Internacional Barahona Cartagena

... into. The strangest thing was you were actually 2500m above solid ground, but you couldn't sink. Literally any position you get yourself into you will float, you can even sit crossed legged. It was very relaxing, you got a massage as well if you wanted it. At the end you had to go down to the edge of a lake where a group of old ladies basically strip you down and wash all the mud off. As Jemma found out they tend to do it without warning which makes you jump straight into ...

... it wouldn't work but she was having none of it. As soon as I sat down she tried to give me a foot massage, persistant as anything. We all got very tired very quickly of saying 'no gracias'. They eventually left us alone but not before the two boys had bought some cigars, a watch and had toyed with the idea of hats.

The beach wasn't much to write home about but it had the sea and it was so hot outside that even ...

... each). You could refuse all these services but I was feeling generous today, these locals need make a living and to feed their families I guess.

On the way back to Cartagena we stopped off at the designated lunch restaurant. It was a beach location, a bit dirty with grey sand. Our collectivo passengers were the only visitors to the area. We spent an hour splashing in the waves. We had decided to opt out of lunch, we had learnt our lesson about what ...

I´ve been in Cartagena on the carribean coast for a few days taking some spanish classes and making the most of the beautiful old town.

Although the surrounding area is extremely popular with rich Colombians and tourstis, I´ve kept to the colonial part of the city where it´s a little touristy but where you can while away the hours just wandering the streets admiring the architecture ...

... in mud we chilled out with dried mud covering us and a beer in hand, we must have been quite a sight. Following the beer we washed off at the nearby lake, again by the (not so free) locals. Beware of the female washers, you'll find yourself in a moments time stranded without your swimwear (only for a moments time). A superb experience, lucky we were warned ahead of time about the scoundaling locals.

... no vegetables were thrown or harmed in the making of this song.


On the way back home at 2AM we have our first experience of street crime on our trip. One of the girls we have come out with, Sabrina, is waiting on the corner while others are buying water and cigarettes from a corner store. In a flash, a guy waiting 5 metres away grabs her handbag, pulls her down to the ground and makes off in a getaway taxi with the doors open. It's all over in a matter of 3 seconds, so ...

... wall surrounding the whole neighborhood. We spent 3 lazy days here, enjoying the International Film Festival, strolling the old town, waiting out the rain, and organizing our next step - a 5 day sail off the continent to Panama. The open seas await! To view all photos in this entry please choose ¨view all photos¨ above or click on any photo to move to the album.

... recover from the heat, made some coconut rice (we are culinary goddesses) and drank a few beers. ¡FELIZ CUMPLEAÑOS A HEATHER! We basically spent the day having nice treats and drinks...and an amazing birthday nap! And more street wandering...Cartagena seems to be the only place where you can quite happily spend 4 days just wandering around the streets. We went back to the square to watch the dancers then went to our favourite ...

Day 6 - At Sea We've already had to put our clocks back an hour twice on this cruise. Now we're heading east to Columbia and have to put our clocks forward an hour. I'm OK as long as I don't miss my 10:30 spa appointment. They have some really good packages there. I signed up for a relaxation package that includes 1 Hot Stone, 1 Seaweed and 1 Deep Tissue massage that saves $125 on the cost if I had booked them all separately. I'm doing the Seaweed aromatherapy massage today, the ...

... Inside the mud-crater are a few guys that push you and pull you between places, because it's near impossible to move and give you mud-massage. To be perfectly honest, those guys didn't really look (or feel) like the massage giving type - it was more of a mud-rub for a couple of minutes - and photos taken of the process by other men working at the top of the volcano, outside of the crater. It was all pretty weird, but I wouldn't have missed it for the world ...