Cartagena… I am not done yet
Old Town. Rooftops. Sprinkle sprinkle. Torrential rain.
It was initially my intention for Cartagena to be my first stop. To chill, to party, you know.. chop life. But you know what, I am glad I waited.
They weren’t lying when they said that this city is for h’enjoyment. They also weren’t lying when they said that this city is more expensive, street vendors are more aggressive and that they have that Caribbean twang to their accent. They be forever dropping their s’ and losing the d’s. Good thing I started training my ears in Bogotá where I was warned about this. I am able to pick up on context so much faster that the accent difference has become less of a barrier.
The way the humidity hit me as the airport exit doors opened was familiar. Kotoka and Muhammad Murtala familiar.
But that unfortunately also meant that my sweat glands had totally lost their respect for me and decided to let loose. You can only imagine the discomfort of sweating when your hands are full.
As in Bogota, I took an Uber from the airport and had a conversation with the driver. I was so stunned to hear that his Spanish had a similar melodic sound that people from the former Dutch Antilles (specificilaly the ABC Islands) have in their Dutch accent. But then again, Cartagena is considered the Caribbean and is like an hour’s flight from Aruba. So it’s not surprising.
Anyway.. I decided to stay in a hostel while waiting for my cousin. I normally don’t have any issues with hostels and sharing rooms and facilities if it is for a short period of time. Plus it is a great way of meeting people. However, somewhere along the line, I did not read properly and ended up in a massive space with 24 beds and only 3 bathrooms. Luckily it was very clean and right in the middle of Centro Historico where the life of the party was happening right on its doorstep.
I’ve been waiting to be near the coast to try any fish dishes so I wasted no time and went to a Caribbean restaurant I found on Google. I have to admit, Cartagena did not disappoint with the seafood cuisine. As well as patacones and arroz negro, ceviche was also available on any reputable menu. The best ceviche I had was at a restaurant called Candé. The portion was generous enough for that to have been my only course. Prawns, cod, squid in lime and coconut.. hmmm I am drooling as I write this. (Obviously if you’re not into fish, it is not for you). I think I will do a separate post of what I’ve been eating and where.
Centro Historico offers some great art and architecture but it was also packed, when I say packed, I mean packed with street vendors. I have to say, they were not as aggressive with me as I expected. To be honest I suspect being Morena helped with that.
Sidenote: speaking of Morenas.. there were definitely more in Cartagena than in Bogota and around Armenia/Salento.
Over the last couple of weeks, I noticed that establishments really go all out with the Halloween decorations. From extravagant decor to members of staff being all dressed up in costumes. Naturally I would think that spending Halloween here would be quite eventful. And it was! Stepping out in the evening, I was met with so many people and especially performers in costumes. On my way from the one rooftop to the next, I heard Afrobeats and followed the music.
From a simply saying yes to the question ‘Can I sit next to you’, the night, unexpectedly, led to me having a lovely dinner at a Japanese restaurant and great conversation with a fellow solo traveller.
My cousin arrived and she is a high rise babe. So for the following 5 days I was a high rise babe too. Waking up to the beautiful views of Bocagrande, albeit cloudy and misty on most days, was definitely welcomed. By the groceries we did, you could tell I was really happy to have access to a kitchen. Which apart from breakfast, we hardly cooked out of. Typical.
Having a cousin/friend/cousin that you truly click with is such a blessing and I am so grateful for her. We had fun together. We always do. As much as I want to go into tons of detail of what we got up to.. I won’t bore so here’s a summary:
Dentist
Dental/cosmetic tourism really is a thing here. I thought on this side of the world, people went to the Dominican Republic for such, but no, Colombia is definitely a destination too. I was desperate for a scale and polish and was traumatised by my dentist is London to go.
For some reason, trying to change dentist is such a tedious process as there is an element of trial and error but to even get to that, you need to be lucky that the dentist has capacity. The dentist I found here though was so kind and gentle and really took her time. I even fell asleep during the cleaning, one would think I had a massage.
My cousin also had some treatments done which costed her way way less than it would have done in the US.
Totumo Volcano
I took the contact details of an Uber driver with whom I agreed a price to be taken to and from Totumo. As it is quite rurally located, when going independently, it was often advised to agree a rate and let the driver wait for you and bring you back. Our driver, Manuel, did just that. He was really sweet and patient that we decided to tip him. Totumo was such a crazy and weird experience. The way to make the most of it was to really let go and let be. I tried my utmost best to get out of my head when I was floating in mud whilst being massaged then being washed in the lake by strangers.
Anyway, on the way back, we got recommended a place for some seafood as well as a club that would play our music. And yes, by ‘our’ I mean black. It was no suprise that it was very American. I can’t remember the last time I was in a club where the DJ or MC said where are all my New Yorkers.. where the people from Chicago at. It’s usually South London make some noise..
Bottomless Brunch
People watching at a rooftop with bottomless mimosas and food… need I say more?
Yacht trip
After brunch.. my cousin heard accents similar to hers. African residing the States. I, with my tunnel vision, kept walking whilst she was chatting away.. So obviously I went back to introduce myself to the group of guys and do the whole ‘where in Ghana are you from’ thing. Good thing we did, as within a couple of hours, were invited to a yacht ride to the Island Choclo the next day.
We arrived at the dock pretty much on time only to be left waiting for about 45 minutes during which we were sweating like crazy and being beeped at by passing taxis and motorbikes. How awkward. Anyway.. once they arrived, the fun started. It was a vibe. I had a good time because I really wanted a pool or seaside day. My overall feeling at the end of it was a bit mixed though. Mixed because I had a blast but the younger ladies who attended were scouted online.. you can fill in the blanks.
Long story short, Cartagena was fun. It was a vibe. Having been to neither, I was told that the Old Town gave New Orleans vibes whilst Bocagrande and the yacht then gave Miami vibes.
I don’t think I am done yet though, there are a couple of things I still want to do, so Cartagena will see me again.
