Cartagena, Colombia

 We had two sea days before we reached Cartagena, but I'll do a separate post with some photos shot on the various sea days throughout the entire cruise at a later date. 

We sailed into port early in the morning, around 7 a.m. I had booked an excursion for the day, with a scheduled time to leave the ship of 9 a.m. Since I was out of bed shortly after 6:15, I had plenty of time to drop off a couple of books at the library (I'd brought them from home and had planned to leave them in the sharing library), have a good breakfast, and take a few photos early in the day.

I'm not certain what I expected, but this was not it. It's clear that Cartagena is a very modern city - though I visited the old city area. I guess I need to up my research when I'm visiting new locales.

I was intriqued by these buildings - one very modern and the other, either under construction or about to be demolished. Who knows?

Early in the morning, the port was busy with vessels of various sizes buzzing about.

I headed down early to the Provence dining room, arriving at 8:10 a.m. While I waited I chatted with various other passengers. We were heading to the gangway by 9 a.m. Our medallions were scanned as we walked off the ship, and would be scanned again as we came on board - one of the ways the ship keeps track of the passengers. Our group boarded a tour bus for a drive into the old city of Getsemani - referred to by the cruise line as Gethsamane.

Our guide gave us some general information about Getsemani, and the history of Columbia. She indicated we'd be visiting three neighbourhoods; lower, middle, and upper class. To be honest, I only noticed the difference in the lower class areas - the streets were more narrow, the buildings were smaller, but no matter where we were the buildings were well kept, and often very colorful.

When we left the bus we were standing in a narrow city street with all the flags above us. I asked the guide what they were for, and she mentioned the World Cup. I do know from my research Colombia has not hosted the World Cup, so I'm not certain the purpose.

We made our way through the narrow streets where many of the buildings had murals painted on them. This was one i really liked. We had to share the streets with the vehicles, and though there were no signs, the drivers seemed to know the direction of the one-way streets. When relegated to the even narrower sidewalks, those in front would yell "big hole" to warn those behind who might be looking up rather than down. It worked, as no one fell during our walk.

We stopped briefly at the Iglesia de la Trinidad - Church of the Holy Trinity,  with a swarm of other tourists. There was a service in the church so we did not enter.

Another art installation on a side street. I recall seeing something similar in San Juan, Puerto Rico in 2019.

I had to check a translation for this building. The sign Las Tablitas translates to the little boards in Spanish. I have to think it refers to the building materials. It appears to be a tavern.

We turned right at this corner and made our way to a local restaurant situated on the top floor of a hotel. We had been walking for about 15-20 minutes at this point, and the temperature was near 100F (38C). Here we were given a chance to sit for a few minutes, and have a cold drink that contained coconut milk, sugar, water, and lemon. It sounds a bit odd, but I can assure you it was delicious and refreshing. 

From this vantage point we could see the bridge we'd driven over to reach the old city.

Beyond the restaurant was a small pool with loungers for the hotel desks. There was a family using the pool while we were there so I was careful not to include them in my photo.

In the background of the photo is the Castle San Felipe de Barajas. The castle is a fortress built by the Spaniards to repel invaders. Construction began in 1536, repairs and expansions continued over the next 200 years. We did not visit the fort, but I definitely would do so, should I ever have a chance to return to the city.

It certainly looks imposing, doesn't it?

Back on the bus we made our way to a building that once was a nunnery, but is now a theatre. I don't have a lot of pictures as my major concern was locating the nearest bano (bathroom). 

During the stop, the guide spent about 20 minutes providing the history of the building and this man. I certainly didn't recall the details, so pulled the information below from various websites.

In the center courtyard was this bust of Gabriel Garcia Marquez, author of "100 Years of Solitude". Born in Aracataca, Colombia in 1927, he was exiled from the country in 1954, when he broke a news story about a sailor who survived the shipwreck of a Columbian Navy destroyer. Although the wreck had been attributed to a storm, the sailor reported that badly stowed illegal contraband from the US came loose and knocked eight of the crew overboard. 

Garcia Marquez died in Mexico City, in 2014. Our guide explained that half of his cremains are interred here and the other half in Mexico. He is considered a hero among the Colombian people. 

After the history lessons, here's a photo I took just because I thought it was pretty. 

I believe this was a monastery, but didn't take down any notes, and my search for information turned up other images but no details. In any event, the stained glass windows were simply gorgeous.

This sweet lady saw us walking down her street, and came to the railing to applaud us. I assume that's her caregiver beside her. We all applauded her as well.

In this area, almost all of the upper stories of the buildings had lovely balconies. This was one of my favorites with all the flowers.

Ventena de la Denuncia - Window of denunciation

Situated in the Palace of the Inquisition, this small window was a place where individuals would accuse their neighbours of being a witch during thr period of Inquisition. Once an accused had racked up three accusations they could be prosecuted. This generally meant torture with various devices, though if one was wealthy enough, they could pay off the church to be acquitted. Approximately 800 people (mostly women) were executed as witches during this period. Our guide explained that the property of those who died, was ceded to the church. She suggested that the inquisition was a money-maker for the Catholic Church as one either paid for their freedom or it was taken from them in death.

At the end of our second 15-20 minute walk was the Iglesia de San Pedro Claver.

The church was built between 1580 and 1624 and has been renamed a few times. The church is currently named for Saint Pedro Claver, who died in 1654, after spending much of his life ministering among the black slaves. The story our guide told us was quite different from the information I found on Wikipedia but I don't recall the details so won't try to share her comments. Let's just say her comments were not as favorable. We didn't enter the building this time because there was a baptism ceremony. 

Across the square from the church were several metal sculptures. I thought this one was most interesting.

The bus picked us up here and we were delivered to the shopping area. It was obvious the tour company had an agreement with the vendors of store #3 and we were shepherded into the store where souvenirs, jewellery and local products were available. I picked up a package of Columbian coffee for my son and then ventured outdoors to get some fresh air. I soon hurried back indoors as the vendors outside the store were more ferocious than those I've encountered in other countries. We had been warned not to look at the goods they carried, not to make eye contact, and to be wary of a vendor attempting to put something in our hands.

The bus pulled up and I headed to the air-conditioned comfort of the coach. Back at the port, we walked through the aviary where a number of colorful birds were on view. It was still very hot, and I didn't stay long. Looking back, I wish I had taken my time but I did get a few photos. One I've shared with you previously was the parrot. 

I was most excited to see the albino peacock pictured below. My first photo was of his butt - thankfully he turned and faced me. 

I was back on board by 1:30 p.m. and headed to the Grille on Deck 15 for a burger and fries. Then it was off to the stateroom to chill (literally and figuratively) for the rest of the afternoon. There was NFL football to watch while I relaxed.

Later, I went to the singles and solos get-together and then to dinner at the buffet with one of the group. C is from Ottawa, and we had lots of interests in common. After dinner, she headed off to the early show in the theatre while I went back to my stateroom to watch more football and do some reading. I knew I wanted to be up early the next day.

Between my rest and meeting with the solo/singles I did get up on the deck to get a photo of the city as we sailed away. 

Next - Panama Canal

San Juan, Puerto Rico - January 9

We had a late arrival in our first port, San Juan, Puerto Rico, arriving around 3:30 in the afternoon with a scheduled departure at 11:30 that evening.  

I was up on Deck 15 to take photos as we sailed into the port.  Though I caught several photos of the birds, I wasn't quick enough to catch a shot of the porpoises who swam aside the ship.  Another passenger told me this is sign of good luck.

As the ship approached to entrance to the port, the Fortress El Morro (Castillo San Felipe del Morro) came into view.

The fortress was constructed in 1539, and as one would expect, it was built to protect San Juan from invaders.  For many years, the Spaniards maintained their occupation, but in 1898 the United States Army bombarded the fortress during the Spanish-American war.  

As we came around the point, it became evident we weren't the only ship in harbour.  In fact, there were five others.  Pictured here are a Viking ship (the first and smallest), a Holland American (two stacks) and two Carnival ships (fish tails).  Across the way was another Royal Caribbean ship.  Accordingly the docks and the nearby restaurants and stores were busy!

I had booked a walking tour of Old San Juan through the ship, and I was not disappointed.  First, however, we met our guide, Steve at the dock, and were transferred by bus to the grounds of El Morro.  Is there not something ironic in that?

 Outside the gates, was this monument to the Dutch invasion of 1625.  While the fortress was not damaged the city of San Juan was destroyed.

We were fortunate, as the fortress was open despite the U.S. government shut down.  The workers there were friendly and helpful throughout our visit.

After entering the gates to the fortress, we climbed up to the upper level.  

The garitas, or sentry boxes are located on the outer walls of the fortress.  We either didn't have the time, or our guide didn't have the inclination to allow us time to visit one or more of these.

According to Steve, the fortress took more than an century to complete, and was originally built from salvage materials...or as he called it, garbage.



El Morro's outer walls, which were originally constructed 6 feet (1.8 m) thick, had been augmented to 18 feet (5.5 m) thickness by the end of the 18th century. - Wikipedia

The original walls were built of limestone by young men who were brought in to complete the work.  Generally these were prisoners of war, or convicts.
They were forced to live there for 20 years, before they might gain their freedom.

The view from the upper level were spectacular.  In the foreground is the cemetery, and beyond that is a shantytown, and beyond that (not in the photo) is the modern city with its high-rise buildings.  I should note, that much of the repairs from Hurricane Maria have been made, however there were many buildings in the shantytown that were still in disrepair.  

 After our history lesson, we left the fortress and walked up and out of the park area to the old city.  The narrow cobblestone streets are built with blue brick.  To achieve the colour, the bricks are covered in slag (ash) and re-fired.  Steve took us down two of the remaining streets that have stairs.  

It was here that we saw numerous cats.  The old city area residents offer a TNR program, but unfortunately as residents of the rest of the city heard about it, they've dropped unwanted cats.  I would have brought them all home with me if I could.

These buildings faced the harbour.  I can only imagine the view they would have from the balconies.  As we turned the corner, we came upon the San Juan Batista Cathedral.

Steve advised us that groups were not welcome (true or not I don't know) but we could climb the stairs to photograph the interior.

Towards the end of our tour, we came to an old chapel. The story Steve told us was that horse racing took place on this street, with the horse and rider racing up the street from the harbour towards the fortress.  However, one young man decided to race the other direction, with disastrous results.  As they reached this point, the horse and rider plunged over the hill; the horse died of his injuries, while the young man survived.  To celebrate the miracle of his survival his parents had the chapel built.  Sadly it has fallen into disrepair.

And so ended the tour.  Most of the group headed off to shop or to visit the restaurants and bars.  I did not, as it was beginning to get dark, and as solo traveller I didn't feel comfortable wandering on my own.  Steve graciously offered to walk me back to the ship.

On board, I had my dinner at the WJ on the aft deck.  Why anyone would want to sit indoors to eat, is beyond me.  Then it was off to my balcony to watch the water traffic.  The well-lit building is the ferry dock, and below, is the Viking ship leaving port.  I was asleep by 10 p.m. - didn't even notice when we sailed out!

Next post - St. Maarten