Full disclosure – My husband’s (Rob) dream was to launch a cycling trip so long, that there really is no end in sight – long enough to take trips inside the trip, and long enough to become so normal, that the trip stops being a trip and becomes life. With a feeling of excitement and slight hesitation, I agreed to cycle a year through South America with him. Here are my thoughts...
DAY 1
Presently, I am sitting
at Hotel Villa Colonial in Cartagena Colombia, slightly dizzy from the sickly
sweet street coffee, watching Rob assemble my bike. Coming from BC’s interior
mountains, with a two-week transit stop in Southern Ontario, Cartagena is a world away.
Cartagena lies on the Caribbean side of Colombia and is the country’s “jewel”. The old city is encased by a huge stone wall -- A Unesco World Heritage Site termed Las Murales -- built in the late 1500’s and truly embodies the romance that lingers down every nook and cobble-stone clad street. Of course gazing up at the curtains of brilliantly-coloured flowers and colonial architecture can prove dangerous as open manholes and erratic drivers prove difficult to navigate. I already have bruised toes!
The reality of the vast class distinction is very apparent in the gritty neighbourhoods that lie on the other side of the wall. Getsemani - polluted with backpackers and cheap accommodation - is the gateway to the sketchy and dirty streets of Mercado Buzurto – the market where Colombians sell their wares. The garbage always astounds me, but the beauty of travelling is awe - in whatever way that reveals itself.
Notes to self...
Never transit through the US. The line up in Miami after we had already passed through Canadian security was BRUTAL!
Never transit through the US. The line up in Miami after we had already passed through Canadian security was BRUTAL!
Remember to get a hotel with a terrace and watch the lively world go by. The extra pesos are worth it!
Don’t bother making plans if ever visiting Cartagena again. Walk around the old city, taste the delicious fruit and fried maze and cheese and schedule an afternoon shower and siesta – the brutal heat (although I love it) will have you dripping and needing a shower and nap by noon.
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