ON TO CARTAGENA

21st - 23rd Nov 2018

El Rata entering into the spirit of things.

On up north by Expreso Brazilia bus to Cartagena (pronounced Carta 'throat clearing noise' ayna). This was a 15½ hour journey, mostly through the night. As maybe mentioned earlier, these buses are comfortable but not quite up to the standard of the Argentine ones. They have decent reclining seats and 'entertainment' consoles plus Wifi but lack two things as per Argentina, namely; cabin crew to serve food and drink and, significantly, absolutely no communication from the 'flight deck'. You are never told where you are and when you have a pit-stop (normally only one) for food and a leg stretch there is no indication of how long you will be there. It is necessary to keep a close eye on the bus, drivers and other passengers as it would drive off without a second thought if you failed to board on time.

The journey through the night was obviously over some very mountainous countryside but it was not possible to see very much outside. Lots of sharp corners and straining of engine as we zig-zagged our way up and down. I was worried I might begin to feel bus-sick, but fortunately wasn't. We arrived 'near' the Cartagena bus terminal at 8.15am. I say near because the terminal was closed due to a 'strike' or something. That left us on a street with no indication of how to get into the town centre which was about 3 miles away. By great good fortune I bumped into two helpful American girls who worked there. They told me how to get a connecting bus, a TransCarib, from a nearby bus-stop. These TransCarib buses worked on the same principal as the TransMilenio horrors in Bogota (see previous blog for description). "Oh hell", I thought. Fortunately they were somewhat more user-friendly and there was only one route to the centre, the last stop.

Left: The Clock Tower Gate, one of the main entrances into the old walled city.

Cartagena is on the Caribbean coast. The climate is hot and sunny up here all year round. It is a largeish city with much industry on the southern and eastern outskirts. It is also houses the headquarters, with naval base, of the Colombian Navy. The main areas of interest for us tourists lie to the west and southern end which features the old walled city known as 'El Centro', a pretty park and residential area, Getsemani, next door to it and a peninsular to the south. This peninsular contains the large Naval base, the port for many vast cruise ships and has long beaches and smart hotels on the Caribbean side. I found a lovely guest house called 'Real' in the Getsemani area, which is full of bars, restaurants, 'boutique' hotels and Salsa clubs. There were many to choose from. My room was en-suite with a comfortable bed, air-con, WiFi and large flat-screen TV which received BBC World (if you got really bored), all for about £15 per night. I can never understand why people wish to pay 10 times that, or more, for a 'smart' hotel room, often miles from the interesting areas,  when all you need is a clean room, comfortable bed, somewhere to wash and, of course, WiFi. But everywhere here, even the smallest cafés, has good WiFi, or is it wifi, or Wifi, or wi-fi? Advice please. I know someone who will correct me 'toot sweet'.

  

Right: The entrance to the 'Parque del Centenario' at the top of Getsemani and opposite the Clock Tower leading into the Old City. A very pleasant little park with statues and fountains etc.

Left: An obelisk in the centre of the park. Can't remember what it signified but, I initially thought, was probably unique in Colombia, if not the world, because there were no pigeons sitting on it!

(My research team tells me it is in honour of local heroes)

As per Bogota and Medellin, there were swarms of these little yellow taxis (right) buzzing around the streets. Probably even more prolific here than elsewhere. They reminded me of a swarm of wasps and were almost as irritating, as they often pulled up alongside you if you ever stopped walking and pestered you to use them. It is no exaggeration to say that they outnumbered the rest of the traffic by 2:1. I can't think how they all make a living; especially when Uber cabs operate in the area. Having said that I only recently discovered that Uber cabs are illegal in Colombia...even though (probably because) they are easily available (if you have the 'App') and provide a reliable, honest and usually cheaper service.

Left: I discovered this fantastic and reasonably priced café/restaurant in Getsemani, near my hostel. It is called Café Castellana. The food was excellent and the staff were smart and charming. I recommend it should you ever visit this city. I'm not a great 'foody' and eateries seldom feature as places of importance on my travels, but I always used this place for breakfast and supper.

Some sights from inside the old walled city. It is a rambling area of narrow and quite smart streets linking various Plazas. Right: the Plaza de los Coches just inside the Clock Tower gate.

Left: A statue of Pedro de Heredia (I think he was a city founder) at the end of the Plaza above.

Another oddity; no pigeons sitting on him.

....and again! Yet another pigeonless statue. What is going on? Have I found a town which has invented some effective 'anti-pigeon' coating for their statues. I must investigate further.

Left: OK, normal service has been resumed. Statue of the ubiquitous Simon Bolivar in the eponymous Plaza.

















Right: Some amusing constructions in Plaza de la Aduana.

Left: A typical Old City street with La Catedral in the background. They are 'quaint' but contain some very upmarket shops and restaurants. There is a big influx of probably wealthy tourists; lots of Americans from cruise ships together with Europeans. I did not see the usual Japanese hordes. This city, indeed country, must not be on their world check-list of places to visit. They are probably still put off by the well out of date 'dangerous' reputation the country had.

Right: A staue of some clerical gent outside the Iglesia de Santo Domingo. Looks like he's trying to hail a cab. Surprising that one of those pesky little yellow jobs hasn't pulled up beside him. 

Nice open-air bars in the Plaza of the same name nearby.

Left: Just outside the main gate is this statue of Señor Cervantes. I think he wrote Don Quixote, and probably lots of other things. Maybe he invented the 'anti-pigeon' stuff for statues hence his recognition by Cartagena.

Right: One of the many horse 'n carts which I frequently saw in convoy carrying prosperous looking tourists around the streets. Can't think why they didn't walk; they would have seen more and not be put off by the arse of the horse farting in front. Idle buggers!

I was encouraged by my Lonely Planet guide book to visit the Palacio de la Inquisición in the Plaza de Bolivar, one of the finest buildings in the city (I was informed), and which originally housed the notorious branch of Spanish Inquisition here. It is now a museum on three floors, one of which was closed. I was rather disappointed. I expected to find lots of gruesome exhibits but, apart from a replica guillotine and scaffold in the back courtyard and a large portrait of Thomás de Torquemada in the front hall, there was little of any interest, or gruesomeness.

Left: Replica instruments of torture used by the Inquisition to punish 'heretics'. Not exactly awe-inspiring. All explanations were in Spanish.

Exerpt from Monty Python. "NOBODY expects the Spanish Inquisition! Our chief weapon is surprise...surprise and fear...fear and surprise.... Our two weapons are fear and surprise...and ruthless efficiency.... Our *three* weapons are fear, and surprise, and ruthless efficiency...and an almost fanatical devotion to the Pope.... Our *four*...no... *Amongst* our weapons.... Amongst our weaponry...are such elements as fear, surprise.... I'll come in again.  (Exit and exeunt)


Right: A group, one of several in the Old City, of colourfully dressed Caribbean ladies with fruity headdress who enjoyed having their photos taken (for a price). Spot El Rata.











I had initially taken a touristy 'Hop on Hop off' bus trip around town to get my bearings. Very useful. I then re-walked the journey. I passed the 2km stretch of the waterside peninsular, home to the Colombian Navy.
Left: One of the entrances to the Naval garrison.

The perimeter was dotted with watch-towers manned by bored looking armed guards, but I was happily granted access to the main entrance and permitted to take photos. Right: This was the 20ft tall 'gate guard' which was inside the entrance. A little OTT, I thought.









Left: Looking through the perimeter fence I photoed the Navy sports field. Nothing peculiar about that, but it was surrounded by radar monitors and mounted (old) anti-aircraft guns. Was this an early Colombian version of the Television Match Official?... Plus rapid lethal consequences of foul play?

Right: A distant shot of a couple of the vast 'floating city' cruise liners that were visiting, as per Cuba and other sunny ports of call. They discharge passengers for a quick conducted 'look-around' before a fog-horn summons them back, and off they float. Not my cup of tea.

Left: At a jetty where my 'Hop on Hop off' bus stopped and most of the passengers 'hopped off' to catch a ferry to take them back to their large cruise ship.

Right: A Caribbean beach down on the peninsular. The sea was warm. I was tempted to go for a swim as I was hot and had walked quite a long way. However! and I may have mentioned this before (apologies if so); 'What the heck do you do with your kit; clothes, money, camera, specs, phone, rat etc.  if you are on your own. No easy answer. When I was in Phuket (Thailand) a year ago, and the urge was irresistible, I made a plan. I found a spot on the golden sandy beach and marked it carefully using shoreline landmarks. I then, hopefully sereptitiously, dug a hole in the sand and having put all my valuables in my trusty 'waterproof' Waitrose (bag for life) bag, buried it in the hole. I covered this 'cache' with my towel and went for a swim. Lovely, but I was always worried that someone had seen me bury my stuff and had moved my towel, and dug up my valuables. I had horrible visions of digging up the beach for the next week or so in fruitless search.  It made me anxious. On that occasion, I got back to the beach and happily retrieved my belongings. It was a hassle I didn't want to repeat. So I didn't go for a swim.

Left: I took this photo of a bloke who looked very pleased with himself and had obviously been toasting himself for weeks to achieve a mahogany, probably cancerous, sun-tan. Who is that supposed to impress? Silly bugger. Please read my report from Chernobyl.

Right: An amusing 'statue' on the sea-front.

Left: One of the touristy buses operating around the area. My 'Hop on Hop off' one was a red double decker open topped thing with plug-in audio guide, which didn't work.

Right: The Hilton Hotel at the southern end of the peninsular. Vastly expensive and nowhere near any of the interesting tourist spots. I cannot understand why anyone wants to stay in a place like that. They might just as well have stayed at home.

Left: One of many 'tall sailing ships' moored alongside a dock on the peninsular. Not sure if it ever went anywhere.

Right: This band-stand had been set up on the Plaza de los Coches, just inside the Clock Tower gate. I went down in the evening to listen to what they had to offer. It was an awful, ear-bashing noise of heavy rock music. I didn't stay long. The Colombians try to emulate the Cubans with their local home-spun, often 'rap style' music, especially at the open-air cafés and bars. They fail dismally.






Left: This was one of several strange creatures lurking in the trees in the Parque del Centenario. What is it? A monkey of some kind I suppose. A prize for anyone who can identify it. 
There were lots of large, 4ft long, iguanas crawling along the branches. Are they dangerous? I didn't hang around to find out. I am not of the David Attenborough inclination.

The prize has been claimed. My ever alert 'research team' informs me that it is a 'Geoffroy's Tamarind Monkey.

Right: Over the lagoon bridge to the east of the Getsemani district is the Castillo de San Felipe de Barajas. This is the greatest fortress ever built by the Spaniards in any of their colonies. Originally commisioned in 1630, construction began in 1657 and after various 'add-ons' was completed in 1762. It was impregnable and never taken despite numerous attempts to storm it (I was informed), presumably by pirates or perhaps by the all conquering Swiss Guard. It was not made clear.




I paid $25,000 (8 USD) to gain entry. No reduction for old gits.  In fact it is a very dull experience. There are a few dark tunnels inside which lead nowhere and signify nothing. Apart from that you merely wander around various levels of brickwork. I suppose it does give you a decent view over the city to the west (right).

Its reputation is rather more impressive than the reality.

One thing I forgot to mention about the place is the number of 'hawkers' on the streets (not seen in such numbers since India) determined to sell you bottled water and hats! They were a little irritating and anyway I have a perfectly serviceable hat and rarely drink neat water.

Thats enough about Cartagena I think. Lovely place and well worth a visit. Next on to Santa Marta, a town also on the Caribbean coast to the east. Vamos vamos!