Hanging With Friends of Friends (May 18, 2026)
There are very few countries that gave me pause before deciding to visit. Columbia is one of those countries.
Columbia’s drug cartel, formerly headed by Pablo Escobar, is globally (in)famous and Columbia is one of the few countries in South America known to kidnap tourists and hold them for ransom. I’m not making this up. Just search up “Kidnap and Ransom (K&R) insurance for Columbia” for all the details.
What’s worse, I failed to investigate when Columbia’s next huge presidential election is being held and only after I booked my non-refundable flights and hotel room did I discover it’s Sunday, May 31st, 2026 (as in 5 days before I’m supposed to fly to Peru)! There was already a report of one car bomb just a few weeks ago. Yikes!
But I was determined to see my good friend, Santiago Bravo (see related post). Plan A was to convince my dear friends Scott and Claudia Barbey to come with me. Claudia grew up in Columbia along with her two sisters, Monica Schlichting and Laura Grassie (both of whom I also adore). They know how to stay safe and I knew I’d be in good hands with any of the three sisters and/or their family.
Enter Gina, John & Felipe
Felipe, John, Gina & me having a most excellent dinner together.
Gina is Claudia’s first cousin (along with Monica and Laura). Claudia, who really wanted to join me in Bogota was told in no uncertain terms from her doctor that she was “grounded” and unable to fly domestically, and sure as hell wasn’t allowed to fly outside the country. But, being the amazing problem solver she’s always been, she offered up an alternative solution: introducing me to her cousin Gina.
Gina, who is married to John, splits her time between Bogota, Florida and New York. I was very fortunate that my timing for this trip worked for both Gina and John (and that they would be here vs. in the US). Gina’s first recommendation was to hire Felipe as my translator, driver, and tour guide extraordinaire (see related post). Such a great call. With Felipe, I have a friend in Bogota who can show me all the best places, eat at all the best restaurants and enjoy my time here safely.
John, Gina and I in one of the many incredible Bogota restaurants
What I love about Gina and John are their generous hearts. I found out that they have just completed an significant rebuild of their apartment here in Bogota. Anyone who has been through this knows how difficult this process can be. From architects to contractors to builders to installers to neighbors and the government — everyone has regular ongoing needs in this process.
And yet, they still made time to meet “a friend of my cousin.” If that is not a warm and generous heart, I don’t know what is.
Artistic rendering of Gina and John on their wedding day. Beautiful!
Gina and John are lovely people. To know them is to understand what makes Columbia such and amazing country. Gina has worked as an executive coach for many years and we certainly bonded over this shared passion. But it’s more than that. Gina genuinely cares about people. With a simple introduction from Scott and Claudia, I was instantly treated like a VIP despite being a stranger in a strange land.
Gina made sure I was safe, had the support I needed and helped me plan out where to spend my time while I’m here … for a total stranger. A “friend of a friend.” Perhaps this is not as unique as I was thinking.
Nicholas Luna, Marcela Calderone, and Jen Nash in Puebla, Mexico
When Nicholas Luna invited me and my son Will to spend time in his home town of Puebla, Mexico (see related post), I asked him if I could also bring my friend, Jen Nash with me. This request was unexpected and caused a challenge because Nick wanted his wife and son to meet me and my son. He had made all kinds of plans that I would have messed up due to there not being enough space in his car, etc.
But, without a second’s thought he said, “While I can’t accommodate your friend this time around, she has an open invitation to visit me anytime she’s free.” I shared this with Jen and not only did she take Nick up on his offer, she brought one of her friends from Mexico City who had also always wanted to visit Pueblo.
And just like that … loving kindness, compassion and big hearts are on display. Nick only knew me from our virtual work together, yet he invited me and my son Will to spend the day with him. Then he did it again for Jen Nash and her friend Marcela Calderone.
Jen, Elan, Nick, Pam and Marcela having lunch together
And then … it gets wild. So Nick doesn’t know Jen until I introduced her to him. Then they both started talking about this guy who is responsible for all these murals and both Jen and Nick realize they are talking about the same artist: Alfredo Atala.
Alfredo Atala is a close friend of a man Jen dated for two years and also went to school with Nick. They’ve been close friends for years and now both have a child around the same age.
It just goes to show how interconnected we truly are and why we all need to spend more time hanging with friends of friends. It’s how we reduce and eliminate the illusion of separation and experience the loving kindness of seemingly total strangers.
