Sail Away

I arrived in Manizales on Australia Day (Invasion day) where the festivities were in full swing however for a long time now I have not been interested in drinking so I took no part in celebrating when James Cook discovered Sydney harbour. Manizales is situated on a hill and to ease the local’s journeys they have one of the most unique types of public transport I have ever seen, they have a cable car making the journey up and down the hill and at only 1400 peso’s its very cheap.
I am getting to the point in my travels where most of the activities/sights associated with a certain place I have done before so when people ask have you not done a coffee tour here? I reply I was on a coffee farm in Vietnam, why do it twice? Manizales has hot springs and is famous for its active volcano that is actually showing seismic activity thus not allowing people to hike it. Again both these activities I have done before in other places.
I left Manizales heading to Medellin which took 6 hours, I felt as fresh as a daisy but some of the other occupants were not so well having consumed too much alcohol celebrating the night before thus requiring frequent stops to allow them to be sick.
My family will be please to know that Medellín was once known as the most violent city in the world, and in 2010 it has the highest increase in violence of Colombia's urban centers. This unenviable title was the result of an urban war set off by the drug cartels at the end of the 1980s. As the home of the Medellín Cartel funded by Pablo Escobar, the city was victim of the terror caused by the war between the organization headed by Escobar, and competing organizations such "El Cartel del Valle". However, after the death of Escobar, the crime rates in the city began to decrease.
I decided to stay at a ‘party hostel’ but soon I was eager to leave after meeting some of the people staying there, many of them having not left the hostel with one guy in particular this guy called Cali from California being there for a month eating, sleeping and drinking there and has not even left the hostel. One nights drinking there was enough for me and as soon as the sun came up the next day I paid my bill and left for a smaller family run hostel. I went around the city where again I was greeted with the usual churches however I ventured into one of the art museums and found a wing with the works of Colombian artist Fernando Botero which were quite amusing. Botero’s art and sculpture features only fat people.
The bus to Santa Marta took 16 hours and when I arrived opening the door of the coach it was like opening an oven. My main reason for coming to Santa Marta was to go on the five day trek of Ciudad Perdida known in English as the Lost City. The trek was a lot harder than the Inca as the path was a lot rougher and there are so many steep uphill battles to negotiate whilst you are in one of the hottest jungles in the world. In my group I had two Americans and they have installed my faith back into the people of that country so only France now to reedmen themselves but imp not holding my breath.
Mike from LA was one of the coolest and humblest guys I have ever met if you want to see him check out on you tube the Kelly Clarkson video ‘Never Again’ where he plays the male lead.
I don’t think the trek is anywhere in the same league as the Inca trek but it was nice to do it and see the lost city. The end city is a lot rawer than M pitchu as the ruins have not been cleaned up but left as they were found so moss and grass are growing out of cracks in the buildings.
One of the most amusing parts of the trek was when Brian the second American decided to vine swing across one of the many river crossings to which he failed in an epic way luckily it was caught all on film edited and posted onto YouTube where you can view it in all its glory
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vc_cTYS-GS4
I met up with Brian and Mike in Cartagena for Super Bowl Sunday where the night was long and fun fuelled. Unfortunately I had to get up at 0800 the next day to go to Playa Blanca but luckily I was still dressed from the night before and packed so it was not too hard. Playa Blanca was nice but only for a night as they do not have electricity or running water so we felt that we didn’t want to stay that long.
I think many people expect too much from their travels. They believe, or at least hope; it will change them in profound ways or provide a magical escape that will solve all upon return. That's a lot of pressure to put on what is essentially just a prolonged holiday and I feel a lot of travellers are jaded in this respect. Character change takes a lot more than 5+ months in South America. Escapes are only temporary. I too had these lofty expectations but now I realise that these journeys are more about the adventure itself and less about you. We chase wealth, fame, and power, but I think all we really need is to chase adventure. Maybe we all just need to get out a little bit more.
Off on a sail boat now to Panama

See you all in Central America!