2 Finally, a dream came true and I got to see some Colombian Melastomataceae! Together with my Master student Constantin Kopper, I did a first exploratory fieldtrip to the areas of Calí (southern Colombia) and Bogotá. We spent our days observing pollinators, searching for Melastomataceae in the cloud forest, measuring and scoring floral traits and running our first artificial buzzing experiments, mimicking buzzing bees. Highlights from fieldwork: seeing the fantastic Axinaea lehmannii in flower! Smelling the garlic-scent of flowers of Tibouchina grossa, and finding out that pollen is released through a flip-mechanism. Finding a species of Killipia on a steep slope close to Calí. Apart from fantastic fieldwork, I was absolutely amazed by Colombia and by how different it is from Ecuador, where I have done most of my fieldwork during my PhD. I am excited to get back to Colombia soon, hopefully with more time to see more of the country and do some rock climbing – which supposedly is great 😀