Friday 30 January 2009

Cartagena and Playa Blanca

We arrived in the mid-morning furnace heat of Cartagena De Indias and unfortunately, due a small bus mishap, had to carry our backpacks for a mile or so to our hostel in the Getsemani district of the old town! Cartagena is a beautiful walled city with lots of Spanish architecture and it sits right on the Caribbean coast. We spent a nice few days strolling around the old town soaking up the atmosphere.One day we took a trip out to visit a mud volcano called Totumo. The volcano is only 20 metres high and the small crater at the top is filled with warm mud heated by gases below! It´s a really strange sensation as you step in and feel really buoyant! Any attempt to try and swim seems futile and you have to rely on some poor chap who works in there to push you in to position! After a brief massage you then step out to let the mud dry on you which doesn´t take long in 40 degree heat before climbing down to the lagoon next door to clean all the mud off.
After a few days of being in the beautiful but hot oven of Cartagena, it was time to head to what is said to be Colombia´s nicest beach Playa Blanca. The journey there is quite interesting as it requires a 45 minute local bus ride, 5 mins over a canal on a canoe then 20 mins on the back of a motorbike which delivers you direct to the beach!As we stepped on to the white sand though we realised it had definitely been worth it - finally we were on a `honeymoon beach´! The beach is of the classic Caribbean style (warm crystal clear water, palm trees etc!) and the accommodation for our two night stay was in hammocks right on the beach! It was an excellent few days and after another night in Cartagena tonight we´re off up the coast to a place called Taganga for more of the same. Really disappointed to be missing all that snow.........

Love to all.

Jo and Al x