Fin

Here is my final set of pictures from my trip. Just so you all know, there are quite a few! It's all over, which is rather sad, but I'm glad to be heading home. Overall, my experiences in Colombia were amazing. I can't say enough good things about the country. These last few pictures are from Santa Marta, Taganga, and Bogota. I'll post some final thoughts a little later, bye for now.

The pueblo of Taganga, nestled in the beginning of the Sierra Nevada.

My travelling crew on the coast: Uri from Israel and Daniel from Sweden. Not pictured is Michael, also from Sweden.

Playa Blanca, on the edge of Parque Nacional Tayrona.

Beautiful beaches and hot, hot weather. The temperature was never below 28 C, even at night.

The smallest, crappiest bathroom I have ever experienced (Hotel Miramar, Santa Marta).

Telenovela (soap opera) crew filming on the way to Taganga.

I couldn't stop taking pictures of Colombians, they just seemed to take a good picture no matter what. Great people who are very open to foreigners.

Local girl at one of the Tagangan restuarants.

Our Poseidon Dive Center class heading out in the morning.

Taganga had sweet diving - Uri and I after our last day of training.

From left to right: yours truly, Gert, our diving instructor, Max, the owner of Poseidon, and Uri.

Parque Nacional Tayrona

Everywhere scattered along the beach and in the mountains nearby were huge boulders and rock formations.

This one is for the ladies, and possibly my crew from UBC Mens Ultimate.

Shot of La Piscina (the pool).

We stayed here at El Cabo, camping under coconut trees and sleeping in hammocks.

Needing some exercise, we decided to jog up the local mountain to Pueblito, some ancient ruins of the Tayrona people.

The stone terraces that are there are thousands of years old and still have Tayrona Indians living on them.

From the beach, it was off to the mountains and Bogota de Santa Fe. This is the Plaza Bolivar and El Capitolio Nacional in El Centro.

La Catedral on the east side of the plaza.

La Torre de San Ignacio.

El Paseo de las Aguas facing towards Montserrate.

I climbed up Montserrate, which turned out to be a bigger challenge than expected. The altitude gets up to about 3200 metres at the top.

The church at the top of Montserrate.

Meat, meat, and more meat was the lunch menu.

There was also a colourful crafts and open air market.

Garden inside the Fernando Botero Museum. Botero was a Colombian artist who gave a very distinct look to his pieces, using large, open curvatures and lines.

Taking a minute to rest inside the museum.

Took a browse in the El Museo de Oro. Amazing pieces and displays from the some of the many local tribes that existed in Colombia.

West Coast Crew, Hans Peter and Tim from Sacramento.

In front of the Iglesia de Maria del Carmen with my baby blue alpaca scarf.

Beautiful shots from the plane ride back to Miami. Gotta say that it feels good to be alive.

Mi Colombia Bonita

So kids, since Cartagena, a few things have happened. Here's what new:

As mentioned previously, I stuck with my plan and left for Santa Marta, a medium-sized port city just about 4 hour drive to the east of Cartagena. Besides staying in one of the hottest, most basic hostels I have ever seen, my six days in Santa Marta were pretty fun. I met a couple of cool Swedes and an Israeli-Russian named Uri with whom I spent most of my time. We checked out a few of the local beaches, cruised a few discotecas, and became regulars at our favourite dinner spot, Ben and Josef's. Imagine a Colombian restaurant with a Dutch head chef and a Spanish co-owner from Catalonia serving up the best steaks I have tasted this side of the Tropic of Cancer. Seriously the stuff of legends.

Just toward the end of my Santa Marta stay, Uri and I signed up from our PADI Open Water Diver certification in a nearby pueblo called Taganga. In a matter of like a couple days, we were already strapping on gear and diving to 12 metres with all the fancy little fishes and brain coral. We ended up moving to the dive center in the town and finished up the last of our days on the coast in a national park called Parque Nacional Tayrona. Now, I know it's getting a little old to hear, but I honestly landed in Paradise, again. The park was simply breathtaking. It was the best of the rainforest meets the best of the beach, all in one go. It's one of those places that gets more beautiful with every picture but you still can't find enough words to describe it. I would actually recommend to anyone interested in South American backpacking and travelling to not leave Colombia out of your plans. From even the little that I have seen over the last couple weeks, it is well worth the effort.

After another set of dives the day after Tayrona, Uri and I bounced to Bogota where I am currently at. Tomorrow George W Bush is visiting the capital and security has been getting tighter and tighter everywhere I have been in the city. Should be interesting, there will be definitely be a protest, so check out the news. As always, pics will soon follow. Take care everyone!

Cartagena de Indias

Some recent fotos for everyone. The first four are from Maracaibo in Venezuela, while the rest are from Colombia. Paz y amor mi gente, estamos hablando!

Beard + Aviators = Too cool for school.



Old fishing boat near El Lago de Maracaibo.

Bell tower near the north end of Maracaibo.

This church was also close by.

Coloumbian fisherman setting out in morning near Cartagena.

Snorkling near the Islas del Rosario.

The water was ridiculously clear, tons of great coral and fishies.

Playa Blanca, one of the best beaches around.

Hit up some salsa dancing one night with a crew from Argentina.

El Castillo San Felipe

View from one of the guard towers.

One of the old entrances to the top section of the castle.

Looking north from San Felipe into the old city.

La Iglesia San Pedro Claver in the old section of Cartagena.

This is how the tiered houses look in the city.

Another shot of a house near the Plaza Bolivar.