1 May: An exploded beer can says everything about the day! 2 failed laundry searches in Santa Marta, getting caught up in a May Day parade, super slow shopping as they only had a few cashiers operating and then a final success at a laundromat in Barranquilla (the next town) BUT by then it was already 4pm. With nowhere to really stay in Barranquilla we pushed on towards Cartagena and broke our cardinal rule – don’t drive at night. Gas stations turned out to be a bust until we doubled back and found one that would accept us but by then it was 8:30 – a very long 12+hour day in 35deg plus heat. The cherry on the top was the beer can!
2 May: We slept really well last night, thanks to being exhausted and becuase the security guard had let us park down the side which meant we were away from the comings and goings of a fuel station. Spent a couple of hours having the valve on one of Mr J tyres replaced (very busy tyre shop on the forecourt of fuel station) and in the process discovering that his bearings are in need of replacement as they have worn the tyres badly (will have to be a job for Mexico). Before heading out to the Finca, we missioned around in narrow streets of a poorish area of Cartagena trying to find our shipping agent as she had received another Amazon delivery for us. It turned out she was in a pedestrian only barrio so eventually Stuart walked in, with plenty of help from the local kids as the only reason gringos visit this neighbourhood is to go to Ana.
6 May: Last night was our last night in Mr Jones on the South American continent, today we move into a hostel for the least few days until shipping. It has been a productive but super hot time on the Finca as we cleaned Mr J thoroughly, built a partition for the front seats and as a bonus built a new cupboard for Mr J kitchen which while not quite complete is going to be a nice new addition to him. The French couple that run the finca have been great with little gifts, a nice evening of aperitifs and helping with the cutting of the wood.
7 May: Mr Jones is in the port, now we have to wait a few days for the narcotics inspection and then hopefully the shipment goes smoothly. Both of us spent the better part of the afternoon sleeping, no doubt an accumulation of the stress of last few days and then that we just probably haven’t slept that well with all the heat.
8 May: chilled day today. Popped out and walked around the neighbourhood to find a hairdresser and barber. Stuart’s last two haircuts have taken almost as long as Tania, it is quite incredible how much time the barbers spend with a razor making sure the edge of the haircut is perfect and also heaven forbid if one fine blond hair pops out, then they go over everything again. His haircut probably takes 45 minutes and only costs R110. Tania wasnt much more at around R300.
10 May: What a long day in the heat and humidity. Got picked up to go back to the port at 6am for the drug inspection of Mr Jones and only got back to the hostel after 4pm. A lot of that time was sitting around for paperwork and so forth but still exhausting. The good news is that the inspection went well, wasn’t as thorough as we feared meaning Stuart didn’t have to unpack every nook and cranny and now Mr J is sealed up with security tape which should make the shipment relative risk free.
11 May: Lots of frustration and stress this morning. With Mr J all set to sail we felt comfortable enough to purchase airline tickets but that turned out to be extremely complicated, between trying to find a suitable routing and then finally to make payment. For some reason in Colombia we have really struggled with online payments using our credit card so after not succeeding on the airline website we eventually had to go through a 3rd party reseller and now hope that we get the tickets as purchased and boarding times in time (everything is via the website and very much out of your control)
12 May: Sunday afternoon & evening wander around the the old town and Getsmeni areas of Cartagena. It was interesting but bustling with tourists (local & international) and real reminder to us that while may not visit all the “must tick places” when travelling with Mr J we in fact get to see a different and more real side of the country. After a bit of frustration with trying to find a restuarant that appealed to us we eventually foundd a very funky argentinian style parilla and got to have lamb chops for the first time 15 months – what a treat!