The north coast

After urgent requests and desperate messages, the second blog entry finally arrives:

... Since our highly praised hostel in Villa de Leyva was allegedly fully booked, we had to find a new one. However, the alleged stress factor quickly turned out to be a stroke of luck. Our new hosts, Schmitti and Fabian, provided us with detailed information about all possible activities in and around the village. First excursion: the Christ statue on the mountain next door, which watches over the village. It was quite steep uphill, but the view compensated for the effort.

And in the evening we were treated to a 5-star BBQ

The next day we had our first yoga class, as a yoga teacher happened to be staying at the hostel. Conclusion: can be done more often. This was followed by a trip to famous waterfalls in the region, where our driver invited us to local snacks (sugar mass with CHEESE! ??). They are nice for sure, but very dubious taste in food. Our stay in Villa de Leyva ended with our first dance workshop. The dance instructor demonstrated and encouraged us to imitate intensively. 7 different dances in one hour. For me it was more like a very exhausting boot camp workout.

Our next destination: Santa Marta. A slightly larger city in northern Colombia. Finally in the tropics! Unfortunately, my stomach was not quite happy and I spent the first 2 days in bed. But that didn't stop Franzi from exploring the city and the nightlife. The next day I suddenly felt great again and could finally leave the hostel as well. My impressions of Santa Marta: very loud. Life takes place on the streets. Music on every corner. Intense staring and gawking seems to be normal for men (more for Franzi than for me). And we finally became aware of the menu del dia. In many local restaurants there is a daily menu. It usually consists of soup, sugary water, (coconut) rice, plantains and salad. Often with beans. Chicken, fish or pork as options. Quite edible. Costs between €2.30 and €3. However, the region is very touristy, as Americans particularly like to vacation here. So most people speak English and it is not uncommon to be ripped off with the prices. Tough backpacker life. In general, Santa Marta offers a great base for trips in the region. And that's exactly what we used it for. We were able to leave our big backpacks at our hostel and then we went to Palomino.

There is not much to say about the place itself. Super relaxed. A place where you can forget about time. Very nice beach.

Unfortunately, our relaxation was interrupted by the most extreme storm we have ever experienced. It started with heavy rain. The streets turned into rivers. And then the thunderstorm began. It was directly above us and so loud that we had to cover our ears. Several times we saw lightning striking nearby (200-500 meters away from us), sparks flying and the alarms of several cars blaring around us. Admittedly, we didn't feel very comfortable in our straw hut. 45 minutes later we had the certainty that we had survived. Hurray!

Due to the heavy rain, the planned excursion to Tayrona National Park was cancelled, so we continued to Minca (after a short stop at our backpacks in Santa Marta).

After one night we had to leave the very alternative hostel, as all beds were fully booked. But as is often the case, this turned out to be a stroke of luck afterwards, as we were able to meet the three most amazing Swiss people in the world in our next hostel, including the 'geile Bea' (we really hope that your new nickname can catch on in Switzerland ;)

Together we walked to the Pozo Azul waterfalls, which are even more spectacular than can be seen in the picture. You can walk along the river for a few more meters and see several waterfalls, rapids and swimming spots. However, caution is also required at this place. At the hostel we were told that as soon as the water changes color, it starts to rain, small branches are washed ashore, people quickly leave the water, etc... we should leave the water, as it can rise very suddenly and create a raging river in which several people have already lost their lives.

We then went back to Santa Marta from Minca. On our last day, we went to a beach in Tayrona Park with three German girls. This also turned out to be an adventure. First, no mototaxi wanted to take me because it was apparently forbidden to let men ride in the city. Allegedly, too many male passengers have been murdered in the past. But because I look so harmless (and with the help of a small surcharge) I was eventually taken along. The ride was confusing as I had to change once (for whatever reason) and we kept losing sight of each other. On the way back, there was a big chaos because the girls were not satisfied with the price and became somewhat aggressive. 'You're fooling us' and 'Don't touch me!' were energetically exclaimed. In my opinion, a bit too aggressive... But yes, the beach was beautiful:

The next day we took the bus along the coast to Cartagena. We also passed several poor villages. One of them particularly stood out to me: the ground consisted entirely of plastic waste, only the walkways were cleared. Quite alarming. On the other hand, Cartagena (or at least the beautiful tourist area) is really nice to look at. It strongly reminds me of a Spanish city. Along the coast there are many high-rise buildings, which has earned the city the nickname 'Little Miami'. Only downside: you are constantly approached by sellers.

That's why we decided to drive to Tolu two days later. It is also a very touristy city, but here almost exclusively locals spend their vacations, which gave the whole thing a positive touch again. From there, we took a boat tour to the Islas de San Bernardo and met a very nice family from Medellin. The picture shows the smallest island in the world in relation to the number of inhabitants. Unbelievable how one can live like this.

Now we are sitting in a hostel in Medellin. We will probably stay here for 3-4 weeks. Our language course starts on Monday. We are looking forward to it ;)