Santa Marta

Santa Marta

The bus journey to reach our first Colombian destination, Santa Marta, took about three hours, nothing serious, but the spectacle offered by the vegetation we were immersed in and by the characteristic run-down little houses scattered along the main road made the whole thing really pleasant. Right away the town made an excellent impression on us, especially its tranquillity, which we were no longer used to in Venezuela. In a full twenty-five days spent on Venezuelan soil we had never allowed ourselves a night out (excluding the Los Roques archipelago, but that doesn't count!) because of the constant danger we could run into, so it's understandable that this unexpected tranquillity seemed like paradise to us. Just enough time to find accommodation and settle our bags and we were already out on the streets exploring the city.

Santa Marta is a medium-sized town with an important colonial centre in appreciable condition of preservation, and above all it is built on a pleasant bay protected from the violence of the ocean. We immediately adapted to this new and pleasant situation of peace and safety, not letting the chance slip for an excellent dinner near the beach and a healthy digestive stroll along the seafront. The reasons why Santa Marta makes the headlines are essentially two: the Quinta de San Pedro and Tayrona National Park. For reasons of time and above all money we had to rule out the visit to the Park and concentrate on the Quinta, an old and immense estate where sugar cane was distilled, which became extremely famous for having hosted the Libertador in his last days of life.

And so it was that the following day, having woken up without rushing and had a good breakfast, we took a city bus that dropped us right in front of the Quinta de San Pedro. Thanks to the help of a young guide we made our way into the buildings and rooms full of documents and objects made famous by the fact that they belonged to Simon Bolivar. In reality not much remains of the original estate, and the truly spectacular thing about the whole Quinta de San Pedro are its well-tended gardens, dotted with centuries-old trees inhabited by gigantic lizards. The visit lasted about two hours, after which we took a taxi and returned to our hotel to start organising our backpacks, given the imminent departure fixed for the following day. Our new destination was nothing less than the legendary Cartagena.