I made it, you guys! I’m in Colombia and to be honest, it is more beautiful and amazing than I could have imagined (sorry for the hyperbole, but I’m not kidding). Not only is it super colorful like other colonial cities I’ve visited (ehem, Guanajuato), but the old, walled city of Cartagena is very well taken care of and the people are so, so friendly. There are flowers coming out of every hole in the wall and people selling fresh fruit and juices everywhere (not to mention bags, bracelets, soccer jerseys, and hats) – it’s like, overwhelmingly lovely. And yes, eventually I’m gonna buy a hat.
So, as they say, it is a bit difficult to blog from the road, mainly because while staying in hostels everyone wants to hang out, rather than let you edit photos by yourself.
Although at first I was a little freaked out at the prospect of having to make new friends and revert back to dorm life (I thought I was done with that after my years in a three-bed sorority house room), this hostel has really surprised me. Everybody here has been incredible.
Okay, enough of the raving. I’m typing this from the hostel bar and about to eat breakfast and head out to the beach for the day… or maybe the night. Here’s a few first impressions of Cartagena and Colombia from my trip so far (I mean, it’s only Day 3), divided up into obvious categories:
The Good
Fellow Travelers
The people in my hostel have been ridiculously friendly and there are so many females traveling alone. I met a Peruvian girl on the first day who immediately went to lunch with me and searched for the cheapest menus del día (and air conditioning), then showed me to the nearest supermarket and helped me purchase a Colombian SIM card and load it with credits (side note: For $5 USD, I now have a SIM card with a Colombian phone number, texting, and 10 days of data – WTF, America?). Upon hearing that I wanted to practice my Spanish, she also hazed me with full-on Spanish conversation for the rest of the day. It was great.
Also, I’m staying in an eight bed female dorm. And guess what. I love it. Is that weird? I unexpectedly love communal living.
You can make calls or buy credits for your cell phone from here. Amazing.
The Spanish
It is true! Colombian Spanish is actually clearer than any I’ve heard spoken before. Thank God! I can understand A LOT. It’s such a relief. And most people here seem impressed that I speak back to them (usually followed by my apologies for how terrible I sound). No offense, guys, but the usual response is, “Whoa, no, that’s really good – usually people from the United States do not speak any Spanish!”
The City
The city is absolutely, ridiculously gorgeous, and the people here (even if they’re trying to sell you something) will give you directions or help you if you look like you’re lost or struggling. A man selling soccer jerseys approached me and my Brazilian friend to show us where the free walking tour met. He just said, “When you want to buy a jersey, remember me.”
The Food
The food. What a relief. To be honest, I considered starting my little career break trip in Southeast Asia solely for the food, just because Latin American food didn’t intrigue me all that much. Oh, but I have learned! The food and the range of it has all been surprisingly great. It helps that we’re on the coast now so there’s tons of seafood, but there’s also a lot of fresh cut fruit. I hope to focus on the street food soon, but so far, I’ve already crossed off La Cevicheria, one of the places Anthony Bourdain visited on No Reservations (clearly causing a subsequent increase in prices and popularity).
The Exchange Rate
Cartagena is supposed to be expensive (for Colombia), but if that’s the case I’m pumped about this leg of my journey. So far I’ve been way under my $50 a day budget. The first day I only spent about $38. When you get 3,000 Colombian pesos to every $1 US Dollar, things work out pretty awesome. The beers at the hostel cost $3,000 to $3,500 COP. If you’re American, I’d recommend heading to Colombia now – the costs are really in your favor. (This is not so true for my Brazilian and Argentine friends here.)
Limonada for about 30 cents – yeah, I kinda just wanted the picture, but it was delicious
The Bad
I miss Charlie. A lot. It’s a little sad at night, but thankfully I’ve had a lot of friends to keep me company. I guess I saw this coming. But the good news is that the wifi here is strong and technology is amazing so with Google Hangouts and Whatsapp, we can talk on the phone like usual.
I’m not as go with the flow as I thought I could be. I’m headed to the beach, Playa Blanca, today, and I could not for the life of me decide whether I wanted to go for the day or spend the night. The thing is, I don’t even have to decide until I get there! Still I have been agonizing over it and it’s stressing me out. Unnecessarily!
I need to be a little more present and try to relax and enjoy my time here instead of taking photos all the time with my camera and iPhone (AND Snapchat-ing). It’s just so hard when this city makes you want to take pictures of everything around every corner.
Free Walking Tour with Edgar
The Ugly
The Heat
It is hot as fuck here. Sorry for the language (no, I’m not). I KNEW it was going to be hot, but I guess I couldn’t possibly imagine this crazy heat and humidity combination. It was 92 degrees when we landed and I think I sweated through my jeans before I got to the hostel. This place might give Bangkok a run for it’s money.
Seriously, you sweat through everything. I learned the verb for “to sweat” in Spanish on the first day – sudar. Your hair sticks to the back of your neck. Your clothes are wet after a few hours (or minutes).
Super awkward, I know – just wanted you guys to know I’m really here
I cannot overstate this. Everyone who isn’t from Cartagena is complaining. It is a topic that never gets old. Last night, one British girl asked, “I saw on my phone that the humidity was 97% yesterday. What will happen when it gets to 100%? Will we just be swimming?”
You can’t wear any make-up. Don’t even try. It’s impossible. Unless you’re a Colombian woman, of course, in which case your face magically grips and holds onto all the make-up and you look amazingly put together at all times.
The only make-up I’d recommend is a good deodorant.
I’m sharing this with all of my friends that think I’m crazy for talking about visiting Colombia.
I’m envious of your journey! More people should do exactly what you’re doing now.
Thanks Carlos! It can be a little lonely at times traveling solo (especially without my boyfriend) but I’m so glad I’m taking time off from work to travel. I’m not sure when else I would get to do this. Cartagena is great and Colombian people are so friendly – they really want you to enjoy their country. Let me know if you have any more tips!
Great blog! We all love the pics & Snapchats…..so don’t stop! Except to have more fun! In which case pics & Snapchats are still a must!!! Seriously…..I’m so glad you’re having a great time!!
Thanks so much! Had fun chatting with you yesterday! Technology and social media is just crazy – between Snapchat, Twitter, Instagram, and blogging it’s a little much (especially since I just found out that Snapchat is using the most of my battery haha!) but I’ll try to stay going strong!
Congrats Rachel – you’ve made it!! The harder bits should get much easier — well maybe not missing Charlie, but the other stuff like relaxing and going with the flow. It takes awhile to let go. We traveled hard and fast and didn’t relax until gradually the frantic pace just lost its grip on us. we ended up spending a month on an island in Thailand, and loved every second of the measured pace of life towards the end. It was hard at first, but i am glad we stuck it out, because living life at that pace is an experience that so few people get to have ever.
Jenia recently posted…Belgrade’s Warring Identities
Thanks Jenia! I’m really hoping Charlie will just plan a date to visit so I can look forward to that! Spending the beach last night, I really tried to relax and take everything in instead of taking pictures. I think it’ll take me a few days. And you’re right about the pace – having something planned for every day is tough. Now that I’m back from the beach and showered, I think I’ll spend the rest of the day wandering and eating.
Hey Rachel,
Glad to know that you are enjoying yourself at Cartagena! Looking at the colors of the buildings in the photos you took made me feel like visiting it right now! <3 I can totally understand why you can't put your camera down.
By the way, what did you have at La Cevicheria? The bowl of noodles / soup with seafood looks delish!
I'll be sharing the beautiful photo of a lady wearing the colors of the Columbia flag on Twitter. I think more people like me who didn't know about this city should see how colorful it is.
Wayne Liew recently posted…Petaling Street, Central Market and More Under the Hot Sun
Thanks so much Wayne! I’m gonna do some more wandering of the city today, maybe with the camera, maybe not. It’s so hard not to bring it!
We actually got a ceviche combinada – it’s a mix of seafood ceviche. Those are actually squid and not noodles! Haha, but they do look misleading! I think it was fish, squid, octopus, shrimp, and maybe some other sort of shellfish all soaking in a citrus juice with cilantro and other herbs. You eat it on crackers (hot sauce optional, but of course I used a ton!).
So glad you made it safely but it looks like I won’t be visiting Colombia anytime soon, I truly think I would melt if the heat/humidity combo is that horrible. I’m loving all of your snaps and the gorgeous pictures you’re taking but ignore the rest of us living vicariously through you and take some time to enjoy it and just be there. Miss you tons!
I haven’t been able to wear make-up since arriving here! Hopefully Bogota will be cooler, I can start wearing actual pants, and maybe even some sleeves occasionally! Hope you guys are making it okay without me at work! We shall reunite in the winter!