Carol's Travels

This morning we took an hour boat ride to Rosario Islands. These islands have been declared a Colombian National Park to protect the 1,300 species of wildlife that can be found there. The islands were actually coral reef formations that grew over the centuries.

We disembarked the boat at a hotel that had thatched roof cottages for their guests to stay. Some of our group went snorkeling, others went swimming, some just relaxed, and I had a massage. I enjoyed receiving this massage in a building that had a thatched roof and curtains for walls. It was a real bargain too at $15 for thirty minutes!

Next, most of us got back in the boat for a tour around the islands. We stopped at a bird rescue center where there were many birds that had been hurt. I had never seen many of these birds before this.

When we finished this tour, we had a typical lunch of fish, coconut rice, salad, mashed plantain slices. And sliced watermelon and pineapple. After lunch I went swimming in the clear, warm water. Soon we got back on the boat which sped through the choppy ocean waters back to Cartagena.

This evening Jodee, Paul, and I went out for dinner to a restauant that has high reviews on Trip Advisor. We all ordered pasta, hot bread, and wine. We enjoyed the food!

Judi, the masseuse who gave me a massage

Boat ride around the islands

One of the rescued birds at Palmar

Carol swimming in the warm waters by the island

After breakfast we climbed aboard a bus which took us to the old Spanish fort built to protect Cartagena from enemies trying to raid the riches they had stolen from the local population. We walked through tunnels, touched canons, and looked out from the top of the fort to see the panoramic view of the whole area.

Next we went to another catholic church. We walked though streets of colorful old apartment buildings. Some had flower boxes on balconies. Then we entered a secure building that held gold artifacts.

The last place we toured was an emerald museum. There was a replica of an emerald mine there. We learned about emeralds and less expensive stones like tourmaline. Finally we had the opportunity to buy emerald jewelry. I browsed and saw some beautiful rings, but I decided not to buy anything. None of the settings looked special enough, and I didn’t really want an emerald.

We all went to lunch after that. We only paid $12 total for both of our lunches. We returned to the hotel for a couple of hours, then we went for a walk in an area that used to be the Red Light District. People are renovating then selling the buildings for a profit.

As we walked down these narrow streets, people were sitting outside listening to loud music booming from professional speakers. Others were playing dominoes or just relaxing. Many smiled and said hello to us as we walked by. On the way back to the hotel, Alex pointed out the beautiful graffiti on the sides of some of the buildings. Some young men proudly told me that they had painted the pictures on the building I was admiring.

Later Paul, Jodee, and I went across the street from the hotel for some delicious juicy hamburgers.

Tunnel in old fort in Cartagena

Some of the canons at the fort

Fruit Seller

Street Dancer

Emeralds Among Quartz Crystals

Metal sculpture outside renovated building

Colorful graffiti style mural about Cartagena

Notice how the men hold their domino tiles.

People relaxing in the square outside the Catholic church In a renovated section

Our guide, Alex

Eleven of us left the hotel in Panama City at 8:00 A.M. to go to the airport. The first flight was from Panama City to Bogota, Colombia. The flight lasted long enough for us to be served a hot turkey and cheese sandwich and a chocolate marshmallow dessert. Neither was worth finishing, but the free white wine was good.

When we arrived in Bogota, we discovered that our connecting flight to Cartagena had been cancelled, so we had to get booked on another flight. Luckily there was room for all of us in an earlier flight. Actually, that was better because we would have less time to wait in Bogota. When we boarded the plane, we discovered that it was a a Boeing 787 Dreamliner! This was the first time that I have flown on one of these.

It only took us an hour to fly to Cartagena. We were met by our guide, Alex, the bus driver, and a female rep from Grand Circle. We went to our hotel in the heart of the old city where we were given a room on the first floor. Alex then took us for a walk in the old town showing us several restaurants that he considered to be good. Some of us stopped to eat dinner at one of these restaurants. Both Paul and I had pasta. Mine was mushroom and chicken linguini in white sauce with cheese, and his was seafood linguini in marinara sauce. Both were delicious. Alex went home, and we the walked back to the hotel.

We flew on the Boeing 787, the Dreamliner.

Garbage collector in Cartagena, Colombia

Statue in the town square of Cartagena, Colombia
http://articles.latimes.com/2011/may/01/travel/la-tr-marquez-20110501/2