The Foreign Service Journal, October 2021

64 OCTOBER 2021 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL A Hearty and Enthusiastic Reception Unlike Cartagena, Colombia’s capital was fully prepared for Lindbergh’s arrival. The American legation, under the direction of Minister Samuel Piles, worked feverishly with the Colombian government to arrange a proper welcome. Lindbergh navigated his way from Cartagena by following the San Jorge River and then connecting with the Nechí and Cauca Rivers, which took him to the town of Puerto Berrio. From there, he ascended high into the Andes, working his way through a pass at 9,800 feet. He dropped out of the clouds at 2 p.m., making several turns over the city before touching down at Madrid Field an hour later. The Associated Press reported that Lindbergh “came from Cartagena, about 425 miles away, over high mountains enshrouded in clouds, past dangerous ravines, and through unknown country—one of the most daring flights he has yet made on his present tour. No other plane had ever crossed the ranges to the valley in which the Colombian capital lies, and Lindbergh was on time.” On landing, the plane was swamped by a crowd of 15,000 and Lindbergh “seemed almost in danger of his life from the enthusi- astic welcome.” A detachment from the aviation school rushed in to protect Spirit . After stepping down from the cockpit, Lindbergh “was greeting with a kiss on the cheek by Señorita Olga Noguera Davila, pretty queen of the student body delegated for this duty.” Not to be outdone, the “feminine contingent of the American colony” presented himwith a feather, pearl and gold locket to take home to his mother. As Lindbergh wrote in one of his dispatches, “The welcome by the people of Colombia at the Madrid Aviation Field might well be compared to that at Paris in May. It took nearly an hour, because of the enthusiasm of the people, to get to the aviation school building.” He then went a step further by saying, “I have never received a more hearty and enthusiastic reception in either America or Europe than the one today at Bogota.” From the airfield, Lindbergh made the 20-mile trip into town “over a smooth road comparable to our own in the United States,” accompanied by Minister Piles and Colombian Foreign Minister Carlos Uribe. At the entrance to the city, the motorcade “No other plane had ever crossed the ranges to the valley in which the Colombian capital lies, and Lindbergh was on time.” MIKEPEEL Flags from the countries Lindbergh visited, on the hull of his plane.