Glad to say I made it back to South America and much sooner than I was expecting. This time wasn’t as long as the last but it was well worth my time. A few weeks ago Gino and I traveled to Cartagena, a beautiful city located in the north of Colombia on the Caribbean Sea. Our stay was not extremely long however, we were able to cover a lot of ground in a short amount of time. We wandered around the historic center, visited the Castillo de San Felipe, went to La Popa hill where the Santa Cruz monastery is, enjoyed the ocean and were able to venture to many city shops and restaurants. We even managed to do a day tour. Usually I steer clear of the tours but it was the quickest way to see everything we were looking to see in the short amount of time we had. Our tour guide was a local who picked us up at our hotel in his personal car and showed us all of the sites that most people are looking to see when they visit Cartagena. He was full of knowledge and didn’t fail to answer any questions that we had. He also was particularly interested in showing us the natives and the areas of the city that most tourist do not usually see. We went through upper class, middle class, and lower class neighborhoods with detailed explanations of each area. He also toured us around the monastery which offered panoramic views of the entire city and after we visited the city’s fortress. The fortress was built in the 1600s by the Spanish for protection against pirates and other enemies who were seeking to interfere while they were shipping gold to Europe. This fortress was absolutely huge and it was was extremely well constructed it was for its day and age!
By far, my favorite part of Cartagena that I visited was the old historic town. In my opinion this area had more of an upscale vibe than the surrounding locations. The buildings were very bright, the streets were clean, there were plenty of shops, and overall it had a peaceful and calming atmosphere.
I would have enjoyed seeing more of Colombia but Cartagena was a great taste of what the country has to offer. At some point I would like to return and venture to other parts of the country!
Sincerely, Tish
Beautiful photos