Where?

Cartagena is a picturesque Caribbean city on the north side of Columbia. If you’re saying to yourself… hmm.. this sounds familiar, it is likely because this is where Obama Aides were accused of providing rooms for prostitutes while visiting. I am living proof that Cartagena and Columbia is a much richer and more enjoyable location than the US media presents. I spent an amazing weekend here, and hopefully this account gives anyone visiting a good idea of what to see and do. All photos shown here were taken with my iPhone. Flew American and LAN and found the flight deal at theflightdeal.com.

 

Eats

Making sure you get delicious food in Columbia is a must! I had a lunch at the “famous” cevicheria (as recommended by Anthony Bourdain). This is a lunch that you wish could last a life time. The service is on island time, and if you’re not on island time while eating tasty food and drinking cold beer with friends in the serene streets of Cartagena, then you’ve become the problem.

Best street food was easily “Mazorca desgranadas” eaten straight from a food cart (10,000 COP). This dish starts with a healthy portion of pulled pork, cheese, onions, and sausage which are piled on top of fired plantains (or corn) and covered with potato string crisps and smothered in more sauces. This reminds me a lot of Halal trucks in Philly/NYC, but I think I could eat this even more frequently as my 4th meal. WHERE ARE MY DESGRANADAS TRUCKS IN THE US?!?

Nightlife

I was able to see first hand why Cartagena is well known for its fun nightlife. Within hours of landing, and a few rum drinks later, I was venturing off to bars and clubs with hostel-mates to see what Cartagena had to offer. We started off at Eivissa (translation of Ibiza) rooftop bar, where the rum flowed all night (cover charge to enter). Music was a blend of USA top hits mixed with a Latin American flare. Tons of fire displays by the DJ and staff made the atmosphere fun until 3AM or so. We finished off the night at “Space”, which, by all accounts, felt like a deep electronic house party with deafening music. Fun late night spot, but can be pricey if you are still buying drinks unto the wee hours of the morning.

On Sunday, we attempted to check out a salsa bar, only to find out many of them are closed for the day. Still some were open, and we visited donde felipe (where I got the idea to name this website). Atmosphere was fun, and it was nice to be outside, relax and watch salsa dancing in the cobble stone streets, inside of the walled city. Cerveza ran 5,000 COP, and was well worth hanging out for as long as possible.

Digs

I stayed at Pachamama Hostel in the hipster side of town, Getsemani. Hostel was cheap for American standards ($10USD/night), but other travelers mentioned it was pricey for Columbia standards. However, I was very willing to pay for good air conditioning! The neighborhood was perfect for walking around between the walled city and anywhere else in town that I needed to go. The convenience store 1 block away from the hostel was really convenient for large water bottles (3,000 COP = $1USD for 2 liter). Thanks to all the hostel-mates who made the stay awesome there!

Sights

Walking around the old walled city is as amazing as any pictures you may have seen. The colonial influence is an enjoyable contrast to concrete jungle of US cities. You feel like you have time traveled back to the days of pirates and explorers as you look out over the wall and into the ocean. You can imagine the Spaniards running along the wall to defend their gold as the pirates mounted their best attack on the fortress. Getsemani also is great to walk around and enjoy the local and international graffiti artists and chic bars and restaurants.

The old Spanish castle is a quick walk or cab from Getsemani and is worthwhile to look at but has a steep entrance fee (25,000 COP = $8USD). However walking through the old tunnels was well worth it for me.

The beaches as Boca Grande were as lack luster as all reviews have mentioned. Water is very shallow and beaches are filled with hawkers. Most will attempt to wake you up to sell you their goods, or give you a massage (which I let myself get trapped into).Water was warm and relatively clean and worth the swim on a hot day.

As I was leaving Cartagena I could finally understand what made Jimmy Buffet write the song “I want to go back to Cartagena”. Beautiful place, beautiful people, beautiful time. Can not wait to return.