6th July, Cartagena, Colombia

6th July Cartagena, Colombia

We flew from Medellin in Colombia, to Baranquilla in the north yesterday as it is cheaper to fly here if you want to be in the north, in comparison to flying to Cartagena. The flight was only an hour and 20minutes, so I was glad we didnt have to get the long bus trip through the winding roads again!

From Baranquilla, which was a dump and really dirty, we, with alot of difficulty finally managed to get on a bus to Cartagena which was only 2 hours away.

Cartagena was extremely humid!!!!! We drove through the poorer shanty type town on the outskirts, before arriving in Bocagrande (the commercial tourist area). The humidity was 100% and it was 36 degrees!!!!! We were boiling hot!!! Bocagrande is compared to Miami, the palm trees, the tall apartment blocks, the expensive shops, and the sea!!! We had pre-booked with a hostel advertising air-conditioning, but when we arrived, it was clear there wasnt any! It was a packed out dorm, with just 2 fans blowing hot air around! I was sharing with 7 other boys, and the room was so hot! The toilets were awful too, so we decided we'd stay one night and then leave for old-town the next day, where you can get a double room for cheaper than a dorm!

Today we moved to old-town and checked into hostel Marlin, recommended to us by a british girl we'd met in another hostel. We spent the day on the beach, literally just melting! The humidity is pretty bad, and its about 36 degrees most of the day! But its beautiful, long stretches of beaches, lots of places to eat and drink and despite the humidity, the sun is fantastic! Really looking forward to spending the next 3 weeks, on the beaches off the Caribbean!!

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