1. Nation Report part 1: Colombia By: miguelCardenas

3. Colombia is the only South American country which borders both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

4. Colombia is located in the northwestern region of South America bordering to the east with Venezuela and Brazil; to the south with Ecuador and Peru; to the North with the Atlantic Ocean, through the Caribbean Sea and to the west with Panama and the Pacific Ocean.

6. A four-decade long conflict between government forces and anti-government insurgent groups, principally the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) heavily funded by the drug trade, escalated during the 1990s.

7. Colombia usually classifies its geography into five regions.

9. Indigenous peoples, who account for only about 1% of today's population, live on the edge of some of the major cities and in remote areas.

11. Over 76 percent of the population lives in towns and cities.

12. The Colombian people are very, very special. You'll rarely find such joyful, open-hearted, skilled and inspiring people in South America.

13. The Colombian population reached 44 million in late 2002 and the population density varies a great deal across the country.

14. In Bogotá the estimated population varies between 7 and 10 million inhabitants.

16. The folk music and dance of the country reveals African or Native American influences.

17. Bambuco, the national dance is quite famous but Salsa is also equally popular.

18. The music loved by most people in Colombia is called murga, which is played by groups of wandering street musicians using stringed instruments.

19. The country also excels in art and craft work.

20. The temples, statues, potteries that are made here are the examples of the fine artwork of Colombians.

21. The culture of Colombia has traces of Native Americans.

23. The rapid phase of urbanization has led to the usherance of a cosmopolitan culture in Columbia and the effects of it are widely felt in different spheres of Columbian culture.

24. The rich legacy of the Castilian heritage still continues to dominate the ethnicity of the country.

26. Colombia has a long history going back before the Spanish Conquest, and there are several sites that bear testimony to its fascinating Indian past.

27. In San Agustín, in the southern part of the Colombian Andes, monoliths of volcanic stone representing gods and warriors are preserved, and nearby, in the area of Tierradentro, the visitor can enter a complex of underground burial chambers

29. Both groups claimed to represent the poor and weak against the rich and powerful classes of the country, demanding the completion of true land and political reform, from an openly Communist perspective.

30. Prior to the Spanish conquest, Colombia was inhabited by Chibcha, sub-Andean, and Caribbean peoples, all of whom lived in organized, agriculturally based communities.

31. After the Spanish conquest, which began in 1525, the area of present-day Colombia formed the nucleus of New GranadaCOLOMBIAN History

32. Sources http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Colombia. http://www.colombia.travel/en/international-tourist/colombia. http://www.colombia.travel/en/international-tourist/colombia.