In the fishing village of Taganga (Colombia)

My next stop was Taganga, a small fishing village 7km away from Santa Marta. Santa Marta was not beautiful at all, so I hoped that Taganga would be nicer. And it was. But I mainly wanted to go there to take an advanced diving course, the Advanced Open Water. So I treated myself to an accommodation with a private room and private bathroom at La Casa de Felipe Hostel for about €20 per night for 4 nights. The journey to Taganga was by a local bus, a small bus for a few pesos. The ride was a bit chaotic. The driver did not want to accept my money, I was wondering and thought it couldn't be too little until another passenger helped me and pointed to a smaller bill in my wallet. Ah, the driver can't give change for the big bill. I sat down, I put my backpack in front at the entrance of the bus. I was worried that it might fall out because the door was open throughout the ride. There was a cockfighting event on the side of the road, surrounded by cheering spectators. I was somewhat shocked to see the two poor animals attacking each other while people enjoyed it. The ride went uphill over a hill along the coast, and on the other side, you could already see Taganga, in a bay surrounded by cactus-covered mountains. It looked somehow idyllic. In my offline map, I followed the distance to my accommodation, and when the bus stopped at the beginning of the village, when someone got off, I grabbed my backpack and jumped out. There were a few scooter taxis standing there 'Hola Chica, Taxi?' they greeted me. My way to the hostel led uphill, in the opposite direction of the beach. The path was rocky and dusty, no paved road, Latin music streamed out of a few houses and cafes, and the sun was scorching down, causing me to sweat with the heavy backpack and uphill. A few people passed me, curious, but friendly, greeting me with 'buenas tardes' and 'de donde eres?' - 'de Allemania' I dutifully replied. 'All good' laughed the inquirer proudly of his German knowledge. Past a few dogs and cats, I reached my accommodation at the end of the hill. I went down to the village for dinner and a mango shake. The beach was quite busy, and there were several cafes and restaurants on the beach street.

The next two days, I was fully occupied with my diving course. We started at 8 am, and after two current dives, we continued in the pool with technique and in the afternoon from the beach. In the evening, there was a night dive. I almost stayed on the boat out of fear. Fortunately, I didn't because there was a lot to see underwater at night: huge shrimp, moray eels, and many colorful fish. On the second day, deep diving was on the agenda - 30m. I deliberately didn't look at my dive computer, which shows the depth. But when we were down there, the diving instructor signaled to me to look at the depth gauge...30m...there we are...after another dive and a theory test, I had made it. Now I am a certified Advanced Open Water Diver. Diving really exhausted me, so the next day, I spent it just eating and chilling in the hammock. The advantage of being away for so long is that you can also do nothing without feeling guilty or stay in the room and watch Netflix, if the internet connection allows it ;-)