A.Cherrettes-blog

Back in Yooperland!

2008-04-07T12:58:00.010-04:00

We made it back after a few long, long connections & the snow has melted a little bit but not much. : )

Overview of last couple days:

After I ventured into town I had the taxi drop me off at EXITO (which is sort like a super walmart)....some merchandise was made in China but a lot of it came from South America too. It was fun to look around at the many different clothes (beautiful designs like Jennifer Lopez or Shakira would wear-she is from Colombia) a lot were very Alluring.
After browsing for an hour or so I met Chris & Marie at Jorge Washington School & waited for them to finish up. Marie had meetings most of the afternoon w/ the Principal & other faculty discussing future employment. In fact, they hired her & she accepted a very PT position until she retires here in 2 years. She will work as a one on one reading specialist like here in the Title One Program...She is very excited! This expensive private school really wants to hire very good English speaking instructors to teach in a form so the pronunciation is clear & correct when speaking to their students....Although the children may end up talking like little Colombian Yoopers! (Eh, Hola!) :)
After school we headed to the grocery to buy our Columbian Rum & Juan Valdez coffee to bring home....Went back to Chris's to freshen up for church & dinner reservations for 8pm at La Vitrola Resaurante in Old town. The church we went to (Saint Padres, the one w/the big DOME) didn't have Mass but a holy hour of Rosary which we sat in for a bit. The inside construction was unbelievable! It actually was by far the most Beautiful church I have seen...We then proceeded to a rooftop terrace of a friend of Chris's (who happened to be in Bogata for the wknd), there we watched the sunset over the ocean & viewed the clay topped roofs over the city . St. Padres was literally one building away & the dome was magnificent at eye level! From the terrace we could here some African drums playing so we decided to ck it out....Over in the park a block or so away an African dance/drumming group were performing... This was really Awesome too! What a way to spend the last evening!! I did record some of the performance & will post the link to You tube in a day or so on this blog.
Our dinner at La Vitrolas was very good w/ a small live group playing~ "Pitty Duenas" a Cuban Swing band. Some of the music here is like Zydeco which is very fun! I ended up buying a cd of the Cuban Swing band as a momento of the occasion.
After dropping Marie off at the apt. Chris & I went back to town to a really cool night club to dance Salsa... the place was small & narrow with all brick & arched doorways throughout & probably built 500 years ago as a hideout. The strobe lights looked neat flashing against the old brick walls! We stayed until close which was about 4am! We had a lot of fun but getting up at 6am was not fun... although I endured the flights on the way home with a long layover in Miami spent at Bay Side outdoor park/marina (which we ate lots of Cuban food!).

All in All, Cartagena Colombia is a very safe place to visit & I would HIGHLY recommend this jewel of South America to anyone!!!
Adios! Amy

YouTube Video in Old Town:
Cartagena Colombia -African Dance

2008-04-04T09:30:00.001-04:00

2008-04-04T09:27:00.000-04:00

Last day here..... : (

2008-04-04T08:32:00.002-04:00

Today is our last day... tomorrow we leave at 9am with a long set of connections ahead! Should be in Yooperland Sunday morning.
Yesterday was a fun day...! We boarded the tour boat about 7:45am & left the harbor around 9am for a 90 minute ride for the Isla Baru excursion. It was quite entertaining w/ an emcee directing all the fun. He had people come onto the "dance floor" to learn Merengue ... We then played a game where the dancers had to switch partners when he called out "RUM"! One that doesn't make it to a partner is eliminated. I made through about 1/2 of it, then sat down to rest. An hour of dancing is great excerise in the morning. We then came to the beach around 10:30am where we stayed & played in the water & relaxed/read under the palm until 3pm . I mingled a bit with people from NY & CA on vaca too....We had waited to go snorkeling until afternoon & the wind had picked up (like it does in the p.m. every day) so the snorkeling was kind of murky because the sand was being stirred up in the waves....No fish : ( It was well worth the cost though with BBQ snacks, fresh fruit, fish chowder, drinks all included. Last night we stayed in while Chris picked up pizza & beer. Marie is getting ready to go into school again for a few hours & I will venture into town . Later.....

2008-04-02T23:02:00.000-04:00

2008-04-02T22:58:00.000-04:00

Glad we missed the Storm!

2008-04-02T22:20:00.004-04:00

From what I hear Upper Michigan just had a big snow storm....So glad I'm here!!
Sorry to rub it in people...! : )

This morning I took a taxi into Old town & walked around enjoying the sights & sounds of Cartagena...locals selling fruit on the corners, people walking everywhere, locals selling their crafts of coconut shell jewelry & spoons etc. I took more picture's of the old buildings & flowering boxes hanging off the many balconys down the narrow streets. I then met Marie & Chris at the school where he is teaching...the 3rd grade class he is teaching are full of energy! Marie had a lot of fun helping today. We (Marie & I) are getting up early tomorrow & going back to Isla Baru but to a different area this time to go snorkeling. Isla Baru is very large w/ a lot to see even though it's pretty remote. Chris has school but we will see him at the end of the day....We catch the tour boat @ 7:30am...It looks bigger than the one we were on yesterday.... Apparently there is an abundance of tropical fish at the place we are going.....Food & drinks are included until we return @ 4:30pm or so.
Adios!

2008-04-01T20:31:00.001-04:00

2008-04-01T20:19:00.000-04:00

2008-04-01T20:16:00.000-04:00

Journal from Isla Baru

2008-04-01T19:21:00.006-04:00

March 30th 2008 . Sunday p.m.

We are now on the Isla Baru at the Sport Baru resort leaving a pleasant boat ride from Cartagena. Waves were about 4ft rollers in the end but the boat was made for them making it pretty smooth. There is no internet here because it is very rustic & tropically remote. It also is very beautiful & relaxing. The set up is very laid back here with the small staff, in fact we are the only ones here at the time! So… we have the whole place to our selves with all 20 hammocks, ping pong table, kayak, futons w/ cushy pillows, chaise lounges, quaint decks w/ look outs etc.
Upon arrival we first packed a bag & boarded another boat to ride across the bay to a beach on another bay with a little more surf. The guys that brought us over there were kind of pestering to buy goods so we gave them each some drinks from the cooler so we could have alone time…and they loved it! In the end we ended up buying a few necklaces & bracelets. : )
Came back an hour or so later & the cook made an awesome fish plate consisting of Pargo Roho (red salt water fish), coconut rice & plantane's (fried bananas)… a typical Caribbean lunch, it was delicious! Our dinner was another kind of fish topped w/capers which was awesome too!
….Later after lunch two local island girls (the massage therapist's) came in by small boat & Marie & I each had a massage on the beach where they had a table under a cabana, Paradise..! Tomorrow is Marie's Birthday! What a nice way to spend a birthday, on an Island. The gift I bought her has no wrapping so I will use some palm leaves & put some fresh flowers from the grounds on it for a ribbon. Adios! Amy

March 31st 2008 . Monday

I awoke early this morning around 6am to the sound of a Rooster, but didn’t get up until 7ish. It was neat~ like we’re at a small Caribbean farm of some sort. I picked flowers & palms from the ground's & wrapped Marie's present & asked for a vase for the breakfast table. They had fresh fruit & juice for breakfast w/ fresh eggs scrambled w/ tomatoes, onions, cheese & toast. After breakfast we were dropped off by boat to really nice beach on some private property (no one was there) w/ our cooler of Colombian beer & water. This was near where we were yesterday...It was quiet & beautiful. Our boat driver came back to pick us up for lunch ... When we arrived we ate fish steaks & coconut rice (mmmm!) We were asked if we wanted shrimp for Marie's Birthday dinner, which she was very happy to say Si Si Si !!! Needless to say she had a wonderful Birthday on the Isla of Baru….
That evening we sat on the dock & stargazed....A

April 1st 2008 . Tuesday afternoon

After the Rooster pleasantly woke me up again I fell back to sleep & got up around 7ish (repeat of yesterday morning). This time I went to the boat dock & did some yoga… which felt great afterwards. Had some café’ w/ leche’ (milk) & azucar (sugar) asked if I could have some fresh papaya & read my book. For breakfast we ate a traditional Colombian dish~ Arepa's (eggs filled in a round corn based crust) & more fruit. An abundance of fruit is here in Colombia, such as pina (pineapple), mango, papaya & watermelon.
Today we leave to go back to the mainland around 3ish (Caribbean time probably 4ish). We just finished kayaking over to a nice beach w/ a lot of locals hanging around waiting for the Cruise ship people to arrive on some speed boats. They were catching crab & lobsters which they will probably sell to the cruisers….Marie wanted to swim back (a mile or more) so Chris & I stayed close w/ the kayaks. The wind picked up & caused a wake that it made it a little harder to swim but she persevered & proudly made it!!!
Lunch time….!
Just returned from lunch which consisted of a chicken filet, french fries (like America!) & a coconut crusted flan type dessert. On our way back to the mainland we will be on a tour boat that apparently stops at a beach for an hour or so. Marie is water logged from her swim so she doesn't want to swim any more today... Adios! ……Amy

Tuesday p.m.

We are now back at Chris’s place after 2 adventurous boat rides! Chris called it "Adventure Travel" ...The first boat was small & waves were again 4 ft or so & really BUMPY for a small boat going fast! We finally got to where the tour boat was anchored at a beach which was our next ride. This boat is open with a canopy & seats about 25-30 people & they warned us it while be rough….When we reached open water all the people in the back got really soaked. Guess where our seats were…? In the back of course….Poor Marie got it the worse having the outside seat. So much for being water logged…! We are going to relax tonight because Marie & Chris have to get up early and go to school for 7am. I will meet them later when school gets out @ 2:30pm. I may wander into Old town & ck things out…..Adios! Amy

2008-03-29T23:50:00.002-04:00

Marie & her new Hombre ;)

2008-03-29T23:47:00.000-04:00

2008-03-29T23:21:00.006-04:00

Hola!

The school festival was a lot of fun! We stayed most of the afternoon & watched Chris run the bowling booth. The school really went all out for this...they even hired one of the most famous child stars from Colombia to perform on stage (a mini Ricky Martin). We walked around the markets this evening & bartered goods. Tomorrow @ 8a.m. we leave to Isla Baru...Sport Baru Resort. We will board a speed boat & ride about 40 miles to the island & we should arrive around 10a.m... I'm not sure of the internet access there so if I don't respond I'll be back Tuesday.
Adios! Amy

2008-03-29T12:32:00.000-04:00

2008-03-29T12:20:00.000-04:00

It's Hot!

2008-03-29T08:40:00.002-04:00

Hola....! Marie & I had a nice tour yesterday with Dora from 10am-2pm. She speaks English well & she was educated at the school where Chris teaches. Highlight's were: Over a bridge to Manga Island where there is an old Monastary on a Mtn top that was built in the 1600s. They have up there The Virgin of Candles, which they carry her down evry year & for a week they celebrate her watching over them & protecting the people. It 's predominately Catholic (90%) but they have freedom for any religion now like U.S. The view on the Mtn was spectacular of the city & the Spanish architecture is breathtakingly beautiful here. On to a gigantic fort where they battled the enemies, then to an Emerald factory where they custom design jewelry made from the Emeralds mined near the mtns around Bogota (interior capital)...There is a blend of African, Indian & Spanish ethnicity & after 2 days I realize that the people here have a lot of passion for life. Passion for music, dance, food & being with each other. Today we are going to Chris's school for an outdoor festival w/ all the kids & their families.
Adios! Amy

We're here!

2008-03-28T08:56:00.003-04:00

Hola,
We are here safe & sound in Cartagena....I am sitting on Chris's balcony/apt across from the ocean listening to the hussle & bustle of the street below. Marie is cleaning up the lotion that crushed in her bag...The temp. feels around 85 degrees @8am. The salty air is feeling nice. We are on the edge of a poor neighborhood in the grittier part of the city....it is really cool. Last night we visited Old Town which is very touristy (or where the wealthier locals hang) but well preserved for 500 years old. We sat on the Fortress Wall where there is a cafe/bar, the dj was playing loud Techno/Salsa type music which sounded really nice too...The skyline looked so beautiful at dusk. We then walked around Old town, between the awesome structures to a park & grabbed a bite. The food here isn't spicy as you would think....we ate Crepes w/ beer. Today Marie & I are having a tour of the city w/ a local woman, then we can venture out & know where to revisit. The pics I post now will be my own...Adios! Amy

: ) ....

2008-03-25T23:00:00.000-04:00

...I should be finished with my packing but am not, oh well minimal is good I hear. My cousin Marie & I have a long flight tomorrow from Yooper land. It's like flying out of Alaska it seems, you never know where when & how you will get to your destination. First Detroit, then N. Carolina, then Miami @ midnight...sleep & head to Cartagena around 2pm arriving at 4pm. Adios!

March 14th 2008

2008-03-14T16:34:00.001-04:00

...........Counting down the days to fun in the sun.... It is 38 degrees here & I am ready!!!