Exploring In The Old Walled City of Cartagena

Exploring in the old walled city of Cartagena is like a walk through 500 years of history. This great jewel on the Colombian coast has seen and weathered it all. Spanish conquistadors, pirates of the Caribbean, the dark ages of the slave trade, and countless invasions all have made their mark on the resilient city.

It is because of this fascinating history that we made our decision to stay in the old part of town. We could have picked the shiny Miami like coastline area but we were looking for a place that would stir our imagination and the walled city of Cartagena did just that. Our last and final city of our Colombia vacation would be the perfect ending.

Getting there from Medellin – Arriving at night

As I discussed in my Medellin post, in country flights on Avianca are the way to go when moving around between major cities in Colombia. The flight to Cartagena was a little over a hour and cost us $33 each. We arrived around 6 pm but by the time we retrieved our luggage and hopped in a cab, it was 7 pm and getting dark outside. The sun sets just before 6:30 pm in July in these parts.

The good thing is that the walled city of Cartagena is only a 20 minute drive from the airport so we were there in no time. As you approach from the main thoroughfare, you begin to see the walls and the cannons perched atop, still guarding the old town. It was a clear night and you could hear waves lapping the rocks along the shoreline. Once our driver turned towards the walls, the scenery would change dramatically.

The old walled city

As soon as you get past the walls you will feel as if you’ve teleported to the colonial era. We were immediately mesmerized by the immaculately preserved colonial architecture. The many bright balconies with flowers overhanging and the stone archways with their beautifully lit lights captivated us. There were people walking around getting their night started and horse drawn carriages taking guests on evening rides. Cartagena absolutely nailed her first impression.

Where to Stay – The Sophia Hotel

We chose the Sophia hotel and were quite pleased with the selection. It’s located directly in front of la Plaza de la Aguana (largest and oldest square in the old town) and a pick up/drop off spot for the horse carriages. The check in process was rather painless and our room was neat and had a nice view overlooking the plaza. Oh, and welcome cake was waiting for us in our room! This is always going to be a plus, lol. We freshened up and decided to chill by the rooftop pool for the evening.

The bartender took our drink order while we grabbed some pool chairs and began to enjoy our first night in Cartagena. Because it is a coastal city that is sort of close (about 700 miles north) to the equator, the temperature range is pretty much the same throughout the year. You can expect lows to be in the upper 70’s and the highs to be in the mid to upper 80’s all year long.

The crisp refreshing mojitos kept coming and combined with the pleasant ocean breeze blowing in, it made for a very relaxing evening. It was just the type of night we needed after the hustle and bustle of Bogota and Medellin. We stayed until they closed. When we got back to our room we ordered room service and shut it down. We couldn’t wait to see Cartagena by day!

Day 2 – Guided walking tour, Emerald shopping, Cafe del Mar

Daytime is when Cartagena shines bright like a diamond. We started this day off with a big breakfast at the Sophia and asked the manager if she could book a guided walking tour for us. Not only did we want a tour of the old town inside the walls but we wanted to tour the harbor and neighboring Getsemaní as well. Just about every hotel and hostel in the old town can book various same day tours for you. Or you can prebook on Viator prior to your trip. After eating I went to the ATM (more about this later) and we waited for our guide.

Guided Walking Tour

Our guide met us at the hotel and after a brief introduction (and paying him in pesos), he started right away. This guy was all business I tell you. The tour started at the plaza right in front of us and from there we went outside the walls to see and learn about the harbor. He was well versed and knew all sorts of facts about Cartagena’s incredible history. My imagination drifted off as he was talking as I wondered what it would have been like 500 years ago with ships from the old world sailing in.

Getsemaní 

From the harbor we made our way just a couple of blocks down to the historic neighborhood of Getsemaní. Known as the birthplace of Cartagena’s culture, this hippie enclave has a laid back vibe during the day. This area is where the first artisans that built the old town used to live back in those times. Street art and brightly colored homes and businesses line the cobblestone streets of this bohemian barrio. We very much enjoyed the pace of life here. Everybody seemed to be straight chillin’ and having a good time.

Getsemaní is more than a hip and artsy neighborhood, it’s a way of life. There are many cafes, restaurants, and bars with people sitting outside drinking and eating while taking in the Caribbean sea sun. This place is blessed with lots of picturesque streets and I lost track of how many we went down. Every one we explored had some level of coolness about it.

When we arrived to the Holy Trinity Square area we finally saw the Palenqueras! I wanted to see and take a picture with them. You’re probably asking yourself, what is a Palenquera? They are the black women of Colombia who wear the brightly colored dresses that balance fruit baskets on their heads. This post explains their history and the impact they’ve had on Colombian culture. The ladies were fun to chat with and will gladly pose for pictures, but please be sure to tip them. This is how they make their living.

Nightlife

We made plans to come back to Getsemani in the evening to partake in the festive nightlife that this area is well known for. One place in particular caught our eye during our walk and our guide told us that it is a nice place to dance and drink. Cuba 1940’s has a 4.5 rating out of 5 on both google and TripAdvisor reviews so it has to be the real deal right? We made plans to find out!

Plaza de la Merced

Once we left Getsemani, our guide took us to the Plaza de la Merced which is located just inside the walls. This place is home to the theatre and a wing of the University of Cartagena. It was a pretty area but more importantly to us at the time, a place to rest! It was hot and humid and our guide was making sure we got our money’s worth and our steps in.

We rested for a while inside the university patio on some benches they had set up in the shade. There was also some interesting pictures displayed around the interior perimeter that we took a little time to view. After the short rest stop, we walked along the town walls to get a view of the water and then our guide said he wanted to take us to see the exquisite emeralds of Colombia.

Shopping for Emeralds

Okay so I’m not entirely sure how this happened or what sorcery was at play this particular day, but not only did we agree to making a stop at this really nice jewelry store inside the old town, we spent a good deal of money there as well! If you are a regular reader of my blog then you know I don’t write about shopping for jewelry on vacation, ever. Hell, look at our pictures, we hardly wear jewelry at all.

I blame the tour guide. Just kidding. Looking back, it was almost inevitable. For starters, we had learned in Bogota during the salt mine tour that Colombia supplies 90% of the world’s emeralds! Then add the facts that my wife’s birthstone is an emerald and we were in a romantic city and all the stars lined up for the purchase. It’s all good fam, she more than deserves her beautiful emerald ring. To see her face light up when she tried it on and said to me “I want it babe”, well that alone did it for me.

The only thing I regret is not taking a close up picture of the ring! Once we bought it, it got put into a box and bag. I only have this one pic where the sales lady is cracking up because I told her that all I got for a souvenir was a miniature botero woman figurine and my wife got this super cool ring.

End of guided tour

We parted ways with our tour guide at the jewelry store and I had to use my map app on my phone to get back to the Sophia hotel. Along the way we saw Sir Frances Drake’s house which is still very impressive and found some cool plazas and restaurants. We also got stopped by some performers who wanted to rap for us. They were actually pretty good. I have a fun clip of how that went down.

It was about 2 pm now and we wanted to get some rest before heading back out to catch the sunset at Cafe del Mar on the wall. It was an eventful morning and early afternoon exploring in the walled city of Cartagena. Now it was time for a siesta before seeing what she had in store for us in the evening.

Cafe del Mar – Best place to watch the sunset!

This place had been recommended to us by everybody and their mother. I get worried when that happens because then my expectations become quite high and hard to meet. I asked myself, could this place live up to the hype? Reading up on the reviews of Cafe del Mar I learned 3 very important things that made our visit a great success.

• Make a reservation on the Cafe del Mar website in advance or arrive 20 minutes before opening time (4:30 pm) and get in line.
• When you get seated, place your 1st order of drinks immediately! Don’t be messing around talking about, “I’m not ready yet and need some time to look at the menu”. You’re going to be mad as hell, lol. The service gets slower and slower as the evening wears on. It gets packed.
• When your 1st order of drinks arrive, order the second round right there and then. Trust me on this.

Vibe and what to expect

If you don’t make a reservation you can still get a table but it won’t be along the wall. And that’s okay because there isn’t a bad seat in the entire place as far I could tell. They play EDM music here and the mood is festive. From 4:30 until about 6:15 pm, everyone is just getting their drink on and waiting for the main event, the sunset. That is when all the cameras come out and everyone tries to get their best shot in.

As the sun dips over the horizon, the sky turns to different shades of summer and the crowd becomes more lively. By that point, the mojitos (or whatever it is you are drinking) are kicking into gear and you are feeling that Caribbean groove. This place 100% lives up to it’s reputation! It is the best place to catch the sunset.

There is an alternative if you don’t want to spend money or drink and it’s one that a lot of the locals do. Find a spot anywhere along the wall and wait for the sun to dip. It’s free and you get some great views as well. We enjoyed the vibe and people at Cafe del Mar and even met a cool couple there who we ended up having dinner with.

Dinner and Horse Carriage ride

We left the café buzzing and feeling amazing, and to be quite honest, I don’t remember how we found the restaurant we ate at. Not sure if the couple that was with us recommended it, or we found it by accident, but it doesn’t matter, because it was damn good! It’s called El Burlador and it’s a Spanish gastrobar and steakhouse. They had some live music going on and the food was fantastic. I highly recommend it!

After dinner we said our goodbyes to our new amigos and hopped on a horse carriage to take us on a ride through the old town at night. Our plans were to keep the party going at Cuba 1940’s in Getsemani but we needed to go to an ATM to get some more pesos. They come in handy for tips and paying services like horse carriage rides by the way.

We got to the ATM and I didn’t have my debit card. No problem, it’s probably in the room I thought. Nope, not there either. I had left it in the machine in the morning. I spent the next 30 minutes trying to get the card cancelled to be on the safe side and by then the mood to go out had been killed. We were in our room and a shower and bed seemed the better option at that point. We called it a night.

Day 3 – Playa Blanca in Baru

This day would be a beach day. My wife and I had discussed which beach to visit prior to our arrival and we ended up comprising on Playa Blanca in Baru. I use the word compromise because originally I wanted to take her to the Bora Bora Beach Club in the Rosario Island chains but she didn’t want to get on the boat ride to get out there. Playa Blanca could be driven to from Cartagena so we decided to go that route. We had the Sophia hotel manager make arrangements with a driver to take and watch over us.

The drive to Playa Blanca is a little over an hour but it seemed less than that as our driver was a funny and talkative dude. Once we arrived, there was a military checkpoint just outside the zone. We had to get out of our vehicle for a pat down, they quickly reviewed the car, and then we were on our way to find a parking spot. This is the part we didn’t like and felt like the local government could do a lot more. There were way too many vendors and hawkers trying to get you to park in their area or use them as guides.

After parking we had to walk down this wooded path until we got to the main opening. It is then that you are treated to a very nice beach with beautiful Caribbean water. This is what we came for!

Beach area and what to expect

The beach, sand, and water are all perfectly fine. I’d rate those things an 8 out of 10. We chose some beach chairs on the front row of the playa surf beach bar and were properly attended throughout our time there. Tourists and local families intermingled and the music was not overpowering so you could actually hear the surf and have a decent conversation. By now you should know that our go to drink is a mojito, so we told the waiter to keep them coming. It was a sunny day, the water was warm, and we didn’t have a care in the world.

Until the vendors and hawkers came. It was just too many and they are pretty annoying. Everything is being pitched too. Massages, cigars, jewelry, and every trinket you can imagine is being slanged out here. It helped that we were patrons of the Playa Surf beach bar but they had their own merchants too!

We ended up buying some cheap magnets and souvenirs for our mantle since we didn’t have any Cartagena stuff yet. Aside from that, Playa Blanca is very nice public beach. If I could do it all over again or on my next visit, I’ll probably opt for a private beach club or check out one of the islands just offshore from Cartagena. It was still a good time though!

San Felipe Castle Fortress

After our fun in the water, the plan was to take a tour of the mighty San Felipe fortress that guarded Cartagena for hundreds of years. As we made our way back to the city it started to rain and got progressively worse the closer we got. We decided to tour it the following day and told the driver to take us to an authentic Cartagena restaurant and man did he come through with his selection.

Cande Cocina

He dropped us off at Cande Cocina and it was the best food we had tasted on the entire trip. You couldn’t tell from the outside but this place is pretty big once you go in. It has a great layout and has live entertainment as well. To me and my wife, it was the food that was phenomenal! Every thing we ordered here was mouth watering. I can’t say enough nice things about this restaurant. If you’re looking for a grade A authentic Cartagena food experience, you have to give this place a try.

Colombia’s Independence Day – July 20th

Because we were gone all day and Cartagena is very very weird about not making a big deal about their independence day, we thought it was a regular day. No huge fireworks display or over the top nationalism, or not much of anything compared to most countries. We found that to be odd for sure. It wasn’t until when leaving Cande Cocina, we had seen a big increase in soldiers in the old town. Turns out they were all heading to a military parade that was going to start in the plaza in front of our hotel!

We took the scenic route back to the Sophia and wandered to some new areas of the old town that we didn’t see the previous day and then made our way to our rooftop bar to chill and check out the parade from above. We ordered some drinks and viewed the event along with other hotel guests. The rain had subsided and there was even a rainbow providing a nice backdrop.

Night rain out

No sooner had the parade ended than it started to rain again. Only this time it would not stop. It literally rained all night so we stayed in and ordered room service for a late dinner. We packed our luggage as well since we had a 1:30 pm flight back to Bogota the following day. Our last night in Cartagena was a washout and we were okay with it. Before saying our last good bye to the city, we had a date with the fortress in the morning.

Day 4 – Fortress tour and Farewell

It’s unfortunate that we had overcast skies to work with this particular morning. The pictures we took do not do this massive fortress justice. It is a well designed military fortification that has seen it’s fair share of war and invasions. Sitting on an elevated hill overlooking the harbor, it is perfectly situated to spot any oncoming ships. Canon and battery stations line the walls and one could imagine how loud it must have been during times of battle.

In addition to the thick high walls and cannons, this fortress also has an elaborate tunnel system where soldiers could move around undetected and out of harms way during a fight. The tunnel system actually reached the walls of the old town and was part of a fully integrated and connected defense apparatus. Those have been flooded out but there are still some tunnels open where tourists are allowed.

This fortress is a must visit site when coming to Cartagena. In addition to the captivating stories of the fortress, you will also have some superb views of the city in every direction. Hopefully you’ll have better weather than we did.

Adios Colombia!

Ending our trip at such an engaging historic spot was fitting in our eyes. We came to this country to learn more about Colombian culture, their people, and their history and we left happy and satisfied knowing we had succeeded in doing that. Despite that, I was longing for more. There was still so much more to see and do. The coffee plantations, the pacific coastline, the amazon rainforest all left to be explored. There will definitely be a Colombia round 2 trip. And if you’ve never visited, I hope that my blog post inspired you to add Colombia to your bucket list!