Why I chose Colombia

There are many reasons I chose Colombia. Most importantly is that I was pretty set on South America, as I have never been to any country there and I have recently become interested in learning Spanish. I wanted this trip to encourage my language deficiency as well as have a great cultural impact. Through my research and contacting many other cyclists who have went through South America I found that Colombia seems to be everyone's favorite destination. Many claim that they actually felt the safest as compared to Venezuela, Ecuador and Peru. Ecuador actually has more kidnappings now and Colombia has had less than 500 per year from 2008 on. This does not at all mean that Colombia should be considered a 'safe' destination, however the decrease in violence and kidnappings in recent years has increased tourism and won favorable marks by many government and travel reviews. It should also be noted that I will be traveling for the most part on main roads and the government often has them guarded which is nice. Cycling is big in Colombia so there are bike shops in the big cities and the roads are supposed to be much better than in the other West coast South American countries. In addition to this, travelers claim that it is easier to find accommodations while traveling in Colombia and that the people are much more hospitable and welcoming. As many of you know I am quite a big fan of beautiful scenery, various climates and coffee and Colombia just happens to have some of the worlds best in these categories as well. I understand traveling to any where in South America in this fashion brings some substantial risks, but I just don't want anyone to be worried about the fact that I am going to Colombia things are going to be just fine. For those interested, I have posted below links to where I did most of my reading as well as 2 articles that give very detailed information regarding the security situation.