Besides an awful sunburn that lasted for days, I thoroughly enjoyed my stay in Cartagena, Colombia. From the republican and colonial style architecture of the old town area, to the modern and sleek high rises of the northern shore neighborhood of Bocagrande, this city is extremely beautiful. I guess it’s no wonder why it is always chosen as Colombia’s most romantic city. While walking around the streets, the colors gleam in your face, the architecture brings you back to another time in history, and the music you hear through the local’s windows makes you want to dance. I’ve never really been big on the romance side… but I can see to what they are referring. And, wanting to live out my childhood fantasy of being a pirate since reading “Treasure Island” in 4th grade, I also really appreciate the romanticism that the city holds towards its old pirating days!
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After reading Tim Ferriss’s “The Four Hour Workweek,” I was convinced that I needed to start exploring Medellin, Colombia. Tim raves about it in the book, and I wanted to see what he was talking about. After all, like a lot of people, I had only heard of Medellin, Colombia through the major news headlines. The Medellin cartel is still one of the first things that is brought up when I tell people that I have been there. Hell, I even start off this post by talking about it. But I wanted to do it in order to clear the air. The Medellin that you see on the History Channel is no longer the Medellin of today. I was pleasantly surprised with this city; from the colorful gardens, the beautiful people, the stunning vistas, the thorough transportation system, clean streets, and finally, because it was a city that offered a coffee culture that met my American Starbucks standards!! This was the one major thing that I was missing about my home country. The “Juan Valdez” coffee scene was perfectly timed for my period of withdrawal. After going months in South America without being able to prop up my laptop in a café and down 3-4 large cups of coffee (American style), I was all set. After going straight to the cafe upon arrival, and downing a few cups of amazing, pure Colombian roast, I was shaking, and all jacked-up to start exploring the city.
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