Columbia 6^th Report

On Monday we drove by bus to the La Boquilla Fishing village just outside Cartagena and we boarded canoes for a trip around the tropical mangroves of Cienaga de la Virgen.  Along the way our guides explained the endemic birds and other features of the mangroves.  We saw many nice birds and were impressed with how well kept up the mangrove was and the beauty of the trip.  These boat are small canoes and they tipped as we were poled along.  We were cautious to stay in the middle our seats to avoid tipping the boat over.  I had been on a previous mangrove swamp trip from a cruise ship and this significantly topped that experience.  We saw special white oysters attached to the mangroves stems and many small fish.  When flooding takes places the water level raises 30 meters with no problems for the local villagers.  We saw white grey and green colored herons.  There are also three types of crabs in the area. 

Other facts about the area are that 80% of the Cartagena’s people are considered poor.  One of the guides we had at my request allowed me to sample some coco leaves.  My only reaction was that my mouth was slightly numb. 

On Tuesday, we had a long drive by road to the city of Palamino that is on the Caribbean coast.  It takes six hours.   It started slowly.  One of our fellow group travelers had left 400 dollars in currency under a mattress in a previous hotel.  It was supposed to be delivered Monday night and did not make it.  So the guide spent a lot of time working on that before we left the hotel.  Also, we were in two groups and the bus we were using could not pick up the other group because of a narrow street.  So, the other group had taken another bus and then meets up with our bus at a different location.  On top of that as we were leaving town, the bus pulled over to make a police report regarding one of our group who had her phone stolen out of her bag last night while she was with part of our group eating dinner. This further delayed us.  On top of that as we traveled down the road, one of our groups found two Baggies in a back seat container in front of her with white powder in them.  Suspected cocaine.  The bus was searched as a result.  So, we ended up our final destination over an hour late.

Our guide Julio gave us nice presentations while we drove down the road.  Julio told us the history of Colombia regarding various past presidents and the cocaine trafficking.  Also, there is a communist FARC element, militias, and the military involved.  Presently Colombia is a leading world producer of cocaine.  200,000 hectors of ground is producing 900 metric tons of cocaine a year in Colombia. 

Julio also gave a very good presentation on the Spanish language.  Presently the movies mostly use Mexican Spanish per Julio. 

We are staying at a family farm, La Jorora, which is on the Ocean.  Very nice place.  The showers are cold and I particularly do not like cold showers.  I walked to the beach and it is impressive.   They have three Rhodesian Ridge back dogs here that are full grown and keep each other company.  I took their picture. The food is good.  Last night I went to the beach and took pictures of the waves.  The waves are very strong and do not appear to be that type to swim in.  I saw a horse under the bridge on the way to the beach.   

Today was our last day in Colombia of the tour.  Tomorrow we go to the airports flying.  I think we fly out of Santa Marta.  Today, I walked the property, very steep walk up hill.  I then took a public bus to Palamino.  I walked the streets of this town and there was nothing that attracted me except a nice piece of pie.  The bus on the way back missed my hotel and I spent over an hour on it.   I had shown the bus staff the name and they acknowledged it.  They realized they made the mistake and had another bus going the opposite direction to the hotel takes me.  The return trip should of taken 15 minutes.  The bus was extraordinarily crowded.  I was pressed very close to Colombians for a long time. 

Colombia

Fifth Report, 17 February 2019

It is Tuesday and the last couple of days have been very busy.  Yesterday started with a cold shower.  The water would not get hot.  Not nice.  I complained to our guide.  We then drove to beautiful Orchid farm called Romelia in Manizles.  They have received many top awards and trophies for their very nice orchids.  We had a terrific tour walking down a steep hill where various vegetation was described to us in detail.  We saw mango trees, lime bushes and banana trees.  We were explained the weather patterns of the Andes mountain range.  We saw the Guadua plant which looks like bamboo.  It is thicker and has a brown coat when growing that will cause heavy itching if touched with skin.  We were warned not to touch it.  Then we walked and saw the hot houses where the orchids were shown in various stages of growing.  We were then treated to a terrific meal, which had vegetarian highlights.   

We loaded back up onto the bus and went to a coffee plantation.  It is named La Hacienda Guayabal.  On the way there, our guide, Julio Rivera made a nice presentation on the drug cartels.  He has also spoken on this subject separately.  We passed one house that had belonged to a Drug Cartel boss that looked like it was destroyed.  Julio explained that it is rumored that drug cartel homes are riddled with stashes of cash.  So the neighbors and others had torn up the dwelling and yard to find this money.  It looked to be a wreck.  4 million Colombians had moved out of Colombia to avoid the violence during this period of time. 

The coffee plantation presentation was extraordinary detailed and demanding.  After a nice cup of coffee, we were shown the various stages of coffee tree production by looking at the plants in a planter box.  After that, we were issued picking containers to put over our shoulder.  We were then marched up a steep hill and asked to pick coffee berries.  Only ripe berries, which were a certain color of red, were to be picked.  Our coffee plant Santiago was very complimentary of our efforts. Only Arabic coffee is used in Colombia.  Which has zero to one percent caffeine.  It takes 5 to 7 months to grow the coffee.  The coffee produced here is considered some of the smoothest in the world.  I personally only drink Colombian coffee at home. It takes two months to pick the beans at this ranch and then 4 months to replant new coffee plants.  A coffee tree lasts 20 to 25 years before it is replaces with a new tree. The coffee plants are planted in cycles of three.  It takes two years for a new tree to produce coffee. The Guayabal farm is 64 hectors and has 3,600 trees. 

40% of the pickers of coffee beans are now women and the full baskets are heavy.  2,000 tons of coffee a year is produced at this ranch.  Coffee was discovered in Ethiopia.  It was originally an Arab drink and the French brought it over to the Americas for production.  It takes 60 beans of coffee to make one cup.  Only the best beans are exported leaving the remains for local consumption.  5 million people in Colombia make a living from coffee production.  200 kilos are picked in one day.  The coffee is not roasted in Colombia.  Germany, U.S.A. and Japan are heavy users of coffee from Colombia.  Each country roasts per taste.  Colombian coffee is collected by a cooperative with a trademark “Juan Valdez”. 

As part of the tour we saw where the beans were processed and bagged for shipment.  We then were giving an elaborate presentation on how to taste coffee and tell the difference in cooking methods.  We were each given a diploma after the class with our names on it.

We then were bused to the airport at Pereira and caught a late night flight to Cartagena.  The security procedures at Pereira were some of the most intense that I have experienced.  Too much.  We did not get bedded down in our hotels until after midnight. 

We were required to be up early the next day for a walking tour of Cartagena.  It was 110 degrees here yesterday.  The walking tour was very good and I took a lot of pictures.  It was in the beautiful colonial center.  We wondered through the narrow streets and colorful plazas to discover some of the cities historical gems.  This included the Puerta del Reloj (clock tower), Plaza de los Coches, Plaza Bolivar and the church of San Pedro Claver.  Ladies in colorful dresses walked with full plates of fruit on their head wanting money to take their pictures.  At the lunch break the taxi taking me to my hotel had to ask three separate people where my hotel was.  We eventually made it.

After a lunch break we went to the Convento De El Desierto de Nuestra Senora De La Candelaria, which had a very nice view and was on a hilltop.   We then visited the San Felipe Fortress.  San Felipe dominates the old town and is the largest Spanish fort in the Americas. Its solid construction allowed Colombian forces to successfully defend the city against frequent attacks in the 17^th and 18^th centuries.