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South America » Colombia » Cartagena
November 6th 2008

Published: November 22nd 2008

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Cartagena

Miss Colombia contest

After an amazing time in Taganga and Tyrona National Park, we returned to Cartagena to find my backpack stolen and the hostel we stayed in had actually changed ownership in the week we were gone! Still went out that evening to a strip called Arsenal which was full of bars and clubs. It was Halloween so lots of cool costumes and very sexy ladies. We ended up in a club called Qka-Yito Lounge.
The next day the owner of the North Star Hostel took us to the police station to get a report for my backpack. The owners were quite helpful, however by the time we finished at the station and got to the Old Town, we had just missed the 12 finalists for Miss Colombia parading the Old Town - just our luck! We did manage to see them parade though on our last night. Also managed to get my backpack back with just a few clothes and toiletries missing. The previous owner Carlos turned up at the hostel and said he felt responsible and would pay me for the missing items. It hasn't happened yet but you never know!
If our luck couldn't get any worse we ate some

Cartagena

Miss Colombia contest

dodgy street food after a night out in Habana Club which was good, but we had food poisoning for 2 days! It actually rained those 2 days, so it wasn't too bad.
Cartagena was not all bad though. We took a trip to the nearby Rosario Islands of Encantada and Baru and done some snorkling. Boucs done more scuba diving.
Also visited Volcan del Totumo. Legend has it that the volcano once belched fire but the local priest, seeing it as the work of the devil, frequently sprinkled it with holy water. He not only succeeded in extinguishing the fire, but also in turning the insides into mud to drown the devil. So the crater is filled with lukewarm mud with the consistency of cream. So Boucs and I climbed in for a mud bath. The mud apparently consists of minerals acclaimed for their therapeutic properties. After we finished we went into a nearby lagoon to get washed by some old ladies.
On our last day we cought a water taxi to a neibourhood called Bocachica, which was a little run down but nice to visit. We went to the San Fernando Fortress there which was where they filmed 'Romancing

Cartagena

Miss Colombia contest

the Stone' which was pretty cool. We then went back to the mainland to visit San Felipo Castilo which is the biggest fortress in Cartagena. Next stop Bogota!

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