Up until 20 years ago, Medellin was one of the most violent and dangerous cities in the world. Home to the drug lord, Pablo Escobar, Medellin was a city where people were scared to walk to in the streets, and people were murdered daily. Since Pablo Escobar’s death in the 90’s, Medellin has been transformed into one of the most modern and urban cities in South America. In fact, Medellin is the only city in Colombia with a metro system, and it has been rumoured to be one of the best cities in South America to do business in. [Read more…] about Medellin: A City with a Past
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The Beautiful Cartagena: Part 2
As I mulled over what else I wanted to write about from our time in Cartagena, I realized that I forget an essential part of our day on Thursday: booking flights from Cartagena to Medellin. The discount airline in Colombia is called VivaColombia and flies to all the major cities in Colombia for a little more than the bus costs. The only problem with VivaColombia is that you cannot use a foreign credit card to purchase flights. Instead, you purchase a ticket through the website by choosing to pay using “Via Baloto”. Once you have chosen your flight and gone through the whole process of puchasing, you receive a confirmation number and have to take this to a Via Baloto station, which is really just a counter where you can cash in lottery tickets, amongst other things. [Read more…] about The Beautiful Cartagena: Part 2
The Beautiful Cartagena
As I sit down to write about the last few days, I find myself in a perfect Saturday morning setting. We slept in and woke up to no alarm, and then I made a coffee, which I am currently sipping by the outdoor patio at our hostel. I can hear the birds chirping and the sun is shining. One of the things I’ve missed most about home is sipping coffee slowly in bed with a good book, and I think I’ve found an equal bliss here. [Read more…] about The Beautiful Cartagena
The Last of Santa Marta & the First of Cartagena
Ryan and I spent our last 2 days in Santa Marta taking in the sun and doing virtually nothing other than relaxing. I continued to work on my tan, taking breaks to drink smoothies, eat seafood, and learn a bit of Spanish. Prior to leaving Santa Marta, I wanted to make sure that I took in the whole of the city; sights, sounds and smells. [Read more…] about The Last of Santa Marta & the First of Cartagena
Nature and stuff…
I’ve been thinking over the last few days how to perfectly describe the ride up to Carpe Diem, our eco lodge in the Sierra Navada. First of all, the driver showed up early, which is completely un-Colombian. I’m almost never early, so we were scrambling to get everything together while they were waiting. We were hurried into the busy streets of Santa Marta, threw our bags in the back of a jeep, and ushered into the back seat, alongside a lovely Dutch woman. Within a mere minute of being outside, I was drenched, and found my legs sticking to the seat of the jeep. [Read more…] about Nature and stuff…
Sunning in Santa Marta
The last few days have been spent lying in the sun, and discovering the best eateries in Santa Marta. On Tuesday nightt, two Norwegians from our hostel took us to a sandwich and smoothie shop called Lulo. The food was fresh and delicioius, and we went back for more on Wednesday as well. Nothing beats a fresh mango, papaya and pineapple smoothie and a mango salad with avocado on a hot day! Aside from a late lunch at Lulo on Wednesday, Ryan and I spent much of the day relaxing in the sun by our hostel pool. We also attempted to take another Spanish lesson, although that went horribly sideways. We had agreed to meet him at “cafe del parque”. We spent a good half an hour searching until we found Cafe del Parque, when the instructor had been waiting for us at Juan Valdez Cafe, the cafe near the park. It was all very confusing, to say the least. After missing our Spanish lesson, we set out to find children’s books in Spanish to help us with our reading and understanding. Everything here takes much longer than at home, so we burned a good chunk of time scouring the town. The hunt was successful though, and we spent the evening making dinner and attempting to read and understand at a 5 year old level. [Read more…] about Sunning in Santa Marta