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6 August 2022
With a bus to Santa Marta at 0930 departing from a station 45 mins away, we took breakfast at the earliest possible time of 0730. Being the first there, we were served immediately and were out within 25 mins. The first taxi driver we found offered a good honest price of COP30K. Traffic was bad […]
5 August 2022
Largest fortress in Latin America I must have needed a lot of sleep to help me get over the light symptoms of whatever I’ve got. Despite having slept early, we didn’t get up till around 0800. After breakfast, we left around 1000 for a short walk across the water to Castillo de San Felipe de […]
4 August 2022
Walking tour of old city The power went off at breakfast this morning. The receptionist later showed me a notice saying that there would be no power till the evening and that water supply would also be interrupted for the upper levels also due to no power to the water pump. Well, luckily for us, […]
3 August 2022
Our priority after breakfast was to get our laundry done. That was quite easy, being just around the corner. The next priority was to top-up our cash to take us till our last couple of days in Colombia. We found the Scotiabank (again) which dispensed a maximum of COP900K without a local fee. Near there […]
2 August 2022
Above: The Bocagrande peninsula as seen from the air is very low-lying. Flying to the Caribbean coast I woke at 0230 probably having had too much sleep in the last couple of days. I managed to doze from 0500 to 0600 before the alarm at 0630. Surprisingly, I managed another cold wash before summoning an […]
1 August 2022
Above: Bucaramanga’s main square. Having been spoilt with travel by private car two days ago, we decided to repeat the experience from Barichara to Bucaramanga, where we stay only one short night before a morning flight. It’s a nightstop of necessity. Public transport would require one change, taking 40 mins plus waiting time plus at […]
31 July 2022
For breakfast, I had opted for the Tamal filled with meat, chicken and chickpeas. It was nice, like a Chinese bakchang but with a corn mash instead of glutinous rice. The Santander-style arepa was very dry unlike the greasier version back at Villa de Leyva. Seated by the gardens with chirping birds, including some bright […]
30 July 2022
Moving to Barichara As public transport from Villa de Leyva to Barichara involved two changes, totalling maybe 7h, we booked a car and driver that would take us. With a pick-up time of 0930, we managed to get a walkaround of the traditional markets before departing. Text continues after this gallery. The route […]
29 July 2022
Today was a day of relaxation in my case, and for Kim it was for recovery and recuperation. Even though I wasn’t unwell in Bogota, I feel discernably better. It could be knowing that Kim was better. Or maybe I was slightly affected by the higher altitude. We took walks around the old town. For […]
28 July 2022
Leaving Bogota After a highly interrupted night’s sleep (without the aid of any medication) for both of us, I woke around 0600, well before our alarms. We took care to unlock the various layers of security at our accommodation and checking our room was empty before locking our key inside. We summoned a taxi by […]