Are you ready to immerse into the vibrant culture of Colombia and improve your Spanish skills?
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Fulbright invites you to get to know Colombia and practice our language, Spanish, in a natural and cultural environment that you will never forget. Come and experience a unique experience in two iconic places of the country, the jungle or the Caribbean, while strengthening your Spanish skills together.
- Where: San Andrés and Leticia
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Our Partner in Colombia: Universidad Nacional de Colombia The Universidad Nacional de Colombia is a public and national higher education institution, founded in 1867. Its strictness, resources, productivity, competitiveness, and highly qualified faculty, consolidate it as the most important university in Colombia and one of the most important in Latin America.Visit: unal.edu.co
can apply?
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The course is designed for students and professionals who are proficient in Spanish at the A2-B1 level, that is, who are able to carry on a basic conversation in Spanish, make themselves understood when asking questions or following oral instructions.
Destinations
Choose where you wish to spend the upcoming summer.
- San Andrés Island (Exploring the Caribbean Coast)
- Leticia, Amazonas (Discovering the Amazonian Forest)
What is included?
Tuition, cultural excursions, lodging, meals, local transportation and snacks.
What is not included?
- Tickets for both domestic and international travel are not included.
Personal expenses and other costs are not stipulated in the program.
Explore San Andrés: an authentic paradise
Almost forty scuba diving sites, one of the best beaches in the Caribbean, a blue sea that’s also green and even purple, and people brimming with friendliness… to name but a few of the charms of the islands of San Andrés, Providencia, and Santa Catalina, located in the Colombian Caribbean.
This group of islands, located about 230 kilometers east of mainland Central America and 750 kilometers north of mainland Colombia, was declared a UNESCO world biosphere site in the year 2000, the «Seaflower Biosphere Reserve». The reserve site is not just the islands and its outlying cays; it also takes in 10% of the Caribbean Sea, covering an expanse of over 300 thousand square kilometers.
Travelers flock to these paradisiacal islands from all over the world in search of perfect sunsets, white beaches, and towering palm trees that sway in the breeze and, coupled with the carefree smiles of the local islanders, make this destination one of the best places to spend your time.
In this tiny paradise English, Spanish, pirate and buccaneer influences blended with the afro-descendent communities to give rise to a broad and wealthy culture. In fact, to this day you’re likely to hear the islanders speak Creole, a unique mix of Elizabethan English, Spanish and African dialects.
But, don’t worry! San Andrés locals also speak Spanish and English, so you’ll have no problem getting around and communicating.
This cultural mix has left its mark on the music, which features rhythms like reggae, reggaeton, soca, calypso, merengue, vallenato and salsa. (Colombia travel, date to be confirmed)
What to do?
- A unique experience is to visit Johnny Cay. This place can be reached after 15 minutes aboard a boat that sails over the calm waters of the sea of San Andres.
- Another great experience is to visit the islands of Providencia and Santa Catalina, affectionately known as the «Hidden Treasure of the Western Caribbean» for their natural beauty and marine wealth.
- Enjoy the typical flavors of the archipelago, such as seafood, fish, banana cake and crab empanadas.
- Amazing activities await you in San Andrés, like swimming among 300 manta rays; delighting in the Acuario, an open sea aquarium bursting with a diversity of local marine species; and gazing in wonder at the seven-colored sea around the archipelago and its heavenly beaches so beautifully sheltered by its stunning barrier reef.
- The more adventurous visitors also have plenty to find in San Andrés, like snorkeling, kitesurfing, windsurfing and jet skiing, not to mention scuba diving among the coral reefs where the visibility is over thirty meters and just breath-taking.
Academic proposal for the Caribbean adventure
Discover Leticia: get to know its natural and cultural wealth
From the window of your plane, just before landing, you can see an expanse of towering trees traversing the largest river in the world. This is the landscape you’ll find in Leticia, an incredible place if you enjoy extreme contact with nature and getting to know some of the cultures most representative of the country.
The main feature of the area is, without a doubt, the majestic Amazon River, which you can travel to observe amazing species and reach remote communities, indigenous shelters, and nature reserves.
Leticia’s natural wealth is also apparent in the city’s enormous variety of animal and plant species: 860 species of birds, 140 species of amphibians, 85 species of mammals, 147 species of reptiles, and 6,800 species of plants. The care of both locals and tourists have contributed to the thriving state of Leticia’s animal and plant life.
In fact, one of the nearby municipalities, Puerto Nariño, was certified by the country’s Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Tourism as the first sustainable town in Colombia, thanks to the effective use of water and energy resources and the protection of the flora and fauna, among other things.
What to do?
- You can go to the tourist pier in Leticia, where you will find the imaginary line that divides the Amazon into three countries (Colombia, Brazil and Peru), and where you will find boats that will take you to different places to appreciate nature and have contact with different indigenous communities.
- Another great option to enjoy the wonderful flora and fauna of the region is to visit parks and natural reserves such as Amacayacu, Chiribiquete and Nukak. Not surprisingly, this region is considered one of the best in the world to be surprised by animal and plant species.
- will get to know a great natural diversity, the Amazon is home to an enormous cultural richness. There, you will find indigenous communities such as the HITOMA, the YAGUA, the MACEDONIA and the TACANA, with whom you will be able to interact and learn about their rich culture and interesting vision of the world.
- In Leticia you will find exotic dishes such as mojojoy, fariña and freshwater fish.
- For lovers of ecotourism and adventure, Leticia also has options, as it offers a large number of activities such as tree climbing, jungle trekking, canopy tours, sailing on the Amazon River, wildlife watching, or a river trip to remote places in the heart of the jungle.
Academic proposal for the Amazonian experience
Santiago Castañeda Montoya
Educational Projects Leader
Fundación Amigos de Fulbright
