I previously mentioned the article on Cartagena that appears in the current Conde Nast Traveler magazine. I thought I would post some excerpts from the article to give people a taste of what certainly seems like a fascinating port-of-call. If nothing else, this should reassure those who, based on some of the previous posts, might have been concerned about leaving the ship. Having just finished the entire article, I will have to make sure to watch
Romancing the Stone again before next August.
Excerpts from
Sleeping Beauty: Even during Columbias darkest years, Cartagena was spared. David Ebershoff visits this dreamy city by the sea, a place that wears its rich history as lightly as it does its languorous charm (Conde Nast Traveler, March 2007).
On its beaches:
Cartagenas beaches arent what youd expect. The sand is thick and brown, muddying the water. The surf is rough and tricky. These are city beaches, like those in San Juan and Coney Island: crowded, nosy, and funnot relaxing. For that, most people go to the Rosario Islands, an hour and twenty minutes from the marina by launch. For a quick dip in the Caribbean, go to the busy, fun beach in Bocagrande, five minutes from the old city by cab. Another option is to hire a cab to take you to the small fishing village of La Boquilla, five miles north of the city.
On safety:
Columbias long-running civil war and campaigns of narco-terrorism have never erupted on Cartagenas streets; here the political strife and horrific violence feel very far away. If you take the usual precautions, you should feel safe walking around the historic center day or night. That said, the countrys political situation is always changing. In the past few years, the change has been for the better, with the country becoming increasingly peaceful and stable (with the exception of parts of the mountainous interior and the
Amazon Basin).
Even in the bloodiest times, the violence never reached Cartagenas walls. Why not? Its a question I ask nearly everyone I talk to about the city. There are a lot of theories. Originally built by the Spanish, the coral, brick, and quicklime walls that surround the historic center have protected the city for hundreds of years. [Some believe] Columbians love the city too much to hurt it; Cartagena is the symbol of Columbia. All Colombians take pride in it. During the years of violence, even the narco-traffickers respected it. For whatever reasons, Cartagena has remained safe: For nearly two decades, it has been a haven for Colombias middle and upper classes.
On its bloody history:
Founded in 1533 on a small Caribbean peninsula, Cartagena quickly became one of the most important cities in Spains South American empire. Much of the gold, silver, emeralds, and pearls stolen from the Incas and other Andean civilizations passed through its warehouses. So much treasure was amassed that soon French and English pirates were attacking the city, looting the loot. The Spanish responded by building an elaborate complex of walls and forts, a project that lasted nearly two hundred years and required the labor of some 80,000 slaves. It culminated in Castillo de San Felipe, Spains largest military fort in the Americas, an imposing structure that looks something like the pyramids outside Mexico City. It was designed with trapdoors, niches of death, and two thousand feet of internal tunnels, some of which deliberately lead nowhere. It and many of the citys other fortifications remain intact, including almost all of the walls that surround the historic neighborhoods. The wall now makes a scenic promenade; along the way are a number of garrets that you can step into and look out at the Caribbean through a musket hole.
Cartagena has had a long relationship with the macabre. In 1610, the city became the seat of the Spanish Inquisition in Latin America. Although never as bloody as its counterpart in Iberia, the Dominican-led push to root out heretics, witches, Jews, and other undesirables resulted in roughly seven hundred local persecutions and five
autos-da-fe [sorry, I have not idea what those are]. The Inquisition Palace is a grand Andalusian-style building freshly restored as a museum on the north side of the Plaza de Bolivar. Theres a display of torture racks, stockades, and a scale used to weigh women accused of witchcraft to see if they were light enough to fly. On the outside wall, at the height of a person on horseback, is the denunciation window. Here, seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Cartagenos with a grudge would anonymously slip the names of heretics through the iron grille.
On getting to know the city:
The historic city is divided into three neighborhoods: El Centro, where youll find the major churches, museums, and plazas, and where the nobility once lived; San Diego, an upscale residential neighborhood formerly occupied by wealthy merchants and top military officers; and Getsemani, which has seen the least renovation.
On finding a guide:
Go to the entrance at the San Pedro Claver Cloister and ask for Willy or one of the other government-certified guides, who wear badges showing their credentials (about $30 for an afternoon).
) According to DS9 - feeding the animals is way more fun than watering.
I have no desire to do this. But, I can understand DH's desire. My eyesight is 20/40 uncorrected - I can't imagine what he was living with. It's just too bad he couldn't see anything back when I was skinny...
memories in '08 (keep in mind this was at 8 pm - 1/2 hr to late seating)
on the sizing 
from me to you.
Nuff said!
here's me before bed : 
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