After a good night's sleep we started our second day in Cartagena with a delicious breakfast at our hotel including a giant arepa filled with egg and meat. We also enjoyed fresh kiwi juice and strong Colombian coffee.
In the morning we walked to the marina to inquire about boat trips to Playa Blanca - a beach on a small island about 40 minutes away. At the time we weren't completely sure we wanted to spend and entire day on the beach so we held off on purchasing a ticket. It was a good thing we did because we decided not to go to the beach for a couple reasons: 1) We later read reviews of the beaches and most of them were not favorable. According to the reviews the beach is OK but you get hassled by vendors every second. 2) We just didn't have enough time - there was more to see in the city center!
After the marina, we walked to Castillo de San Felipe de Burujas. In order to get there, you have to walk out of the old city and through a neighborhood called Getsemani which is a little sketchy. We walked down calle Media Luna which was full of hostels. At the Castillo, we hired a guide named Gustavo which was very helpful. His English was OK and he had a little stutter but he was very passionate about the fort's history and pointed out lots of small details that we would have otherwise missed. Read more about our visit to the Castillo here.
We cabbed it back to the hotel for a little siesta. We then hit up Cafe del Mar to watch the sunset. This place is touristy but so worth it. It's situated on top of the old wall and has a stunning view of the sun setting over the sea in one direction, as well as a golden view of the old city in the other direction. It's a great place to kick off the night.
For dinner we tried La Cevicheria - a restaurant recommended to us by several people. We sat outside which was lovely for about 5 minutes, then the vendors came selling everything under the sun. Had we done it again we would have sat indoors. The ceviche was very good and very traditional - mixed seafood in a ton of lime juice. However, we preferred the meal we had the night before at El Boliche because it was a little more interesting. After dinner we strolled down to Plaza de la Aduana to listen to some salsa music at Donde Fidel. This area is great for people watching! We read that people dance salsa in the plaza later at night but we couldn't stay awake and were back at the hotel by 10pm.
In the morning we walked to the marina to inquire about boat trips to Playa Blanca - a beach on a small island about 40 minutes away. At the time we weren't completely sure we wanted to spend and entire day on the beach so we held off on purchasing a ticket. It was a good thing we did because we decided not to go to the beach for a couple reasons: 1) We later read reviews of the beaches and most of them were not favorable. According to the reviews the beach is OK but you get hassled by vendors every second. 2) We just didn't have enough time - there was more to see in the city center!
After the marina, we walked to Castillo de San Felipe de Burujas. In order to get there, you have to walk out of the old city and through a neighborhood called Getsemani which is a little sketchy. We walked down calle Media Luna which was full of hostels. At the Castillo, we hired a guide named Gustavo which was very helpful. His English was OK and he had a little stutter but he was very passionate about the fort's history and pointed out lots of small details that we would have otherwise missed. Read more about our visit to the Castillo here.
We cabbed it back to the hotel for a little siesta. We then hit up Cafe del Mar to watch the sunset. This place is touristy but so worth it. It's situated on top of the old wall and has a stunning view of the sun setting over the sea in one direction, as well as a golden view of the old city in the other direction. It's a great place to kick off the night.
For dinner we tried La Cevicheria - a restaurant recommended to us by several people. We sat outside which was lovely for about 5 minutes, then the vendors came selling everything under the sun. Had we done it again we would have sat indoors. The ceviche was very good and very traditional - mixed seafood in a ton of lime juice. However, we preferred the meal we had the night before at El Boliche because it was a little more interesting. After dinner we strolled down to Plaza de la Aduana to listen to some salsa music at Donde Fidel. This area is great for people watching! We read that people dance salsa in the plaza later at night but we couldn't stay awake and were back at the hotel by 10pm.
One of my favorite doors in Cartagena!
Little girl at the door of Iglesia San Pedro Claver.
Giant Colombian flag waving over Castillo San Felipe de Burajas.
on top of Castillo San Felipe de Burajas
Sunset view from Cafe del Mar
Sunset view from Cafe del Mar
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