Taganga - Columbia

So now we are really on holidays! After months of hiking up mountains, down canyons, day long bike rides, and moving places every 2-3 days, we have arrived at the beach town of Taganga, where the hardest decisions we face are what unknown fruits we will combine in our juices. The sun beams down everyday, the water is torquise and the alcohol is flowing. Further to the several juices everyday, we have been enjoying small cups of tinto (sweetened black coffee) in the afternoons served directly to you on the beach, plus many cold showers (there is only one tap in the shower anyway, and is more just like a pipe sticking out of the wall than a shower head - this is the norm in northern columbia, and also unfortunately in other parts of Sth America where it is not so sweltering hot and not so well received). We have also been lazying about on a yellow lilo, floating about in the water and getting a nice tan too. Oh and of course, eating the freshest of fish straight from the ocean, and its delicious.

Today we stepped out of this lazy lifestyle that we are getting rather used to, and went snorkelling and scuba diving. Neither Jeb or i have dived before so we did what they call a mini course which consists of 2 dives at a maximum depth of 12m. Once we became adjusted to the apparatus and the concept of breathing underwater, we had a fantastic time checking out the stunning coral reefs, superbly coloured fish, octopus, and marine life. It astounding to think that so much of this planet is underwater and unexplored. It really is an amzing world of its own down there.

Tommorrow we are heading back to Santa Marta (which is also a beachside town, 20 mins away with more faciltities and people but little to do) and from there, we will take a bus and jeep into the national park of Tayrona where we will probably do much of the same above, with the added bonus of sleeping in hammocks for a couple of days. Ahhhh....

Cartagena - Columbia

Colonial balconies spilling with colourful bouganvillas and sunny arctitecture, Cartagena is what they describe as the jewel of the Carribean. As rightly so, as it is a beautiful city which has retained true authenticity and style, not sold out by tourism. Well not yet, or at least not in some areas such as the old town where we are staying. I like that its still quite rough around the edges, which can contrast with the restored feel of the centre and especially so with the modern, fancy area with its huge designer beachfront apartments and restaurants which are increasingly springing up here. Having only seen this from the bus, we are more than happy mixing it up with the mostly black locals and making new street friends such as Jebs favourite, Mario Brother, who loves a chat on the corner at any time of the day.

Its really stinking hot and humid here as you may expect, and reminds me of a cross of places like Fiji and Vietnam, with the smells of fruit and sweat, and the oppressive heat and open local life. Speaking of fruit, we are in produce heaven here, and we buy fruit and drinks from vendors all day, every day. Fresh lime drinks, sweet strawberries and mangoes, huge avocadoes and things we dont even know. Also small sweet coffee known as tinto to give us that morning kick.

The city was very important to the Spanish as its a port town and cruically located, and therefore was prone to invasion back in the 15th century and onwards. The Spanish built a huge fort on the city edge, and walled the city with cannons which are all still in place. It has character and history and some say a sense of historical romance.

Today we had one of the most unique experiences i have ever had. We went to an active volcano and bathed in the mud inside. Its quite small, only about 35m high to climb inside, and then down a ladder into the thickest mud you can imagine. You can hardly move yourself and have to get pulled and pushed through the den by locals who massage you whilst you reap the rewards of the 51 minerals contained in the mud. There is no ground, and a bizzare feeling of weightless. Every inch of our body was covered and my skin now feels exfoliated and soft like no product could ever do. Climbing out is a challenge not to slip and you then get washed by ladies in the river (everything for tips of course). Next up, a swim and lunch on the beach, freshly caught fish, fried plaintains, coconut rice. The ocean water here is warm and only refreshing to a degree. We have taken to cooling down by drinking lots of rum which is the common carribean drink.

There is a dog fight outside right now which is rare as dogs in Sth america are everywhere but mostly quite placid and ignore you. Kinda scary sounding. Tommorrow we are travelling another 4 hours along the coast and this really will be the furthest north we will go for a week of lazing about on the beach.

Medellin - Columbia

Medellin could be anywhere in the world. Its a big livable city, really really clean, modern, an excellent Metro line running through the city, wide roads, garbage bins, big supermarkets, nice restuarants. Not quite what you expect from Columbia.

Being here on a weekend, we hit the Zona Rosa area which is the nightlife district centred around a few blocks. There are heaps of big, open bars with funky comfortable styling, nice furniture, 3 for 1 cocktails and a happy vibrancy of locals. It reminded me of several cool Sydney areas mixed together, but with a style all of its own.

With mild hangovers the next day, we made our way into the city centre to check out the Botero sculptures in the plaza and the Musuem. Fernando Botero is a internationally renowned, Medellin- born sculptor and painter, a figurative artist who depicts people and objects with exaggerated proportions. Everything is fat and bulbous and often comical but with precision and colour and flair. His sculptures are huge and line the plaza, and his paintings use oils, canvas, and pencil and with nearly 100 donations to the mususem, fill a complete floor.

Yesterday was a public holiday here, not sure what for but everything was closed and we did nothing except drink more cocktails and play cards. But we made up for it today and went paragliding! Soaring through the sky like a bird, we had amazing views of the city. Medellin is a particularly popular place for gliding due to the thermal currents here, and we had perfect flying weather. It was really relaxing and peaceful, and a great experience.

Tonitgh we are taking an overnight bus to Cartagena. Its only 13 hours and will take us almost as far north as we are going. I have to say though, we are getting a little over bus travel, and hopefully we will sleep most of the way.

Cuenca and Banos - Ecuador

Cuenca is the 3rd largest city in Ecuador, and whilst we have preferred to spend time in smaller towns, this really was a nice city to visit. But at our cracking pace, we only had one day and night so we set out exploring the cobblestone streets and white buildings of this charming tidy city. We walked along the river and had a great Middle Eastern meal (how very un-Sth American!), before taking another night bus to the town of Banos. With a bus change at 4am in the morning, and arriving about 6am, we were a little spaced out and went to sleep before tackling this town of adventure.


Banos is at the foot of an active volcano and a waterfall that is visible throughout the whole town. The word Banos means baths (some people may remember this from our toilet sign at home!) and at the base of the waterfall there are thermal baths. Unintentionally arriving on a weekend and also Mothers Day, the town was really busy and we subsequently avoided the very crowded baths. Instead, we rented bikes and set of for a full day of biking (67km) on the spectacular road to Puyo that leads into the gateway of the upper Amazon Basin. Accompanied by endless buses and Chevrolet trucks filled with extended families enjoying the Sunday ride, we passed by many waterfalls, cable cars and through pitch black tunnels on this highway ride. Which i must say, is not all downhill as claimed...for the record, there are alot of flat parts and uphill too! Add to this, the hardest seats you have ever sat on...ouch! But the sore bum was very worth it as we passed through local communities selling the freshest of fruits and sugarcane, and outdoors resturants selling bbq corn on the cob with cheese (a common food here) whilst watching the Amazon river tributaries meet and bulge at the Rio Negro (Black River). And dont forget folks, its the tropics and to complete the day, we got absolutely drenched in an Amazonian downpour with only 5km left to our destination! Cerveza (beer) well deserved, we boarded the next bus back to Banos with our bikes underneath, and slept well that night.

But this town is ¨Full Action¨...or so we were told by our hostel/tour operator. And so 9am the next morning we were getting kitted up with wetsuits, harnesses, helmets etc and off we went for a half day of canoning down 5 waterfalls. The base of the waterfall was in a fruit orchid and the setting was serene and dense and hidden. Abseiling down waterfalls and also sliding down some parts like a rough slippery dip was great fun, really enjoyable day. But its FULL ACTION folks, so next up was Swing Jumping...similar to bungee but with a big circular swing motion afterwards. Having bungee jumped once in my life, i did not feel the need to do it again, so Jeb was on his own here. The bridge is a regular bridge with cars that drive along it and no permanent jump set up. Within minutes, there were all the necessary ropes and cords and harnesses and jump platforms. At a height of 80 metres and a flowing river below, Jeb had the look of excitement in his eyes and did not hesitate at the countdown. Pure adrenalin, he loved it.

All actioned out, we left Banos for Quito, the capital of Ecuador which is where we are now. We were originally flying out of Quito to Santiago, Chile and from there, fly back to Sydney. However on our travels, we have met so many people people who have told us how awesome Columbia is and also how safe it is now. So we have adjusted things and are no longer flying out of Quito, and instead Bogota on the 15th June. More on Quito and Ecuador later...im hogging the hostel computer.