His 18 day visit to Colombia in 2019 covered Cartagena, Medellín and Bogotá. He was surprised at what he found there, especially at Medellín , once considered the most dangerous city in the world. The trip included a visit to a cathedral in a salt mine, 200 feet underground, a challenging climb to the top of a 656 foot high rock monolith (750 steps to the top!), visits to museums overflowing with Inca gold and Botero art and sculpture, as well as an excursion to the poor but colorful barrios of Medellín. Colombia was more than he expected and reaffirmed his choice of South America as his favorite destination.

Biography: Bill Pumphrey was born with the travel bug. So far he has visited 54 countries around the world and lived in Tanzania, Mexico, and Hawaii among other places. In Hawaii, he was Dean of Travel Industry Management at Hawaii Pacific College. A 20 year resident of Oaxaca, he annually provides a travelog at OLL to share his adventures and inspire others to hit the road. He is an expert at finding travel bargains and tells folks that his middle name is "Ganga." That is Spanish for bargain. He's a top contributor at tripadvisor.com and his autobiography, "Life's Roller Coaster,” details many of his travel


This presentation will take place on the 2nd floor terrace of the Library. Seating in the salon will be made available for those unable to access the terrace. The presentation will be video stream for those in the salon. Please notify the office at least a week in advance for salon seating. Face Masks must be worn at all times. Attendees will be requested to maintain social distancing.
Tickets are $100 for Members, $130 for Non-Members of OLL