We waved off vendors as we waited for the tour to start. It was scheduled for 10, and by 10:15 we actually got moving.
There was no cloud cover for us to hide behind, so it was quite hot. I was afraid the girls weren't going to make it for the entire two hours, but they started strong. We walked through the nearby park to learn about the history of Cartagena and the importance of the number 11 which keeps showing up. We also spotted a sloth and an iguana, some of the park's wildlife. After that, we headed into the Getsemani neighborhood.
We rounded a corner to a street lined with flags.
It turns out that the green building is a hotel owned by Shakira, but Elena was much more interested in seeing how many of the flags she could identify. Farther up the street, we stopped at our first graffiti which encouraged us to smile.
Around the corner was a stunning face representing the neighborhood's mulatto heritage.
I loved the door knocker, so I got Elena to stop for a picture with it.
It's tough to get her to stay still long enough for me to make sure my pictures are straight. Across the street was a tribute to Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
There's a walking tour for him too, but I thought that would be a really tough sell for the girls. I loved the faces looking out from the walls.
We stopped to learn about some of the graffiti that specifically fought against gentrification.
By that point, everyone was getting hot and tired. Mom and Elena found a seat in the shade.
Luckily, we headed down a shaded street with some fun decoration.
There was an interesting art shop that used the wall to display art for sale. It felt a bit meta.
The guide paused to teach some dance moves, but by that point Elena was revving up for a meltdown, so I had her off to the side with some snacks. Our next stop was a square with a statue celebrating Pedro Romero and some of the other leaders of Getsemani.
Pedro Romero helped lead Cartagena's independence movement. We had also seen a graffiti representation of him, which our guide said was probably more accurate. There are no contemporary portraits of him.
I got pictures of murals on either side of the square.
And then Elena went into meltdown mode. Vivi was holding it together, but was carefully watching to see if an escape route was being offered. By that point, they had been out and walking for over two hours, so I figured it was okay to call it quits. Jeff came with me and the girls, and my parents decided to stick it out a bit longer.
We were absorbing the apartment's air conditioning when my parents came back. They hadn't lasted the full tour either, and we were all hungry for lunch, so we walked over to Montesacro which had been one of our favorite restaurants last time and ended up being a block from our hotel.
They had a pasta dish with pesto and steak, so Vivi was in heaven, and Mom got her enormous fish, so she was happy too. After lunch, we had some time to digest, and then Jeff and I went for a massage while Mom and Dad stayed with the girls. When we got back, Jeff took the girls up to the roof for a sunset swim, and I got some photos.
For our final dinner, we went to a restaurant one of Jeff's friends had recommended, Zaitún, which is a Lebanese fusion restaurant. They had a lovely vegetable display at the entrance.
We also had an interesting table near a gate that led to another restaurant.
I got to sit with the cuties.
They were really good for the trip, so we got them a chocolate volcano cake for dessert. Elena was thrilled to hear that the lava was chocolate.
The next morning, the girls had time for one more rooftop swim, and they were joined by some friends from Bogotá who happened to be staying at the same hotel. It was a fun way to end the trip. Then, we had to say goodbye to Mom and Dad at the airport and head our separate ways.
Cartagena is a beautiful city with a special place in our hearts, and we're really glad we got to go there a second time as a family.
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