A magical day in Colombia
and it wasn't from all of the cocaine I've been offered
In my last note to you all, I skipped over all of my time in Colombia, so now it’s time to catch up! Especially since I’ve now been in the country for more than a month. First, some general notes and thoughts on my time in Colombia.
Colombia’s history is fascinating. It’s also extremely violent. Colombia’s political history has been characterized by assassinations, violent partisan conflict, and guerilla groups, but at the same time it holds the title of South America’s longest-standing democracy (since so many other countries in the region have a history of military coups). I still don’t fully understand the context of Colombia’s history to the point where I can do it any sort of justice by sharing it, but I highly recommend that you do a little research if you are ever curious (and especially if you plan to come to the country).
The country today is largely stable and safe, and as I mentioned in my last note, it is very popular with foreign travelers. Unfortunately, petty crime is pretty common — I have met lots of travelers who have lost a phone, money, or worse. I’m knocking on wood as I type this because the same fate has yet to befall me, and I hope that continues to be the case.
Also, to fulfill a bit of a stereotype about Colombia, I can’t count the number of times I’ve been offered to buy weed and cocaine, especially in Bogotá and Cartagena. It’s typically normal street vendors selling drinks, hats or bracelets. They’ll start by hawking their wares, and then as I walk by, they’ll lean in closer and say in a lower voice, “You want weed, cocaine?”
Apparently this is a very gendered experience — most female travelers I’ve talked to about it haven’t been offered the same opportunity a single time. Meanwhile, I’ve probably been asked 40 or 50 times. I want to come up with a clever response for the next time I get asked… so if you have any ideas, let me know!
What have you been doing for a month?
My time in Colombia started with a week in Bogotá — though the most memorable part of that week actually had nothing to do with the city.
I met lots of people at my hostel in Bogotá, including a Dutch woman named Floor. For whatever reason, she was absolutely dead set on visiting Tatacoa, a small desert located about six hours away from the capital. She talked about it for days, and in the process, convinced Skip, a fellow Dutchie, to join her on the adventure.
Floor’s recruiting efforts weren’t finished, however. After securing a ride to the desert with an Uber driver that she had become friends with while shopping the day before, she convinced our German friend Lorenz to come aboard as well. Soon, all three of them were putting on the full court press for me to take the last available seat. Unsurprisingly, I caved.
In truth, my strongest memory from those two days was just how hot and sweaty that cramped little car was. But it was also a very fun spontaneous adventure. The desert looks like another planet, and it’s strange to see it just emerge from all of the green around it. Another notable feature of the Tatacoa desert is that it’s so humid! I don’t think that I have ever been to a humid desert before — have you?
Once back in Bogotá, I headed north to Santa Marta, a city on Colombia’s Caribbean coast. As a city itself, it’s not much to write home about, but it’s the central hub for a lot of activities in the region.
My primary motivation for heading to Santa Marta was to visit its next-door neighbor, Taganga. Though just a small fishing village, Taganga is famous on the backpacking trail for one reason: scuba diving.
I had never scuba dived before this trip, but I’ve only ever heard amazing things, especially from my friend Lizzie, so I’ve been curious. I’m now officially addicted. I’ll talk a bit more about diving later in this update, so I won’t go overboard here (pun intended), but it’s truly amazing.
While diving in Taganga, I met Bram, a Dutch guy who I bonded with through our mutual chess mediocrity. This connection led me to my next adventure — a four-day jungle trek to La Ciudad Perdida, The Lost City.
(Side note: if you are sensing a theme, you’re not crazy — there are so many Dutch people in Colombia, and I really can’t figure out why. Yesterday was actually King’s Day, a Dutch holiday, and there was a massive rooftop party in Cartagena with everyone dressed in their traditional orange. At this point, parts of the city are pretty much a Dutch colony, just like parts of Argentinian Patagonia seemed to be Israeli outposts.)
Anyway, back to the trek. Undiscovered until the 1970s, much is still unknown about Colombia’s Lost City. Nearby indigenous communities apparently knew about the site and visited it regularly, but they kept quiet about it. The Lost City is believed to have been a political and spiritual center for the Tairona people, a group that existed until the time of the Conquistadors (they are believed to have fled The Lost City sometime in the 15th century). The local tribes today are descendants of the Tairona people, and they are now actively involved in the preservation and tourism of La Ciudad Perdida.
Personally, my favorite part of the Lost City trek experience was the social aspect of the trail. (I know, what a surprise.) There were seven of us in my group that really connected, and swapping stories certainly made the kilometers seem shorter (though nothing could distract me from that humidity, my god).
As for the ruins themselves, they were alright. Some people have compared them to Machu Picchu, though in my view that’s a great insult to the Peruvian ancient wonder. Truthfully, I enjoyed the afternoon we spent swimming in the river more than touring the actual Lost City. With so much conjecture and such little fact, it was hard for the stones to come alive for me.
Despite not loving the Lost City, the trek was a testament to how much I do love intensive shared experiences. You bond so quickly with people in environments with consistent contact and no outside distractions — it’s the summer camp effect. For those few days, a specific group of people become your entire world, and your relationships deepen rapidly as a result.
As I ponder what life may look like for me whenever I finish traveling, I’m very intrigued by the thought of creating more experiences like that for adults. Our childhood consists almost exclusively of these types of environments, and then they just culturally disappear once you finish college. No wonder people often find it difficult to form new intimate friendships in adulthood!
After hiking in the heat and humidity for four days, I was tired, so I headed to the nearby town of Minca, a relaxing mountain village. Also, I didn’t really have much choice, because it was a Colombian holiday week (Semana Santa, the week leading up to Easter) and my last-minute accommodation options were super limited.
My days in Minca were very slow and leisurely. I read. I swam at a few waterfalls. I drank coffee. I laid in a hammock. I watched High School Musical 2 (objectively the best of the trilogy). It was all quite peaceful, and I ended up staying five days (much longer than planned) to recharge after hitting The Wall.
As a result, I ended up missing some things in the Santa Marta area. I didn’t make it to Palomino, a famous backpacker beach town, and I didn’t visit Cabo de la Vela, the northernmost point in South America, either. But you can’t do it all, and it’s a reality that I’ve made peace with. When you travel, you assume that the list of destinations you want to see will get shorter, not longer; but in my experience, for every one place I visit, I learn of at least two new destinations that I can’t wait to discover.
From Minca, I headed west along the coast to Cartagena, a staple of any visit to Colombia. Its colorful architecture certainly doesn’t disappoint, and it was a wonderful setting for a reunion with Emily, my good friend from Chicago. Despite meeting at our new hire orientation for United Airlines, we had never actually traveled together before, so it was a fun first adventure for us.
Our time in Cartagena was characterized by sunsets on the wall of the old city, frozen drinks, dancing lessons, inaccurately themed bars, and great conversation. I’m also proud to say that we even managed to squeeze some reality TV into our short time together — we really did it all!
I think the biggest highlight of all my time in Cartagena was going to Cafe Havana, a salsa bar with absolutely incredible music and performers. The energy in the place was wonderful, and the mojitos were pretty great as well. I loved it so much that I’m planning on going back tonight with some friends that I met a couple weeks ago in Santa Marta!
I’ve been in the Cartagena area for a week and a half now, so I escaped the city a couple days ago to head to Rincón del Mar, a small fishing village a few hours away. And I’m sure glad I did, because yesterday turned out to be one of my favorite days of my entire trip.
The day started early when a small wooden boat pulled onto the shore in front of my hostel at 7am to pick me up — I was going diving! It was my first time diving without an instructor, and I loved the freedom. It was just me and a German named Mirjam, and we wandered through the coral gardens and reef walls to our hearts’ content.
There were a couple particularly special moments during my second dive of the day where I suddenly found myself in the middle of a large school of fish, and I have to tell you — it’s one of the most beautiful experiences in the world.
My morning of diving only marked the beginning of yesterday’s aqua adventures. In the evening, I joined my new Dutch friend Marije (who I met on the bus the day before) and hopped onto a boat once again. After a short sunset stop at an island filled with thousands of birds, we entered the mangroves in search of the main attraction: bioluminescent plankton.
I had been warned by other travelers to lower my expectations regarding this natural phenomenon, but their warnings didn’t stick. I was stoked. And with dumb luck on my side (it was nearly a new moon last night, which I did not plan), my high expectations were wildly exceeded.
I don’t have any photos to show you from my own experience, but this random one from the Internet can give you an idea of what swimming in bioluminescence looks like from above.
However, no photo can do justice to what you actually experience in the water. You feel like a wizard as a magical blue glow follows your hand wherever it goes. And whenever any part of your body breaks the surface of the water, it literally drips sparks. It’s astoundingly beautiful. For a while, I just floated on my back making a plankton angel while stargazing. If that’s not the definition of peaceful, I don’t know what is.
Then, as if the diving and plankton weren’t enough, the night continued with a lovely dinner and drink with Marije, a journalist who has worked on projects ranging from a documentary following the Catalan independence referendum to building journalism hubs and communities throughout Europe. Our roaming conversation was the perfect end to a perfect day.
The last time I wrote to you, I talked about hitting The Wall and how long-term travel isn’t all sunshine and rainbows. But even in cloudier periods on the road, there are still days when the sun breaks through and shines so incredibly brightly. Yesterday was one of those days, and I’m optimistic that the better weather is going to stick around for a while.
Where are you headed next?
On Sunday, I’ll be heading to San Andres, a Colombian archipelago that is actually all the way up on the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua. I didn’t even know the islands existed before entering Colombia! There are some interesting geopolitics surrounding the islands, and Nicaragua actually won a case with the International Court of Justice in 2012 to gain the rights to a lot of the islands’ territorial water. The dispute between the two countries continues to this day.
As you can tell, I’ve become quite a fan of scuba diving, and that’s the main motivation for my trip to San Andres. I’m planning on doing the next diving course (Advanced Open Water) for a few days while I’m there. It will allow me to go deeper (to 100 feet) and do a night dive!
After San Andres, I’ll meet my friend Michelle in Medellín, which I’m very excited for. After that, who knows!
(Everyone keeps asking if I’m ever going to leave South America. I think that I’ll likely head north to Central America/Caribbean after Colombia, but I plan to be in Latin America until July.)
What I’m reading and listening to
What I’ve read since I last wrote:
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (Thank you Kate! I finished it in less than a day!)
How to Be a Friend: An Ancient Guide to True Friendship by Marcus Tullius Cicero
The Fifth Avenue Story Society by Rachel Hauck (well I made it to 80% before quitting)
What I’m reading right now: Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney (credit goes to all those Sally Rooney suggesters, like Caroline and Sarah)
Song from the shared Spotify playlist that I’ve been thinking about: “Old Friends” by Ben Rector has been on my mind, since I recently got to chat with all of my close high school friends when they had a reunion in Boise (thank you Colin!)
Want to contribute to my bookshelf or shared playlist? It’s not too late! Here are the links:
Spotify:
Bookshelf:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1HkLwGTZVGe_uWcxAWqdS0qy185QDi82RTobO1KyWx50/edit?usp=sharing