Trip to Cartagena, Colombia, South America

TRIP TO CARTAGENA, COLOMBIA – October 28 – November 3, 2012

Several months ago I was asked to be a keynote speaker for FENALCO, the largest retail association in South America. The conference of 1200 people was to be held in Cartagena, Colombia, and I must admit that after hearing about all the drug problems in Colombia, I was a bit skeptical about safety there. However, it turned out to be one of the best trips I have ever taken, and I LOVED Cartagena! (Interestingly, just before I left, I got my University of Kansa Alumni magazine and found out that Juan Manuel Santos, the new President of Colombia, was a KU graduate. I decided that fact might be of help if I got into any kind of trouble! 😉

October 28

Barbara Sadek, a good friend and former client, accompanied me on the trip. We have traveled in the past to Singapore, Egypt, the Galapagos Islands, and Peru, so we are great, adventurous travel buddies. The travel time was surprisingly short compared to many of my international trips. I flew to Miami and then flew Avianca, the South American airline, about 3 hours to Cartagena. Barb met me there, the client had arranged transportation to our hotel, and we arrived early evening at Las Americas, a lovely hotel right on the beach.

We were impressed with our large room and lovely balcony, the many pools, and the outstanding service as the week went on.

We had a light dinner there that night and then both got one of the best night’s sleep we had had in months!

October 29

The next day we arranged a city tour after a spectacular lunch of ceviche in the hotel. We spent nearly the whole day exploring the charming ancient walled “Old City”. The wall that surrounds the old city of Cartagena is one of the best-preserved fortifications in the world. It is composed of 11 kilometers of walls, 21 bastions (house-like spaces in the wall where we saw many couples of lovers hanging out!), 7 forts, 13 batteries and 3 breakwaters. The Italian engineer, Bautista Antonelli, serving the Spanish crown, started its construction in 1586 to defend the city after the attack of Sir Francis Drake. The project took almost two centuries to be constructed; after numerous storms and pirate attacks, it was finalized in 1796.

The city is divided into four sections: City Center where we spent most of our time, San Diego, La Matuna, and Gethsamani, which we were told is the rather unsavory part of town although interestingly, that is where most of the nightclubs are located. Both movies “Romancing the Stone” and “The Mission” were partly filmed in the old city.

We first stopped at the famous statue of “the shoes.” We were never quite sure of its meaning except that it memorializes a famous poet, Luis Carlos Lopez and his poem, “My Old Shoes,” and has become a symbol of Cartagena. However, everyone LOVES having their picture taken there!

Our next stop was the Convent de la Popa. Built in 1566 on top of the highest hill in the city, it is the oldest church in Cartagena. There is a lovely baroque altar, and image of the Virgin with a crown bordered in gold and emeralds, and an image of Christ carved in wood. Each year for their holiest festival, the Virgin is taken off the altar and carried down the steep, winding, LONG trek into the city by a group of specially chosen men. One of the fascinating things for me, the doll lover, was to see the wardrobe of all the different handmade gowns she has worn over the years. Each year a new gown is created, and they are kept in the museum of the church. In the chapel there are glass frames filled with small gold charms of all kinds of things such as animals, children, objects and parts of the body. These were given by individuals to the church when their prayers were answered.

The other thing that intrigued us about this church was the steep cliff at the back of the convent called “Salto del Cabron” or “Jump of the Goat.” The legend goes that when the Catholic Bishop first came to Cartagena, the Indians were worshipping a golden goat. In anger, he took the goat and threw it off the cliff where it exploded and burned the whole side of the mountain. What a creative way to gain converts! 😉 Anyway, this spot has now become a favorite spot for anyone wanting to commit suicide, thus the name, “Jump of the Goat!”

We thoroughly enjoyed the view of the city from this spot. We could see Boca Grande, a peninsula with a large bay which was covered with very modern tall buildings. This is the commercial center of Cartagena. We did not spend much time here, although on the way home, we stopped to take a picture of Hotel Caribe where Obama’s Secret Service agents got into so much trouble! 😉 Barb and I even had lunch there on Thursday just as a bit of fun.

Then we toured the Castillo de San Felipe de Barajas, the largest Spanish military fortification in the New World. It was constructed in 1536 on San Lazaro Hill, from where it dominated any attempt to invade the city by water or by land. The fortress is an imposing structure full of rooms, labyrinths, tunnels, reverberating noise, different levels, and some very strategic traps.

We were amazed at the “creativity” employed in building this fort. Little (and big) boys today, especially, would be intrigued with the strategies involved to defeat the enemy that many years ago. The fort was impregnable and was never taken. Reminded me somewhat of some of today’s video games!

Outside the fort was an interesting statue of Don Blas de Lezo, the commander of the fort in its most important battle and one of their national heroes. He is known as the “half man” because he had lost one eye, one leg and one arm! Interestingly, when Edward Vernon, who had 3000 ships while Don Blas had only 6, failed to take the city for England, he returned to the king and lied and said he had conquered it. The king had a coin designed with Vernon as the reining conqueror and de Lezo on his knees before him. It is memorialized on the statue. Our guide also told us that Edward Vernon had a connection with Lawrence Washington, George Washington’s older half brother. Supposedly, he renamed his estate “Mount Vernon” to honor his former commanding officer, Edward Vernon.

We were intrigued with all the beautiful plazas and churches throughout the old city. We first stopped at the most famous Plaza de Santo Domingo. Built by Dominican priests in the XVI century, it is today one of the most frequented areas of the city due to its picturesque restaurants and nightlife. Gerturdis, the sculpture donated by Maestro Fernando Botero in 2006, is the focal point. It seems that everyone loves to have their picture taken with the “fat woman”—perhaps because she makes all of us feel thin in comparison! 😉 The legend is that you must touch her and make a wish and then your wish will come true. Both Barb and I did this, so we shall see…….;-)

We then went to the beautiful Bolivar Plaza. It contains a lovely fountain and a statue erected in 1896 as a tribute to Simon Bolivar, the Liberator of South America. It shows Bolivar mounted in triumph on his horse, Palomo, placed on a pedestal of Finnish granite, one face of which has the following text, “If Caracas gave me life, you gave me glory, save Cartagena the redeemer.” Colombia gained its freedom from Spain in 1811.

On our tour of the old city, we saw the Santa Clara Hotel which is now a Sofitel and was built within the walls of a convent. We also saw the home of Gabriel Garcia Marquez, the world famous author from Cartagena. We were touched by a lovely statue of San Pedro Claver, who was called the “slave of the slaves” because he had such a heart to help all the Indians who were bound to slavery. He became the first person canonized in the New World in 1888. We also saw the house of Sir Francis Drake, an evil man who stole all the gold that was buried with the Indians.

Later in the afternoon, our guide, Ronald, dropped us off for an hour at Las Bovedas or “the Vaults.” This formerly was a military, anti-bomb structure barracks for military equipment, supplies and refuge for troops, a final stronghold for the city. With 24 bastions (small rooms) and 47 gates (oval openings) restored between 1969-1972, today it is a site for artisan sales and souvenirs. Of course, Barb and I had a WONDERFUL time here and even came back for part of the day on Thursday. I bought a small emerald ring and earrings as a Christmas present for myself, and we found many other treasures for friends and family both days. (We have a tradition of putting everything we buy on the beds the last night and taking a picture. You can see that we helped the economy of Colombia! 😉

After a great deal of walking down small, narrow lovely streets filled with flowers and balconies, our guide drove us through Bocagrande and back to the hotel. That evening we had dinner at El Santissimo in the old city. Although it was recommended, we enjoyed the fish but were very disappointed in the appetizers and the service. It was the only meal that was not fantastic on the trip; however, we did enjoy the “all you could drink” aspect of the menu! 😉 In all the restaurants, we both enjoyed the fresh seafood and the Colombian beer the most!

The most disillusioning thing about this tour, however, was that we both really liked Ronald, our tour guide. On our way back to the hotel, we asked him what other tours he did. He told us he would take us to the volcano on Friday for the “special” price of $110 each. We were excited until we got back to the hotel, talked to the concierge, and found out that we could take the very same tour for $30. We were really disappointed in this man whom we had trusted!

October 30

We slept in, had a wonderful breakfast at the hotel, and went back into the Old City for the afternoon. We first went into the Palace of the Inquisition. Located in front of Bolivar Park, this is where the Holy Office of the Inquisition took place. Here sentences were pronounced against the crimes of heresy, blasphemy, bigamy, witchcraft, and adultery among others.

Of course we had to try out the finger crusher and the gallows! It was quite an eery place, and unfortunately, no one spoke English so we were not able to get a full tour.

It was a hot day, so we decided to stop at Hotel Sofitel Santa Clara for a great Colombian beer. This old hotel used to be a church, so it was fascinating to walk around in it. We did NOT stop at the confessional, though! We spent the afternoon shopping and found a couple of lovely stores with handmade items that we purchased for gifts.

Later we had a light lunch in town – loved the ceviche wherever we went!
That evening we had a wonderful seafood stew at La Vitrola which we thoroughly enjoyed.

October 31

This day was the beginning of the three day retailers conference called “Gondola.” I was the closing keynote speaker for the 1200 attendee on the first day, the only woman on the three day agenda.

The National Retail Federation of Colombia (FENALCO) is a private organization which protects and promotes free enterprise development has existed since 1945. They have more than 18,000 companies as members which represents nearly 50,000 stores throughout 32 cities in the country, and they also unite 60,000 small corner grocery stores without a monthly fee which is a part of their social work. I was especially tickled that the little boy on all the conference materials and signs looks exactly like my grandson, Owen!

We often hear about the time issue in Latin cultures, and that certainly proved true this day. My presentation began almost an hour late; however, it was received warmly even with most of the audience using the interpreter (I got spontaneous applause three times during the talk which rarely happens in an American audience).

The conference planner had heard the story of “Johnny the Bagger®” on the internet, so I was asked to speak on “The Simple Truths of Service Inspired by Johnny the Bagger®.” Most of the other presentations were quite technical, so I think that since I speak both to the head and to the heart and since they are such warm, caring, passionate people, they were particularly touched by my message. I was thrilled with all the handshakes, hugs and affirmation I received. I hope this means I will get even more business in South America!

While I was checking equipment that morning, Barb explored the beach and spent some time at the pool. She commented that it certainly was not like MY beach on Siesta Key – the sand was almost like mud. It was, however, a beautiful sight with the Caribbean Sea surrounding it.

We met Dianna, my contact person, that evening in the cocktail lounge of the hotel for a lovely crème and lemon drink that I am sure had about 1000 calories! We were still getting used to the exchange rate with pesos, about 1.7 to the American dollar. We did feel that prices were fairly reasonable throughout the city. That night we had dinner in the hotel.

November 1, 2012

Again, we loved sleeping in. Our breakfast was included in the hotel price, so we took our time and finally left the hotel in the early afternoon. We took a taxi back to the artisan shops and had fun browsing and buying souvenirs for the family. We laughed that they even had Homer Simpson t-shirts with Spanish sayings in Colombia!

Because it was hot, we stopped for Colombian beers on one of the little side streets and then later we took a taxi to the infamous Hotel Caribe for lunch– just to see what it was like. We were the only ones in the restaurant! We spent most of the rest of the afternoon trying to find a shop we had discovered earlier. When we FINALLY found it after miles of walking through all kinds of curved sidestreets, it was closed!

We had dinner that night at our favorite restaurant of all, Cande’. It featured “100% Cartagenan food” and even included some native dancers. One of the side dishes we most enjoyed was created with eggplant and plantain although the white yams they served were pretty tasteless. The fresh fish was delicious.

Afterwards we came back to the hotel and took a cab to a nightclub called Mister Babilla.

The convention was having a party there, and it was the most fun night we had all week! They had music, long narrow balloons for everyone, free rum and beer, and whistles. EVERYBODY danced the Merengue for the entire night, including US! What I loved about this culture is that it is so inclusive – no one had to have a partner. You simply danced in the aisles or wherever you could find a space. The next day, though, I had to admit that my knees hurt…..;-)

November 2, 2012

Today was our day for adventure! (I only have two or three friends who would ever do anything this crazy with me, so I was glad I had Barb along to share it! 😉

We took a VERY rickety shuttle bus (in fact, it had a flat tire about 10 minutes from our destination, so we had to get another bus!) with several other people about an hour out of Cartagena into the city to the Volcan de Lodo El Totumo. The countryside was beautiful, very green and covered with fruit trees and small shacks selling produce. However, the poverty was sickening. The only saving thought we could dwell on was that food was plentiful.

There are only three volcanos like this in the world – one in Kenya, one in Russia and this one. It is 15 meters deep and filled with lukewarm mud the consistency of thick cream. The legend says that the volcano used to be filled with fire, but the priest, feeling that this was the work of the Devil, sprinkled it with holy water which extinguished the fire, turning the insides to mud to drown the Devil.

After we arrived, we climbed about 100 steps on a rickety and uneven staircase in our bathing suits to get into the volcano. At the time we were there, there were about 10 other people in the volcano. Almost everyone completely dipped themselves into the mud, hair, face and all. I was not going to do that but later decided, “Why not” I am here for probably the only time in my lifetime, so I am going to go “all the way!” Natives from the area also were in the mud and they proceeded to massage each of us as we floated in the mud. What was amazing is that the volcano is deep, but somehow you floated so did not have to worry about sinking into the bottom. We each gave our cameras to another native, and he took pictures of everyone as they “bathed!”

After about 20 – 30 minutes, we climbed out of the volcano, carefully walking down the steep, slippery steps to the bottom. Then we were led to what they called a lagoon, but what we would have called a swamp. I was not thrilled to get in, but we had to get the mud washed off. More natives met us there, made us take off our bathing suits (under the water, of course) and then poured the swamp water over our heads to clean us off. Afterwards, they took us back to a shack and gave us a Colombian beer and a piece of watermelon. It was quite an adventure! Each person who helped us expected a $3 tip. (I could only speculate on the men who did the massages in the volcano when the darling young girls came in in their bikinis. What a desirable job!!!! 😉

Afterwards we got back in the bus and traveled to a really poor village with garbage all around and shacks everywhere.

A tent had been set up on the beach called “Donna’s” and that was where we were supposed to have lunch. Barb and I were really skeptical about eating here, but we were served whole fresh fish that had just been caught (delicious!), rice and another beer, so we felt we would probably be OK to eat it. We met some lovely people here and especially a seven year old boy with whom we exchanged English words for Spanish ones.

When we finally got back to the hotel and changed, we decided to try the beef of Colombia so went to a restaurant called Quebracho. Unfortunately, the beef was a disappointment – not nearly the quality I have had in Argentina, but we had fun anyway.

November 3

We had to leave the hotel at 6:30 am for a 10:30 flight. Again, we found that things were not nearly so efficient as they are in the US. In fact, Barb could not find anyone who spoke English to help her, so we were grateful that another conference speaker who was bilingual reached out and helped her find her flight. We both headed different directions, but we each felt that this was one of our best trips ever. I would highly recommend Los Americas and Cartagena if you are looking for a wonderful and interesting vacation!