Daddy Yankee is only the most popular reggaeton (like Spanish hip hop-rap) star in Latin America, and I saw him perform in concert. I made plans with a 19-year-old Colombian guy through Couchsurfing
to go together to the show in Medellin. While Couchsurfing is a great resource, I prefer meeting people naturally, but I wanted some company for something as desirable as this concert.
This took place in August after nearly a month in Bolivia and a few days back in Argentina when I flew from Buenos Aires back to Colombia, making it my fourth separate trip to the country.
I tried to see Daddy Yankee on the same tour in Bolivia, but if you read my last post, you will understand that Bolivia is business-challenged
and so the concert never happened. I never did get a refund for my concert ticket.
I digress.
I met Sebastian at the metro station along with one of his buddies. Together, the three of us met a few of their friends at the stadium and entered early enough to arrive before any opening bands were set to play.
Now usually, my Couchsurfing meetup experiences are positive and hardly awkward. But in this situation, I had a hard time feeling comfortable.
- All of them were great friends.
- Only Sebastian spoke any English, and the rest said too fast for me to be able to participate in any conversations.
- They all kept asking if I was okay because I was not saying much
- The girls kept wanting to grind, but I had nothing to drink previously and have no Latin/African blood…I am a gringo. After all
- The girls were not attractive
- When sitting down, there were two skinny women and two dangerous-looking drug-dealing men accidentally rubbing their asses on my head at the time
- It was .raining, and we were outdoors.
Now despite all of that, I did enjoy the music. Daddy Yankee and the other band Aventura were great. At one point, Daddy Yankee asked everyone to take pictures with the flash on at once, making an excellent flash effect.
See the two girls wanting to grind.
They were passing around the aguardiente (anise-flavored spirit). But not enough to feel anything continuing the string of awkwardness.
There were flashes of good times, especially when I was not being asked if I felt okay. I am also undoubtedly grateful to Sebastian for inviting me along.
After the concert, Sebastian’s brother drove me home. They dropped me off by the taxis as I stayed in a completely different part of Medellin. I think I made an even worse impression when I decided to get some street food as they waited for me to get in a taxi from their car. I happened to be in a dangerous area and ignored their hand motions to get in a cab from the car as I waved them off.
At the end of the night, I made it home safely and was glad to have gone to the concert but also thrilled that it was over!