You’ll have to bear with me on this post – it’s the first one I’m attempting while actually on a trip so this whole thing will be done from my phone. We are in Bogota right now and this morning I presented Andy with a very odd sightseeing idea: hitting up the local flea market.

Julie: So I was reading in the guide about a flea market that only takes place on Sundays. It’s Sunday today… we should go.
Andy: (looks at me quizzically) Oh?
Julie: (goes back to getting ready) Yeah.
Andy: Why?
Julie: I don’t know, maybe they’ll have something cool.

(There’s a long pause)

Andy: (confused) You mean… to buy?
Julie: Well… yeah… maybe… I don’t know... maybe.

The reason for Andy’s confusion is that I’m not really a trinket kind of person. I don’t like souvenirs unless they have a practical purpose and a flea market is a particularly odd choice because even the small amount of decor we do have in our home leans more to the modern side rather than the vintage side.

Anyway, Andy agrees to go with me and we head down to the market.

Julie: Oh yeah. I don’t really like things like this.
Andy: I know.
Julie: Neither do you.
Andy: (eyeing some creepy, old dolls) Not really.

Julie: Everyone is jostling everyone and it’s just a bunch of junk that you have to haggle for.
Andy: Yep.

Julie: Who buys this crap?
Andy: I’m not sure.
Julie: (sighs) I guess I was thinking that maybe we would find something really cool… Like something to put in the living room in the place of that brick.

(Side note: I have exactly two things on display in my living room not counting a few framed pictures, a lamp and a clock. One is a brass cricket that belonged to my aunt and the other is an old brick with origins that are a bit of a mystery.)

So we looked around for a bit, making our rounds around the stalls of stuff.

Some stuff could have been cool if you were into old stuff.

Some stuff could be cool if you lived in the area and wanted to score some good deals on stuff you needed.

Some stuff could have been cool at other times in my life.

And other stuff could be good if you needed it.

After a while of browsing through other people’s old stuff and getting sprinkled on, Andy and I decided there was nothing there for us and headed for the exit.

And that was when Andy spotted it. It was exactly what we needed – something totally practical but something that will be even cooler because we picked it up at a flea market in Bogota: an old bellow!

We awkwardly haggled a bit and probably paid too much but it’s pretty perfect anyway. Our condo has a small, wood-burning fireplace, which is practically unheard of for a downtown condo, and we absolutely love it. We have a small, modern fireplace accessory set with a poker, a brush and a shovel for the ashes but it does not have a bellow. That is, until now.

I don’t have a picture of the bellow. I know, I know… all those pictures of random stuff and I didn’t get one of what we actually bought. Don’t worry, I’ll tweet a picture of it later tonight.

In the end, I might not make a habit of hitting up random flea markets wherever we go, but this time, it paid off. It yielded an awesome souvenir that is both a cool vintage piece that represents our travels but also a useful item that will help give our living room a little warmth both in terms of a cozy fire as well as a little more character than is presently afforded by our minimalistic decorating approach.

I’ll leave you with a few more pictures from the market. Also, we are having a wonderful time down here and I already have tons of fun future post ideas. Stay tuned!