Well, I’m back in the states now! My recent trip to Colombia was so much fun and I am so wishing it was warmer here in Ohio. This past week a couple of friends and I decided to travel to Colombia. We loved Colombia and the time we spent there was amazing!
Colombia has such a rich culture with delicious food and inviting people. We spent 5 days in the Historical section of the city of Cartagena. Cartagena, Colombia is referred to as the Queen of the Caribbean. As a major port in the 14th and 15th century, it was owned by the Spanish and was extremely wealthy. Today, it is recognized as a Global Historical Site and is maintained in its original form complete with a stone wall, terra cotta roofs and beautiful flowering balconies.
Every corner of this city was so beautiful! I was completely blown away snapping thousands of photos of every colorful building and quaint street corner. If you are looking for a great place to visit in the Caribbean or Latin America you should definitely consider Colombia.
I know what you’re thinking- Isn’t Colombia really dangerous? Haven’t you seen Narcos? The answer: Everywhere has dangerous parts and NO I have not seen Narcos, but now that I’m back I feel like I should.
Colombia is no longer home (for the most part) to the large drug cartels and gorilla warfare of decades past. In fact, Colombia is one of the fastest growing economies in Latin America and has cut down with drug cartels by 60% in the last decade. I loved it! and found the city of Cartagena to feel very safe. Like always, traveling in a new place its always important to stay safe and be smart.
The City
The Beaches
We spent the week mostly in Cartagena, but one day we took a boat trip to a small island off the coast. There are lots of affordable day trips to many of the islands in the Caribbean and its well worth the low price to spend a day on beautiful beaches. If you don’t take a trip to one of the islands, spend time on the local beaches right in the local area that are only a taxi drive or Uber away. There you can get a cabana, reclining lounge chairs, and people to bring you drinks and food for under $30.00. The beaches are loud and lots of people on certain days, but they are a fun atmosphere. The only con is people trying to sell you stuff, but its part of the international experience. Be polite as possible, but you have to be firm and say no if it’s not something you want.
The Food
All I can say is so YUMMY! So much good seafood, strong drinks, and delicious fruit! It was so fun to try new foods and we ate like kings in Cartagena. Here is a list of some of the places we went a loved:
La Cevicheria Cartagena – Yummy Yummy food. Colombia is known for the Ceviche which is raw fish dishes which are super yummy. We had shrimp ceviche and seafood paella. A great restaurant once visited by Anthony Bourdain and on Vogue’s top 7 places to eat in Cartagena. There is typically a long wait time here, but put your name in, walk around and grab a drink.
La Perla- Another on the list from Vogue. It was very delicious as well and blown away by how lovely it was inside. Small but beautifully decorate, we ordered a bottle of wine from Chile and I enjoyed delicious fish of the day on a bed of lentils, fresh basil and cherry tomatoes. Best meal I ate while there.
Patanegra- Off the main streets, we found a yummy place with great delicious green mango lemonade. On a really hot day I will continue to think about that lemonade. We also loved our food there, it has a lovely atmosphere and great service.
There a lots of other great restaurants to try and most have menus in English if you’re afraid you’ll order something scary if only in Spanish.
Overall, the city of Cartagena is definitely one place to put on your list to visit! We had such a wonderful time and it made the perfect girl trip.
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