Little Cartagena, Panama City, Panama

Welcome to America! Copious modern high-rise buildings, mostly banks, credit unions and insurance companies (supposedly has the highest density of banks in the world). Modern in the city centre, ghetto-like just a short walk outside. The Old Town reminded me so much of Cartagena, well what it would probably have looked like 10-years ago. There was an awful amount of construction going in within the small old town which was a shame.....roads were blocked, scaffolding everywhere, detours etc. But the buildings being refurbished were similar to the that of Cartagena, a classic colonial feel to them. The key difference was that many of the empty and abandoned buildings (at a guess 50% of all of them) were in complete ruin, unsalvageable. It is quite easy to imagine this area in 5-10 years, a colourful eclectic mix of homes, hotels, restaurant and cozy cafes and bars. The one thing, perhaps three things, holding it back are the mud flats that surround the edges of the town during low tides (and possibly high tide), the ugly concrete pier the jets out from one corner and the uncomfortably close (and dangerous) ghetto areas to the immediate north. It will change rapidly, for the better, because it has so much potential.

You can spend half a day in the old town and see if thoroughly. Visit the fish market at its entrance and grab yourself a cup of fresh ceviche (many varieties to choose from) then visit the Panama Canal museum and do you head in trying to read all the Spanish text (there is some English)....you could spend a day in there if you read all the explanations.

Most people do a day trip to the Panama Canal from the city, whether it is by train, bus or part of an organised tour. I had plans to do this as it is supposed to be quite a good tour and spectacle to view in the mornings and afternoon - there is a dead time during lunch when boats are transiting within the gates and you wont see the gates in action. When I flew into Panama City it was quite a sight seeing all the boats queueing in the harbour.....must have been at least 100. Anyway, as it turned out I never made it on a tour.....explanation in the next post.

Punk Rock Jesus

Trekking with a Wildling, Ciudad Perdida, Colombia

In Palomino I met a couple English girls who were due to start their hike with the same company (Magic Tours) on the same day as me. They were however booked on the 5-day tour and I had opted for the 4-day after hearing that the trail conditions were quite good and the extra day was just spent at a waterfall. I later found out that there were only two others on the 4-day trek so I changed it to the 5-dayer.

Good thing I did as you had much more time to stop at the swimming holes along the way and wash all the sweat off of you and cool your body temperature down. The trek is 46km return but this is as the crow flies so god knows how many kilometres it actually is. The structure of the trek is indeterminant….it all depends on what the group wants to do, what the guide wants to do, the weather conditions, how busy the camp sites are….so the tour experience I had was completely different to that of other people I know whom went on the same tour.

It was an enjoyable five days. Tough at times (the hills are seriously steep) but you are often rewarded with an unexpected stop half way up at a little shack offering watermelon or some other fruit. No frozen papaya stand though. The only really technical or dangerous part was the penultimate climb up the 1,200 small, steep stairs to the actual Lost City.

Our guide Miguel (actually both guides were called Miguel) who was from ExpoTur (we had a combined group, it happens often for unknown reasons) grew up along the trail and had been doing tours for 8 years. He was the Mogli of the Sierra Nevada…. climbing up trees hanging 15 metres above the river and climbing down a vine to create a tarzan swing for us, cliff diving into relatively shallow pools in the river, doing head stands on the rocks in the afternoon, making drink bottle holders out of the thin vines….he was THE jungle boy.

On day one our group passed a shabby looking guy (whom I thought lived in the bush along the trail path) that had walked for a full day to the trail head and then proceeded to attempt the trek by himself. Problem for him is that nobody is allowed to do it outside of an organised group. So we were forced to adopt him for the duration of our tour. He was slightly frightening at first…..reeked of BO, muttered to himself a lot and did things suggestive of someone who has spent far too much time alone and gone a little loco. I was concerned he was going to steal everybody’s gear the first night as we were staying in hammock and everything was in the open….pitch black open.

This brings me to another subject. I hate sleeping in a hammock. Can’t do it. Can’t foresee myself being able to unless it is one of those really big ones that you can string out quite flat. I had a shite night of sleep that night. The beds night 2 and 3 didn’t work for me either. Thin mattresses that resulted in me getting bruises on my stomach. I was desperately lacking in sleep. The rather tiring days weren't enough to knock me out.

The first half of the trek is through what I would describe as mountainous farm land. Not as intrepid as I had expected but it did mean we had cold beer the first and fourth nights, room temperature beers the second and third nights and access to other items along the way at fairly reasonable prices despite having been carried there on a mule.

Life in the villages is still very primitive. Horticulture focussed with little desired interaction with the Western world beyond seeing copious amounts of tourists pass through which they’d rather not see if they had the choice. One night we had the opportunity to speak with a local village elder and ask all matter of questions. It was very interesting. A life very much based on centuries old spiritual beliefs and customs. Arranged marriages, sharmans, life after death, good and evil spirits etc.

Our group was fantastic….Cat Woman Lucia, the lovely Alice, a wonderful Italian family, the bubbly Hannah, Rosie from Australia, Deanna from Colombia, two very sweet German girls and Alexis the Siberian ‘The Wildling” from North of The Great Wall. Most of us got along quite well. The Wildling provided a constant source of entertainment as he laboriously did strange things. He carried a large backpack the entire way which seemed to be full of only musical instruments that he couldn’t play very well….a large bongo, a bamboo didgeridoo and a wooden flute. He would attempt to wash clothes in the river (he wasn’t successful), grind and roast his own tobacco, chew coco and calcium…..oh and talk to himself. By the end of the five days we were all quite fond of him. He was harmless in the end.

Four of us decided after having visited the city in the afternoon, we wanted to get up extremely early the following day and go back up there again for sunrise. Great idea in theory but we could stay quite long enough for the sun to actually rise over the mountain tops and hit the city itself as we had a long day of hiking ahead of us already, which turned out to be an even longer day after the camp we had heaped to trek back to was full. Massive 11 hour day. Beers went down well that evening.

Alice and a local girl painting

Mess hall

The cable car bridge adjacent had collapsed

The watermelon stand

Heavy security at Ciudad Perdida

The Lost City!

Francesca

Hannah

The group that went up there for the second time the following morning...me, Francesca, Deanna, The Wildling and Miguel.

Camp 1

Filippo and the tarzan swing to the right

Palomino's crazy surf and calm rivers, Colombia

After investigating going to Punta Gallinas, the most northerly part of South America and a desert oasis on the coast and deciding the three hour boat ride in a large tinny across seriously choppy seas was a little too much, Sabine and I decided on Palomina instead (although I was quite reluctant give the bad review from an Irish couple I met one night). So we booked 2-3 nights and I ended up staying six. Nothing like what the Irish couple described.

The beach in this part of the country, particularly at this time of the year, is essentially unswimmable due to extremely dangerous currents and rips whipped up by the trade winds that blow constantly for 3-4 months of the year. I took one look at the water and said to myself I wasn’t going anywhere near it. Colombian tourists with poor (at best) swimming abilities would plunge in, ignoring the ‘Swimming is Dangerous’ signs plastered all over the beach and the red flags in the extra dangerous zones. Needless to say there were apparently 12 rescues in the fortnight before we arrived and one when I was in town having lunch (that person by all accounts was exceptionally lucky to still be alive). To the rivers which meet the sea at each end of the beach it was (30-40 min run along the entire length of the beach).

It’s exceptionally easy to occupy yourself with doing nothing here. The beach front has a nice feel about it. Finca del Escondida where we stayed was reasonably good and had a nice area on the beach to hang out, right in front of the worst rip I’ve seen in some time. The food is expensive but ok and the specials of the day where literally a reorganisation of the previous days’ specials. There aint no fooling me!

Other than spending afternoons are the river heads, I was coerced into going down the river in a tyre tube no less than three times. It was great. Extremely relaxing and the further you hike into the jungle with your tube, the better the scenery is. It is a very tranquil river and quite easy to navigate on the tube (for most anyway – had to rescue a poor Colombian girl many times who was struggling). Walk into town, pay 7,000-10,000COP for your tube and walk for 70 minutes up the road/path into the forest (wear flip flops). It is a bit hot and steamy towards the end of the walk but it is all forgotten when you get to the river bank. Wear heaps of sunscreen and take some water with you as you’ll be on the water for almost 2 hours. Get off at the bridge into town as continuing all the way to the beach is slow, shallow and not nearly as scenic. Highly recommend doing. And cheap as chips. Negotiate a group discount for the tubes.

On my last night there I was having dinner with a small group of people including the new girl in my dorm. During dinner she asked me whether I had been at a dinner in Bogota….Xmas Day….three weeks earlier. Yes I had. We were sharing a dorm… again. Random.

You can also do some hiking into the jungle to nearby villages which is supposed to be well worth the effort. I never made it to Tayrona park either as it was just too busy this time of year and the lack of controls over numbers lead to heavily over-populated camps that were by all reports a complete disaster/nightmare. Go out of season or during the week. 

Caribbean Cartagena

I’m very thankful that I organised a relatively early flight to Cartagena as it gave me more time to organise the mess that evolved when I arrived. I was forced to book a nice BnB the first two nights as everything in town was booked. Holiday season in Cartagena is unbelievable. It was literally packed to the rafters. Not a single bed in a hostel anywhere. People were camped out the front of hostels waiting for cancellations and no-shows at midnight or paying twice the price for a couch in the reception area.

So, I arrive at the correct address and ask whether it is Hotel Yolanda. She says no. I ask is this xxx address. She says yes. I’m confused. I am told this used to be Hotel Yolanda four months ago but is now Casa del Mango. She lets me in to discuss further. I ask why the old hotel is still taking bookings. No explanation. I find the telephone number of the hotel from the internet website. It is the same as the BnB I am standing in. Wtf is going on. I overhear two guys in the reception area that have had some kind of problem as well. They had booked through Hostelworld, paid their 10% deposit, and show up and there is no reservation for them. They are forced to pay for a very expensive room somewhere else. Again, wtf is going on here. It looks very nice inside but something is up. A German girl walks in after 15 minutes. She has the same problem as the two guys. Someone sitting by the pool had the same problem as well. This is seriously farked up. A Canadian women walks in. She has the same problem as me. The only six people in the hotel foyer and they all have farked up bookings and have all paid 10% for nothing. A bloody nightmare especially when it is really hard to find a bed anywhere in town.

The Canadian (Eda), German (Sabine) and myself decided to look elsewhere as sharing a room was going to be much more economical and probably slightly easier to find. Luckily, a really nice new guesthouse had just opened up the road and we snagged the last room. Thank our lucky stars for that. Back to the dodgy hotel to collect our stuff and vent our frustration.

So….NEVER BOOK HOTEL YOLANDA AS IT DOESN’T EXIST (thanks Lonely Planet for the recommendation – tops choice). THE HOTEL WEBSITE IS A SCAM. NEVER BOOK CASA DEL MANGO THROUGH HOSTELWORLD OR THE LIKE AS THEY WON’T GET YOUR RESERVATION. THE OWNER IS INCREDIBLY DODGY AND RIPS PEOPLE OFF COUNTLESS TIMES EVERY DAY WITH SHAM BOOKINGS AND STEALS YOUR DEPOSIT. FROM WHAT I CAN DEDUCE HE CHANGED THE NAME OF THE HOTEL FOUR MONTHS AGO (POSSIBLY BECAUSE OF BAD REVIEWS FOR RIPPING PEOPLE OFF) AND IS NOW DOING THE SAME THING UNER THE NEW NAME. HE DIDN’T EVEN ALLOW US TO WRITE DOWN THE BUSINESS DETAILS OF THE HOTEL. MFC!!!

The website is http://www.yolandahotelcartagena.com/ and address is Calle espiritu Santo # 29-101, Getsemini, Cartagena. DO NOT STAY HERE. I DO NOT RECOMMEND!!! If you are walking by, throw half a dozen eggs through the front door for me.

Aside from the #expletive# experience at Casa del Mango, Cartagena (referring to the Old Town here) is beautiful. An old colonial town surrounded by a wall (partially walkable) with around four main entrances. At the height of the peak season it is a bit of a zoo….horse and carts loaded with miserable rich Colombians whiz annoyingly through the streets creating unnecessary congestion and hazards(it’s just too much for the small one-way lanes – all non-foot propelled traffic should be banned during the high season). This aspect aside, it is an incredibly walkable city. Patios jutting out over the footpaths full of colourful plants, vibrantly painted exterior walls, Caribbean influenced music playing, plenty of restaurants (much more expensive than anywhere else), leafy green plazas to rest during the heat of the day (and it is hot in the Old Town), bars serving super strong cocktails and scantily clad women. Perfect. I managed to while away four days here quite easily. A trip to the “nearby” beach (only 6km away but around an hour on the bus) which is popular with kite-surfers, a visit to the ruins over the river (nothing special) and general wandering, eating and drinking. There was a classical music festival on but everything was sold out. The free concert one particular night was awful anyway. The highlight was obviously the sighting of the models. Outstanding.

I returned to Cartagena a few weeks later....less crowded and more pleasant and basically hung out with new friends and caught up with some others from Oz, ate good food and drank cocktails at sunset. Stayed one night out on Playa Blanca which is a 1.5hr bus/canoe/mototaxi ride away or an expensive boat. Great spot (just check out the photos) but best to stay overnight rather than visit as part of a tour as it can be quite busy for the short period the tourist boats land. It is quite primitive there so don't expect and luxuries....except an amazing view from your beach-side cabana and incredibly warm water. Very pleased I decided to stay the night....very last minute.

A few places to check out:

Cafe del Mar - Pricey but go here for a cocktail at sunset. Worth it.

La Cevicheria - A really nice restaurant with some great seafood. Good service and colourful inside. Not normally on the backpackers hit list.

El Bistro - If you are craving a steak and chips (well fried potatoes) then go here for a reasonably priced tasty hunk of steak. Thanks for the recommendation Lucia! All other food looked good too.

La Plaza de Trinidad - A gathering point for locals in the Getsemini area surrounded by road-side eateries and importantly a bottle shop. There seems to be some kind of activity conducted here every night for the locals to partake in. Very entertaining. Saw the local hip hop dance school doing their thing in front of the local and gringo crowd. Grab a burger or a tasty meat stick from Jimmy (right on the corner outside the bottle-shop.

The Old Town is fortified....the walls that you can walk make for great photos an night.

La Casa de Habano

Cigar humidor

Playa Blanca

Hannah

The disappearing cigarettes trick

The English ladies from the Ciudad Perdida trek

View from Cabana