Vol.9, No. 1 | The Cartagena Edition
Hey ya’ll!
Happy New Year! I hope you guys are in a good groove for 2024. It’s taken me 11 days to feel like I’m at the start of a new something, but I’m finally there.
I kicked off the new year in Cartagena, a city that’s been on my list for over a decade. We spent 10 days and every time I mentioned that to someone they told me how long that was to be there. However, there’s something that I love about traveling slowly and soaking into a city. After a few days in Jamaica, followed by 36 hours in NY, 10 days to settle in and wander was very much needed.
Here’s what I discovered:
Dogs in the airport. I had a layover in Bogota on the way to Cartagena and so many people were traveling with their dogs. I’ve never seen anything like it. I felt like I was in a dog park. It was Christmas day so I’m not sure if there was an increase because of holiday travel. Everywhere I looked I saw people walking dogs of all sizes. I realize that it’s kinda weird that this is my first bullet point but I hope it helps make it clear how different this was.
Afrobeataton. I expected to hear a lot of reggaeton, but I also heard a lot of afrobeataton (I coined this term the minute I heard it, so let’s go with it). It reminded me just how much of a wave afrobeat has made in the past few years. I think more afrobeataton should be played. It has legs.
Food guides. One of the best things about going slower is having time to explore. Before I travel I’m always scouring different sources for recommendations. It normally gives me a good starting point, but there’s always something missing. Cartegena is a very touristy city (more than I realized) so most of the things that I came across were on every single list. Once I arrived and started tackling the places that seemed interesting, I was very unimpressed. On my third day, I somehow found Pascal. A place that I’ve not seen mentioned anywhere and I believe it’s one of the absolute best restaurants in Cartagena. In every city, I’m always looking for the restaurant or bar that I would travel back for, and in Cartagena, Pascal is it. That’s saying a lot because they only serve breakfast and lunch. We ended up eating there four times during the trip. On our first morning back to Atlanta, my boyfriend said he wanted to walk over to Pascal for breakfast. He was quickly brought back to reality.
My other Cartagena favorites:
Blue Apple Beach - The other place I’d go back for. I’m planning on writing something else on this so that’s all I’ll say for now.
Santa Catalina Hotel - In a city full of hundreds of rooftops, this was my favorite. This spot was mentioned to me by a bartender one night. It has all the views and a pool without the crowds. Another place that wasn’t on any list. Don’t confuse it with the more popular Sofitel Santa Clara Hotel.
Spa at Santa Clara Hotel - This hotel is known for many things, but I’d go back to the spa. I had the best massage, quite possibly ever.
El Baron - This bar had the best cocktails. It’s not on the World’s 50 Best Bars list, but in my humble opinion, this is the one that should be.
Mondo - This is my favorite bar to hang out in. I loved the passion and personality of the bartenders here. In a few short visits, I felt like I walked away with friends.
La Mulata - I prefer local food always. I tried many places, but this was the one that I went back to for authentic Cartagena food.
Jake the Barber - I started wearing my hair natural around 15 years ago because I knew I wanted to travel as much as possible in this lifetime and didn’t want to get bogged down with figuring out hair things. Then I started dating a guy that gets his hair cut twice a week and so now I’m tasked with finding barbers when we’re on the go. If we could find Jake everywhere, life would be easier.
I hope you’re all doing well! May this new year bring you all more joy, tranquility, and memorable adventures.
Shannon
P.S. - I mentioned a few months ago that Jamaica is happening this year. It’s not too late to join. Tickets are here.