Heading down in late August for a wedding. I've never been, and really looking forward to it.

But I am apprehensive about the language barrier. I can read Spanish well enough to get the gist of it, but no way can I understand someone speaking Spanish (they oftentimes talk way too fast and blur their words together). I'm essentially on a high school Spanish 2 level. Anything beyond the basic phrases like "como se llama...." "donde est el baño?" "Cuanto cuesta?" are out of my depth. And even then, not sure I'd be able to understand their responses. I wish life had closed captions.

What are some things to be aware of in Colombia? Off-the-wall things like "don't flush toilet paper, don't make eye contact, they see tipping as an insult" type stuff? My sister's husband is half-Colombian and she mentioned no wearing bright colors, carry a small purse, do your best to blend in.

Are any of the iPhone translate apps worth a darn?

I've been living in Bogota for the last five years. I have a love/hate relationship with the city. First and foremost, be very aware of your surroundings at all times and avoid walking around with your cell phone out. You may be in what appears to be a very safe area, but your phone can get snatched before you even know what happened. I'm on phone number 4. There are a few areas of the city worth a visit (Candelaria, Rosales, the area around Parque 93). Do not walk around at night under any circumstances. I use the Easy Taxi or Uber apps to get around if I'm headed for a night out. It's cool to cold all year....a lot of tourists show up here and are not prepared for the weather. Bogota is far from my favorite city in Colombia, but the nightlife can be great.

As far as your specific questions...yes, you can flush the toilet paper, most places just include the tip in the bill (they will usually ask first), and people do tend to wear dark colors here.

Love Bogota and it is very cool there from a temp perspective.

We loved it. We did a work/speaking engagement/training there a couple of years ago. Also went out to dinner in the city at 10 pm and never felt unsafe. One thing that I have to mention, however, is that we had 4 native Colombians with us that we work with as our guides. That helped us blend in. I do speak Spanish but my wife found it decently easy to get by without it. There are places outside of Bogota where you won't find any English at all.

The nightlife and restaurant scene where we were was great though. I honestly felt safer than I do in parts of Mexico.

Edit: forgot - the weather is awesome. I believe Colombia is the most topographically diverse country in the world.