’t care. They’re just there for the grass.
Now when you come to Colombia, you can be an expert too! All of these things have become almost normal to me, and I’ve grown attached to so many little things that I know I’ll miss when I get home. March is going to be full of Travel seminars and all sorts of fun stuff, so I can’t wait to update you next month!
Much love,
Sam