Santa Marta x Cartagena

The airport of Santa Marta is located directly on the coast, so when I looked out the window, I wasn't quite sure if we were really landing on land or directly in the sea. But everything went well and we had our first view of the coast directly from the airport building. The flight went well this time too and we arrived relatively relaxed. After a short taxi ride, we reached our hotel.

However, this time we were not greeted as often in Colombia with abruptness and unfriendliness, but with a big smile. The lady at the reception was super friendly and spoke English without an accent. Shortly afterwards, a man came with two welcome drinks and suddenly started speaking German to us. He had lived in Berlin-Steglitz for three months, did an internship at a Waldorf school there, and therefore spoke German quite well. The world can be so small sometimes. When he showed us the room, we were both blown away. I think we've never had such a nice room or rather a whole apartment on our travels before. This time everything fit so well and we felt comfortable from the first minute.

Afterwards, we walked a bit in the old colonial town of Santa Marta and had an inexpensive lunch menu in a restaurant. But since it was incredibly hot in Santa Marta, we didn't hesitate long, went back to the hotel, put on our bathing suits, and enjoyed a cool swim in the rooftop pool. After we were dry again, we went to the supermarket and bought something for dinner. Unexpectedly, we also had our own kitchen in the accommodation, so we had fried potatoes with fresh salad for dinner. In the evening, we watched a series and fell asleep shortly afterwards.

The next day started with an excellent and fruit-rich breakfast on the rooftop. We wanted to make use of the still slightly cooler morning hours for a sightseeing tour through Santa Marta. The lively port city was the first Spanish settlement in Colombia. Unfortunately, it has lost a lot of its splendor and was not really a highlight for us. Since it was already super hot despite the early hours of the day, we decided to go back to our great hotel after a walk through the alleys and spend some time in the pool there. In the afternoon, we visited a café again and walked to the statue of Valderrama, the most famous Colombian football star, who was born in Santa Marta. Except for the statue, I didn't take any pictures in Santa Marta because it wasn't really photogenic. We ended the evening with cooking and watching series. We agreed: Santa Marta is not worth a visit, but the hotel is!

The next morning, we had breakfast at leisure and took a taxi to the bus station. Five hours later, we arrived in Cartagena by bus. Cartagena is a port city on the Caribbean coast of Colombia. Towards the sea lies the walled old town founded in the 16th century, with large squares, cobblestone streets, and colorful colonial buildings. It is also one of the most popular tourist destinations in Colombia. However, we were initially shocked because our bus stopped about 15 kilometers outside Cartagena. The path we took with a taxi reminded us strongly of many places in Southeast Asia. Garbage everywhere, foul smells, broken and crumbling houses, and poverty as far as the eye can see, not to mention the chaotic traffic and noise. But when we reached our hotel, which is just outside the old town, the picture changed again.

In the evening, we walked towards the old town to get something to eat. However, since it was already dark, we couldn't see much. We walked through a backpacker neighborhood where hostels, restaurants, and bars crowded together and eventually had a snack. Then we went back to the hotel and went to sleep early.

We used the second day in Cartagena for an extensive sightseeing tour of the old town. Although the heat also bothered us here, we enjoyed letting ourselves be carried away through the alleys in the old town. The old town of Cartagena is really beautiful. Colorful houses with balconies covered in beautiful plants are everywhere. It reminded me of my time in Cuba, but also of Dubrovnik. The highlight of the day was probably the sighting of a pair of sloths and other exotic animals in a park in the middle of the city. We spent at least an hour observing the animals and taking lots of photos. A guide from a group said that we would probably never have the opportunity to get so close to a sloth again. We spent the afternoon by the hotel pool again. In the evening, we walked back to the old town to capture the atmosphere at dusk. Of course, we also made another visit to the park where we could now see the sloth babies as well.

We used today to buy some souvenirs and in the evening we plan to eat something in the old town. Tomorrow we will fly back to Bogota and spend one more night there before heading back to Germany on Sunday night. This will probably be the last post from Colombia, so I will write a short conclusion.

Conclusion Colombia

All in all, we really enjoyed Colombia. There are great landscapes, a diverse wildlife, and especially for me as a coffee lover, it's great to stop by sweet little cafes every day. The food takes some getting used to, and Gerda often longed for Asian cuisine. On the other hand, I also found the corn, bean, and meat heavy food quite tasty. What I particularly liked was the great variety in our destinations. From the cool highlands to the Caribbean coast, Colombia has everything to offer. Considering that Colombia was one of the most dangerous countries in the world not long ago, it is impressive how quickly the country has developed. If this development continues, Colombia has a bright future ahead and I think it will soon become a trendy travel destination.

Tourism is not yet widespread. You can still notice that from time to time in the way people interact with each other (especially in hotels and restaurants). On the other hand, there are also advantages to that. Many of our personal highlights (such as the St. Agustin Archaeological Park and the Cocora Valley) were absolutely not crowded, and you haven't seen the 'standard photos' countless times on Instagram.

Despite our Spanish skills of maybe 20 words and phrases, we got along very well, and the short language course in Havana definitely paid off. I will definitely travel to South America again. In my opinion, Colombia is a very good entry-level country for this continent. Perhaps one day I will also travel to Chile, Argentina, or Brazil. For me, these are all exciting destinations.

If this is the last post from Colombia, it will probably also be one of the last posts on this blog. When we are back in Berlin, I plan to write a detailed review of my eventful year. So, as long as I haven't written goodbye here yet, there will still be something to read.

See you soon!