Day 211 (Monday December 13, 2010): Bogota, Colombia (Arrival Day!)

I stop at the Kawasaki dealer to purchase the items I will need to bring the bike back to operation. I need to find a funnel since the crashbars make it difficult to add radiator fluid. While asking random people on the street for directions to a hardware store, a man and his son ask me to wait while they made a funnel for me. A bottle, some length of tube, tape, and 5 mins later they hand me a funnel. They ask for nothing in return but tell me to keep in touch. With oil, radiator fluid, gasoline, funnel, and tools in my hands I jump in a taxi and head towards the airport. I am cautiously optimistic, however, it is impossible for me to reserve all celebrations until riding my bike away. At the airport I hand all the documents I have to the shipping company and after getting a receipt of release I needed to go to the ADUANA (customs) office to get my bike temporarily imported. By the time I reach the office it is 13:00 and the person I talk to speaks a bit too quickly and I mistakenly hear that they are closing at 14:00. What she said though was that her shift ends at 14:00 and another shift will come in and process the bike. After Mexico, I expected to have to explain my entire situation again and have them go through all the paperwork. However, when 14:00 rolls around my entire situation has already been explained to the next person. By far the best customs and government agency experience I have had yet in Latin America. Finally at around 15:00 I am able to get access to my bike.

The crate is fairly damage but there are only a few scrapes on the bike. Not bad for first being shipped by truck from Vancouver to Miami and then by plane to Colombia. I am allowed to rebuild and refill my bike inside the warehouse. The male employees want to know about the bike and my trip. The female employees eye my bike from a distance. After the bike is filled I go for the starter... SUCCESS! With a huge grin on my face I ride out of the warehouse ready for some riding in South America.