Dear all,

After our short stay in Bogotà, we took the first and only inland flight to Santa Marta: Finally the Carribean!

Santa Marta was a quick stop for us, since we wanted to see many places in the region. The most important reason to be there however, was to see my friend Cindy. I had met her during my internship in Brazil 5 years ago and had stayed in contact with her ever since. This would be the first reunion since then.

We arrived very late at night and after a short night, she picked me up for breakfast before her work day. As local, Cindy knows of course the best corners of the city and she brought me to a street stand in the market area of Santa Marta. We had a very typical colombian breakfast, which is Arepa filled with egg and ice cold orange juice.

After catching up on all what we had missed, she decided to join us for the weekend to Minca (our upcoming destination, check the next post). I bought another Arepa and juice for Sergio and we walked back to the hostel. While Cindy went to work, we checked out the touristic center of Santa Marta. At and around the cathedral square we found some travel agencies where we were able to book our tour to the Ciudad Perdida. Walking further we reached the Parque de los Novios, with many restaurant surrounding it. The houses were colourful colonial buildings.

Walking a bit out of that area we found the busy Carrera 5, a street lined with shops, stands, even outdoor “nail salons”. Just after lunch we met Cindy again and walked to where a bus would take us to Minca.

It’s a short post but still a part of the journey.