Cartagena de Indias is along Bogotá probably the most well-known city in Colombia. It is located in the Caribbean coast north of Bogotá, and it has about a million inhabitants.
Colourful Cartagena is a popular tourist destination. The old colonial centre is a walled city and UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Fernando Botero is a famous Colombian figurative artist, known for its chubby, comical characters in paintings and sculptures. Even though señor Botero is of Medellín origin, also Cartagena offers home to his voluptuous naked lady.
A proper holiday in tropical climate requires a holiday hat - a Panama hat - which protects from direct sunlight.
As I have already bought a hat in Miami, I just tried one on.
As beautiful as Cartagena with its colourful history and even more colourful buildings it, after a while it can get exhausting and overwhelming. Every local tries to find their way of earning a share of the tourists' money, so it is full of sales people, who try to get you to buy whatever it is they are selling. Without even properly noticing, you might suddenly find yourself being massaged by a pregnant, barefoot lady on the beach even though you said no gracias seventeen times. The same applies to the city.
After we had been exploring the centre, it was time to go join Andreas at the beach in Bocagrande. Bocagrande is a more modern neighbourhood filled with tall hotel buildings and beach front, which is lacking from the old centre.
Another must-see in Cartagena is the city's most popular open-air bar and restaurant, Café del Mar. It is built on the old city's walls, and is specialised in electronic music which is a welcome change to the typical Colombian music scene every once in a while.
And of course it wouldn't be a proper visit to the Caribbean, if we didn't get to experience a tropical thunder storm. As it ruled out all outdoor activities, we were lucky that it happened on our last day.
After all, we got to see the old city and visit a beautiful beach, a truly Caribbean gem of an island, Isla de Barú. More about the white beach later...
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