Back in Medellín

Bottoms up!: A new shot bar offers colorful drinks with sexy names.

It’s been two and a half years since I was last in Medellín, and the transformation that I first wrote about is even more noticeable with the number of restaurants, bars and hotels that have recently popped up. Right before going, I kept hearing about the new wave of violence that has doubled the city’s murder rate since 2008. And I’m not going to lie, I was a little nervous. You see, even Colombians (or in my case, the daughter of Colombians) know that the price of life in Colombia can be cheap. But I was pleasantly surprised. And I’m not the only one that seems to like it here. The gringos have descended in full force. One cabbie lamented the number of men that come here—not to see Botero’s famous gordas—but to hook up with the ladies.