Procura
Santa Marta is a fairly unattractive town, but it has a spectacular location on the edge of the sea. The city`s center is right next to the malecon, with a beach and views of big freight ships coming into the port. It is very hot in the day, and unpleasant to walk around for lack of shade. It is a nice place to relax, though, which is why i`ve been hanging around.
I arrived in Santa Marta last monday, and I spent tuesday at a nearby beach/resort area called the “Rodadero.” El Rodadero, from above, looks spectacular. It is a small harbor surrounded by mountains, with high-rise buildings spreading until the waters edge. The beach itself is average, and the venders annoying. I walked away from the central beach area to a place where I could feel safe leaving my clothes on the shore, and swam in peace.
On wednesday i joined some others from my hotel on a trip to Tayrona National Park, a really incredible place. On the walk in the beach, through the jungle, we saw monkeys in the trees, huge highways of leaf-cutter ants, and numerous lizards of all colors and sizes on the sides of the path. The beaches themselves are incredible, small bays lined by palm trees and surrounded by enormous rocks, all overshadowed by the enormous mountains of the Sierra Nevada. Some of the beaches are too dangerous to swim, and have turbulent surf that looks like a perpetual hurricane.
There is nothing to do in Tayrona park; there are few trails, so the activity of choice is to just hang out. The “hotel” (I slept in a hammock) feels like a hostel, full of foreigners, but there were some Colombians I met as well. My first night there I went to a meditation session with some Colombians and Argentinians. I had been drinking rum beforehand, however, and I was in no mood to meditate. Though I didnt enjoy the experience, I was still struck by the absurd seriousity with which the others were meditating. The next day I laughed quite a bit with some friends about it.
One day in the park was enough, so I headed back to Santa Marta on Friday. That evening I went out with an 18-year-old Colombian kid and these two crazy french guys. For some reason we had decided to leave Santa Marta for a bar full of foreigners in a small fishing village on one side of town. There was a cool dance floor in the center of the bar, and the french guys were dancing absolutely ridiculously the entire time. In any case, we ended up meeting some girls, and went with them to another bar off of the highway which is open all night. I talked with one a while, and afterwards we went together to the beach. We talked well into the morning, and I didn`t arrive in the hotel until 9 in the morning.
On Saturday afternoon I woke up feeling sick, and my stomach was aching. I slept all day. That night I decided to try eating some soup, and I vomited. Later that evening I felt better, and decided to go out. The girl from the night before, Milena, was waiting outside of the disco for me. It was a great club, full of people, with a cool, relaxed atmosphere, and cheap. I stayed with Milena all night. Her sister, who the night before had been with one of the french guys, decided that he was a bit too crazy and left the club with an Israeli. The four of us went to the beach for a while before going to bed.
Milena and I can`t stand the Israeli guy. He`s arrogant and boring. He told the girls that Colombian girls love Israeli guys, and that everywhere he goes girls look at him. He doesnt really ever smile, either.
Yesterday morning I was feeling fine, and I decided to eat some breakfast. I went with Milena, her sister, and the Israeli to a nearby beach for the day. That evening, I went out with them for a beer. The israeli is trying to steal Milena for a friend of his. Upon seeing her for the first time yesterday, he told her that his friend shaved his beard. When i went to the bathroom at one point, he asked Milena if she liked his friend, and more or less asked her why she would prefer to be with some gringo kid. She laughed at him.
I ate no lunch all day yesterday, and in the evening I had a hamburger. Once again, my stomach was aching all night, and I slept until 3:30 pm today. As it turns out, another traveler in my hotel, from Switzerland, has been feeling similarly. He was in Tayrona with me, so we are convinced that it has something to do with the food we ate there. The other day, he slept 20 hours straight. At the moment I`m feeling alright, but I haven`t eaten anything all day. I`ll sit tight, and hopefully feel a bit better tomorrow.
I have a problem understanding people from the coast. I was in a bus from Cartagena to Barranquilla, and I met a kid from a village near Barranquilla. We talked a lot, but I only understood about every 5th word he would say. I could get the idea of what he was trying to convey, and I would agree or make some comment back, but the whole process was frustrating. Last night I had a similar experience with a friend of a friend here in Santa Marta.
I have hit a milestone: Milena told me that I dance salsa well enough, which is incredible. I just realized the other day that in salsa, you have to stand on the balls of your feet… it also helps to count, 1-2-3, 2-2-3, 1-2-3, etc. I still cant spin, but at least I`ve now got an idea of the basics.
Something cool about Colombia is that i can actually tolerate the traditional music. In mexico, the traditional music is called Ranchera, and I can`t stand it for more than five minutes. Here they listen to Vallenato, and though it does get tiring, there are several Vallenatos that I like a lot. I find the music generally far more interesting than Ranchera.
One more thing: South America is absolutely flooded by Israelis. I`ve met dozens of Israelis in my short time here, and I must say, they are by far the most obnoxious group of travelers I have ever met. The owner of my hotel, who is a friend of mine, was talking about it for ages last night. I have no problem with a single Israeli, or several of them, but when they travel in big groups and act like they own the world, then it gets a bit annoying.
Thats about all for now folks,
Love,
Dan
Love,
Dan
Tags: Colombia
Neocoltrane
February 21st, 2006 at 3:03 am
Wow, Colombia sounds absolutely beautiful, you should post pictures if you can.
Have you seen any drug lords or any crazy gun fights? The US media has corrupted me with images of a bloody Colombia.
I hope all is well, that your stomache virus goes away (i had the same thing last weekend, and i gave it to umass this weekend), and that you get into a huge kill bill fight with the israelies in which you kick major butt when they try to steal your woman.
Show us your moves someday.
Encantada, Mish Mish
March 2nd, 2006 at 5:59 pm
holy shit…. sleeping in a hammock…. goin in jungles…. seeing monkeys…. with gorgeous beaches and giant mountains…. u must feel like ur in a National Geographic magazine!!!! lucky you!! 😀 takes lotsa pictures! 🙂
that stomach virus sounds like a pain…. you’ve been lucky so far on ur trip in terms of staying away from “poisonous” foods. its a shame it had to hit you now when you’re in such a beautiful place…. you’re doing the right thing tho, stayin in, sleeping… eat soup, but nothing water-based… you never know…
and also it sounds like u got urself a girl!! that’s awesome i’m glad 🙂 she sounds like a cool girl, defending you and all 🙂 good for her! 😀
good luck with those israeli guys, they do sound like a pain… :-\ like amisha said, i hope u kick their ass 🙂 !! 😀
over here it’s same old same old… i have a ridiculously huge amount of work at school… this week i had to write a total of 20,000 words, grouping up all my papers…. 🙁 its tough but i’m doing it, and gettin through it… one word at a time 🙂
i hope everything continues to work out for you in terms of that girl! and that ur stomach feels better 🙂 go to a store and ask if they have ne medicine at all, maybe you’ll find something that helps u out. but just to be sure, stay away from anything water-based for a while. Last yr in the DR i ate salad and got sooo sick cuz they washed it with tap water 🙁 aissh
oh and also i was wondering: how r u doing in terms of money? do you have enough to last you the rest of your trip? I’m exited to know if all that work at Bert’s paid off (literaly…)
well, other than that, today my friend told me a funny joke, i thought i’d share it with u:
A duck walks into a hardware store and acts the guy at the counter:
– Hi! do you carry ne duck food?
The guy at the counter replies, with an eyebrow raised:
– euh, no…
The duck, disappointed, leaves the store dragging his feet. The next day, however, he walks back into the store, with a confident look on his face:
– Hi! do you carry ne duck food?!
The guy at counter… irritated:
– NO!
and the duck leaves, like the day before, disappointed. The next day he comes back AGAIN:
– Hi!! do you carry ne duck food?
the guy at the counter, wicked pissed, yells:
– NO! this is a HARDWARE store!! NO DUCK FOOD!! you come back ONE more time, i’m nailing your feet to the floor. you hear me?! get the fuck out!!
the duck walks out. the next day he come back AGAIN!:
– Hi! do you guys have any nails?!
– No, we ran out this morning.
– Do you have ne duck food?!
HA HA HA! lol! u probably heard it before, but it cracked me UP! 🙂 hopefully it’ll cheer you up in your time of stomach aches and annoying israelis… 🙂
good luck to ya!
lov always,
March 2nd, 2006 at 6:03 pm
i dunno why i didnt sign my name in the previous comment lol! or put my name on top of the thing, im wicked tired… ok well the one on top is me ok!? lol 🙂
July 20th, 2011 at 11:53 am
Just what I was looking for, appreciate it for putting up.