A Close Shave

---

Moments earlier he had been holding a cut-throat razor to my neck. How could I not give him the money? There was an unspoken agreement - if he left me intact, I would hand over whatever he wanted. But this was (almost literally) daylight robbery! I mean, 15.000 COP for a haircut and a wet shave? I don't pay much more than that in Lewisham!
Still, it was a very good shave and he seemed like a nice guy - so he got the money.

It was a weird last couple of days in Cartagena. Each morning I awoke hoping to be able to make the trip to Las Islas del Rosario (I think they're called) where apparently, the best beaches lie. But each morning was overcast and muggy. By the time the cloud cleared, it was too late to make the trip, so I never made it.
In fact my whole time in Cartagena was pretty lazy. It's not a bad way to be when the weather is so hot. Maybe I'm feeling a bit touristed out.

Tuesday lunchtime, I was stopped by a guy in the street called Carlos who worked as a guide in the town. He pointed me in the direction of a good restaurant (Forgong Costeno). While we were there he proudly showed me the list of recommendations that he has, scribbled on the back of business cards. His referrals were thoroughly enthusiastic and, on reading them, my initial skepticism about the guy disappeared. It seems that this is a genuinely nice chap who's really interested in showing people around his city.

We laid out all of his references on the table and I took a photo of them and promised that I'd post his details on the blog. So if you're in Cartagena and you want a guide who speaks English and really knows his way around the town, give him a call:

Carlos: [phone]

As we waited for lunch to arrive, Carlos' friend entered the restaurant. Her name is Monica and she works in a nearby restaurant called Oh! La La. I'd read about this place in my guide books and was keen to see what the place was like. So after lunch we wandered a block along the road and she showed me inside. It's a really really elegant restaurant. Later that evening I went back for dinner and the food was just DELICIOUS! I had the steak (of course!), a perfect creme brulee and a pretty darned groovy glass of red wine called Septima.

Details:

Oh! La La
Centro Historico
Calle de Ayos
Cr 5 #4-49

Basically, it's on the road that runs at the back of the cathedral.

Before eating, I stopped off at a bar for a quick drink / chat with Miguel who works in a bar who's name I forgot to write down. I'd had a drink here on my first day in Cartagena and I thought that it would be rude to leave the city and not pop in to say goodbye. Talking with Miguel was great - he's full of ambition and eagerness to see the world and better himself. His English is perfect. And he clearly loves his city. Again, he's looking to do some extra work as a tour guide. So, again, I promised that I'd put his details up:

Miguel: [phone] or [phone]

So that's about it for Cartagena. Yesterday I took a bus back up a bit to Barranquilla...which will be the next post.

Again, sorry that these posts are getting a little short, less informative and more infrequent. The truth is that I seem to be doing so much that it's difficult to find the time to write it all down....I'll try harder next time 😊

Hasta luego!

---

Photos

Cartagena Cathedral By Night #1
The best view in Cartagena.

Carlos
What a charming chappy.

Miguel
Another charming chap - with impeccable English language skills.

Oh! La La
Haw he haw he haw

Oh! La La
Show me the way to go hooome.

The staff at Oh! La La
Carlos (not staff), Monica + another whose name I don't know.

Oh! La La
Inside