Photo: Twitter @HCabrejo
Potter in the jungle
Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe was recently in Colombia, filming for his latest movie, Jungle, which is expected to come out later this year. The British actor spent several days in Guaduas, Cundinamarca, in late March, shooting scenes for the psychological thriller, based on Yossi Ghinsberg’s memoirs of his deadly expedition into the Amazon.
Partners and pop
A number of Latin music stars took to social media to celebrate Colombia’s decision on same-sex marriage (see article here). Juanes posted on Twitter “Love is stronger than differences and should never have chains on it. Celebrating this news”, while Puerto Rican superstar Ricky Martin tweeted “Love and equality win, Colombia says YES to same-sex marriage”. Chocquibtown’s ‘Goyo’ also weighed in, posting “Happy that same-sex marriage in Colombia is now a reality”.
Tower of taste
Famed Catalan chef Sergi Arola is set to take on one of his biggest projects to date at the Bacatá tower in the centre of Bogotá, which will be the tallest building in Colombia when complete. The top two floors will be a restaurant serving up his own unique brand of tapas, while on the 58th floor he will be opening a fine dining cocktail bar. The third floor will be home to a ‘food cart’ inspired by New York’s Chelsea Market and the Mercado de San Miguel in Madrid. On the first floor, visitors will be able to get their hands on cheaper Asian-inspired street food. All of these offerings will bear the seal of the Michelin-starred chef, who has opened numerous restaurants around the world.
Gunning for a profit
A pair of ornate pistols, which belonged to Simón Bolívar, are set to be auctioned on April 13 at Christie’s in New York. The guns, which were made by Napoleon’s own gunsmith, Nicolas-Noël Boulet, are believed to have been a present from aristocrat-turned-revolutionary Marquis de Lafayette. The pair are expected to fetch between USD$1.5 million and USD $2.5million.
Cooking for Carlos
Contestants on Colombia’s MasterChef received a surprise on April 11, with the participation of vallenato superstar Carlos Vives. Santa Marta’s special son tried Caribbean dishes – which he chose – alongside famed chefs Paco Roncero, Jorge Rausch and Nicolás Zubiría. After the show Vives claimed: “It was an incredible experience, but it leaves you really hungry!”
J Balvin arriving at the 2016 Billboard Music Awards.
Billboard
Two Colombians have been nominated for awards at the 2016 Billboard Music Awards, which will take place in Las Vegas on May 22. J Balvin and Maluma are both up for the Top Latin Song award, for Ginza and Borro cassette respectively. They will come up against Romeo Santos and Nicky Jam (feat. Enrique Iglesias). Billboard first introduced categories for Latin music in their main awards in 2011, and Shakira is the only Colombian to have won any.
Sticking with Billboard, Juanes is set to perform at the Latin Music Awards in Miami on April 28. The Antioquia-born rock star, who is up for two awards at the ceremony, is one of a host of artists scheduled on stage, including Marc Anthony, Spain’s Natalia Jiménez – who has just announced that she is pregnant – and a number of reggaeton stars. Four other Colombians have been nominated for awards: J Balvin (8), Shakira (3), Maluma (2) and Chocquibtown (1).
Awarding good taste
There are three Colombian nominees for the prestigious Gourmand World Cookbook Awards, which take place in China on May 29. María Lía Neira is up for the best food website award, for her creation ensumesa.com, while a book about local Colombian markets, Mercados vivos, has been nominated in the Latin American countries category. María Villegas is present in both the Children and Family categories, for her book El desafío inesperado. It is worth noting, however, that the awards consist of dozens of categories with hundreds of nominees – categories vary from culinary history, innovation, magazines and photography to publishers, translations, apps and health.
