Cartagena, Colombia

April 30, 2023

Brian and I had been to Cartagena once before. It was while we were on a Caribbean cruise with Celebrity Cruises. We were part of an independent excursion and enjoyed that visit very much.

Today, we joined another independent excursion that had been planned many months ago. There were 13 of us on the tour along the the best guide ever, Marelvy. She made our weather-impacted tour both fun and informative.

Our group headed off the ship about 7:30 AM and met the woman who would take us to our van and Marelvy. The walk out of the port area takes you to a large duty free shop and a little wildlife sanctuary. This zoo is free and lovely. I took some pictures both going out of the port and coming back to the ship.

You haven’t lived until you’ve been dive bombed by two macaws and one peacock in the course of fifteen minutes. I learned I can duck really fast!

On our way to our first stop, the Castillo de San Felipe de Barajas, we had a little sightseeing tour.

The Castillo is a large fortress built on top of a hill by the Spanish for protection from pirates. The Spanish shipped large amounts of gold to Europe and Cartagena was the repository for all the looted gold. The pirates were mainly French and English privateers like Sir Francis Drake.

The weather today was extremely hot and humid, so Marelvy told us stories about the history of the Castillo while we sat in our air-conditioned van. We got out for a short break to take some pictures and we’re immediately surrounded by vendors. While aggressive, they were not obnoxious and listened to our no thank yous. We didn’t have time to go up into the fortress and, in any event, it was a strenuous uphill climb in very hot weather. No one was too disappointed.

Among the vendors, there were women from a village is their colorful dresses who were happy to pose for pictures for a few dollars.

There is also a statue of the commander, Blas de Lezo, who successfully defended the Castillo when it was attacked by the English army. It’s locally known as the Half a Man statue because, in various battles, he had lost a leg, an eye, and a hand.

The fort is quite large. Notice the size of the person in the top right of the photo.

Brian and I had been here, during our first trip, and it was much as we remembered.

We were now off to another place we had visited before: La Popa Monastery. Located at the top of the highest hill in Cartagena, this 17th century monastery is still inhabited by monks. There is a chapel (where services were being held when we arrived), a museum, and a wonderful view of the city. The altar in the chapel is covered in gold.

There were also some animals around.

The weather had become even hotter and more humid and, on our drive to the Old City of Cartagena, it began to rain. What started slowly, suddenly became a downpour. We did stop at the first two places on our itinerary: the Emerald Museum (and shop, a place I should never be allowed in!) and the Gold Museum. The rain was coming down as we got out of the van and the streets were beginning to flood. The shoes I was wearing turned into instant water shoes. I’m not sure they’ll ever be the same!

At the Gold Museum, there was a very interesting exhibit of the art of the ancient indigenous peoples. There was pottery, shells, and gold pieces. We also saw a short film about the filigree jewelry work that is still done, by hand, today.

Now the rain began in earnest. It was raining even harder than when we got out of the bus.

Back through the rain and flooding we went. On the van, we decided that the scheduled walk through the Old City would currently not be possible. So, Marelvy took us to a San Alberto Coffee Shop for drinks and treats. The organizer of our tour, Edie, generously treated all of us. Brian had a cappuccino and chocolate cake and I ordered hot chocolate and an almond croissant. Every thing was yummy and we were all happy campers. Brian thought the coffee was so good that we bought a pound of beans to bring home.

The rain had let up a bit, so Brian headed quickly outside to take some pictures. The appropriately named Statue of a Fat Lady Reclining is a popular work of art. Brian didn’t follow the custom, but people rub her breasts for good luck and her buttocks to guarantee they’ll return to Cartagena.

We loaded into the van, this time without getting wet, and were ready to get some Old City exploring in. And, then, the rain started again. We decided that we’d have to forego the Old City this visit. Getting out, though, became a whole other problem. The streets were beginning to really flood. As we sat safe and dry inside our van, we saw these folks on a Princess shore excursion. They had to brave the flood waters to get back to their bus since it couldn’t enter the city. Here are a couple photos taken through rain spattered windows.

Our driver was amazing. Due to stalled cars and blocked roads, he had to drive backwards a couple of blocks down narrow streets to get us out. He got a very nice tip!

We were now heading to higher ground and the rain, once again, began letting up. Marelvy knew she wanted to take us to the Getsemani area of the city and it looked like we would now be able to do that. This is the area that local people live in and is a popular place to be. Locals have been priced out of the Old City which is, now, mainly a tourist attraction.

The streets were dry and there were no crowds there. What was there was phenomenal street art and colorful buildings. We were all enthralled! This is a place Brian and I had never been and I don’t think anyone regretted missing the Old City to come here.

We took a group picture in Getsemani. Unfortunately, Marelvy took the picture so she isn’t included.

After saying fond goodbyes to Marelvy, we went back to the ship to grab something to eat and cool down. The shower felt wonderful! Back in our cabin after dinner, we watched our sail away from the balcony. Right before we reached the open sea, we saw one of the forts that protected either side of the entry into the bay. There were also some local sailors around.

In spite of the weather, once again, we loved our time in Cartagena. It just never disappoints us.