After a 12 hour boat and bus from Caprugana (where the san blas tour stops), we arrive in Cartagena late at night in a dodgy bus station outside of the city (about 15 minutes outside)- these are very common in Colombia and in my experience so far have been safe. We all had big plans to go out that night but I was ready to hit the hay. The first hostel I stay in is called ‘Makoko Chill Out’, a small cheap hostel with very friendly staff, the most helpful staff I have come across in my travels so far. I wake up early the next day and the first thing I do is join the free walking tour. To book you have to book online, make sure you book at least 24 hours in advance. The tour starts in the old town (Casco Viejo) and I start to fall in love with this place, the colourful architecture is stunning and reminds me very much of the old town of Marbella (not the towie version but the authentic area!) Cartagena is the second oldest city in Colombia. There are many grand buildings and costas everywhere! The architecture in this city has two main styles: republican and colonial style, which is why this city has many similarities to Spanish cities such as Valencia. Cartagena was founded in 1533 and now has a population of 1.5 million people. Other recommended sight seeing activities are to walk the walls of the city. I would suggest doing this at around 4pm when it cooler and so that you’re in position for the beautiful sunset. I also visited the fortress called ‘San Felipe’ which is $25,000 COP and includes a video, tunnels and an amazing view of the city. Also if you like thrift stores there is a great thrift store just off Trinidad square where all items are $5000 COP, go crazy! The museum of modern art is also a lovely way to spend an afternoon, and there is A/C ideal!
The culture in this region is heavily influenced by the Caribbean, the traditional dress is a bright yellow dress and the locals are very dark skinned. I also learn what the colours on the flag represent. Yellow- to represent the gold found in Colombia, blue to signify the vast amount of water present (2 coastlines and 1000 rivers) in Colombia and red which signifies the independence from Spain. Cartagena is VERY popular with tourists, there are lots of fancy restaurants and people selling you things everywhere as well as amazing street performers. A famous restaurant for ceviche here is called ‘La Cevicheria’, where you can get amazing seafood such as octopus. Cartagena is famous for its heat and they do not lie- it is HOT!! The heat kind of made things difficult to do in the day so make sure you book into a hostel with A/C and a pool is an added bonus. I also stayed in Mamallenas hostel which had really good A/C and a nice social area. Mamallenas location was also excellent, it is in the Gethsemani area which is where all the restaurants and nightlife is located.
The buzz in Cartagena is something that I have never experienced and it was just spectacular! There are loads of outside bars where you can enjoy a mojito and revel in the crazy ambience of Cartagena! This place is where I am first introduced to arepas- and I love them! An arepa is a corn based wrap filled with whatever you want! There is an amazing arepa place just around the corner from Mamallenas, you pay $10.000 COP for one. The name is ArepaItalia. Another great thing to do is to walk the city walls and watch the sunset at Cafe del Mar, the drinks here are super expensive but you can grab a beer from a street vendor. It was nice bumping into people from the San Blas tour here and we spent a couple of nights partying together, including one night on the ‘chiva’. A party bus that goes through the city- a lot of fun! There is a beach in Cartagena which I heard some people going to, you can also catch a boat to nearby beaches and islands if you fancy! Playa Blanca was a popular one with many backpackers.
Since being back in Cartagena, I have a few places to add. A great place to visit at night to enjoy the street art is definitely ‘Trinidad square’ where you can enjoy some street food, street beer and enjoy the variations of street performers. Another good brunch places is ‘Stepping Stone’ which is a cafe owned by 2 Aussies. It is a little bit more expensive, a large plate is roughly 17.000-12.000 COP. A final good eat is a Pizza place called Di Silvio. All of these places are in the Gethsemani area so it is worth staying in a hostel around here. The main nightclub is called ‘Eivissa club’. If you stay at Makoko they have a deal with the club where you enter the club for free and also get one free beer. Some other good hostels in the Gethsemani area are: Selina (good wifi, A/C and there is a pool), Media Luna (has a pool and a rooftop party on Wednesdays), Life is Good (hot tubs).
If you would like to spend a couple of nights on the beach, Zion Beach House hostel is supposed to be super relaxed, I am going there next so will update you all very soon! So it turns out the Zion Beach House is a haven for mosquitoes, never have I been bitten so badly. Also the cheaper dorm has no A/C and 2 fans are not suffice for 8 people. The volunteers were awesome though, this place has great potential as it is new they need to work on a few things! As a result of this we moved hostels and ending up going back to the city staying in Viajero which is also an awesome hostel. It has A/C in all the dorms, a kitchen, bar and activities such as family dinner and karaoke. On our second night staying here, the vibe was great, it was only a small group as it is low season but we all ended up doing karaoke (this love- Maroon 5) and going out together. A big shout out to Emma- the hostel rep for being so lovely. I also got another tattoo at a place called Anaid tattoo and by the artist ‘Jesus’. If you stay in Makoko you receive a discount, I paid $250 000COP. If you can stand the heat I would recommend spending 3-4 nights here, there is much to do and that gives you time to revel and soak up the buzz! Goodbye for now Cartagena, you will be missed.
Romy's Roamings 