After departing Aruba via Curacao, we flew to Cartagena, Colombia. We had heard many great things about Cartagena and were excited to travel to a country that has not yet been overrun by tourists. Cartagena is a historical city that lies along Colombia’s Caribbean Coast. The city became the main Spanish port in the Caribbean and a gateway to much of South America. As the result of the city’s key location, Cartagena was often a target for pirates. In response to the repeated attacks, the Spanish built forts around the town and were largely successful at repelling invasion. The current city of Cartagena can be described as being comprised of three areas: The old town (a UNESCO World Heritage Site that is mostly surrounded by ancient stonewalls), the outer town, and the peninsula Bocagrande.
We found a fantastic hotel (once again using Trip Advisor) overlooking Plaza Fernandez de Madrid located in the old town.
Our first night, we ventured to Plaza de San Diego where multiple restaurants line the streets surrounding the plaza. In the middle of the plaza are various hawkers, mostly selling jewelry. Entertainment that night came in the form of a performer “riding” a donkey (he was really walking/running with a life-like donkey costume around his waist). There were a few kids who joined in on the entertainment as he attempted to jump over all three of them while they were kneeling on all fours in the middle of the street (he ran straight at them before coming to a skidding halt one time and ran past them the second).
Our first full day was spent wandering the streets of the San Diego and El Centro neighborhoods of the old city.
We visited the Palacio de la Inquisicion located along the Plaza de Bolivar, where the Spanish Inquisition questioned, tortured, judged, and convicted individuals for crimes against religion (such as magic, witchcraft, and wizardry). The Palacio has on exhibit instruments that were used to torture as well as maps and historical other objects. There were quite good explanations of the history of Cartagena, which were predominately in Spanish but did have a few summaries in English.
We found a fairly busy restaurant serving comida corriente, a two-course meal starting with soup followed by a plate containing a protein, rice, and some salad. What’s great about these restaurants, which are typically only open for lunch is the price – a large bowl of soup and full plate for the price of $10,000 COP, or roughly $5-6 USD. It is amazing how soup can still be tasty in the insanely hot and humid weather (upwards of 85 degrees F with 95% humidity). Our timing with lunch worked out perfectly as it started to pour about 10 minutes into the meal). For dinner, we visited the much-touted La Cevicheria, which was visited by Anthony Bourdain when he came to Colombia a few years ago –- It was pretty good, but not necessarily a “must” if you are in Cartagena.
Our second day, we hired a taxi and visited the Convento de la Popa and the Castillo de San Filipe de Barajas. The Convento de la Popa is a monastery that sits atop la Popa hill where there is a great view of Cartagena and the Caribbean Sea.
For lunch, we had the comida corriente at la Mulata, which was recommended to us by a local. Again, the food was cheap and delicious, served with a bit of flare (as in the food was nicely plated rather than just serving meat and rice on a plate), and was served right before the heavy afternoon rains. Dinner was pizza at this great little joint right next to our hotel where loud Miami-esque music plays from speakers and diners line the streets along the plaza. While waiting for the pizza to be cooked, we watched some b-boys performing in the middle of the street (much to the dismay of the numerous cars trying to drive down the road). Late into the night, we were woken by a storm so frighteningly loud and filled with so much lightening that had I been more awake, I would have filmed it for you to see. It was incredible. There was so much rain, the streets were still sopping wet the next morning -- many shopkeepers spent the morning sweeping the water out and mopping up their store floors.
Our last day was spent again, wandering around the streets of the old town. We visited Catedral, a historical church that was partially destroyed by Francis Drake in his siege of Cartagena but otherwise intact.
Lunch was a small shack of a place where we ordered empanadas and fruit juice -- something small so that we could enjoy a larger dinner later in the day. We ran some errands after a short siesta (something that became a habit in the few days in Cartagena) then it was off to find a delicious dinner somewhere in El Centro (we had previously stayed in San Diego at night). What a sharp contrast it was! Where San Diego was low-key and on the quieter side, El Centro was hopping with tourists and nightlife. We had three restaurants in mind, all of which were recommended in the Lonely Planet guidebook; one was closed down and had a new restaurant in its place, one was booked with reservations, and the last was not yet open for the evening. We ended up eating at 8-18, the restaurant that was not yet open (but they opened 10 minutes early for us). The restaurant is described in Lonely Planet as having “very innovative takes on modern costena cuisine” and the recommendation did not disappoint.
After dinner, we walked around a bit and ended up at Café del Mar, a bar/restaurant that is located up on the old town wall overlooking the Caribbean and Bocagrande. As large of a tourist trap it may be, it’s worth it. Before walking up to Café del Mar is a sign that boasts the best drinks and the best ambiance in the city. Granted, this was the first and only night we went out for drinks in the city, but I cannot imagine anywhere in the city having a more awesome atmosphere. You are just sitting up on top of a stonewall complete with cannons that is hundreds of years old looking out in one direction over the old town where church steeples are illuminated, in another direction towards Bocagrande filled with modern business buildings lit up to varying shades of purple and green, and lastly, the direction of the Caribbean Sea with waves crashing against the rocky land. In the background playing is smooth, Miami-esque house music that is both relaxing and energizing at the same time. For me, that single tourist spot depicted the heart of Cartagena, which is this amazingly cool city that has seemed to blend both history, culture, and modernity.
kl.
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