First taste of the Caribbean: Santa Marta
Leaving the chilly weather of the interior we headed up to the north coast of Colombia for a taste of the Caribbean. As we plan to eventually make it all the way to the bottom, we thought we should start at the top.
We stayed in the medium sized town of Santa Marta for about a week. Santa Marta has the honour of being the oldest still inhabited town founded by the Spaniards in Colombia, and the second oldest in South America (the oldest European founded town is in Venezuela).
We had an air bnb lined up and when we explained that we were looking for Spanish lessons, our host, Raquel said she would be happy to help us with that herself. And she did. And then some.
For the next few days Raquel drove us around, spoke Spanish with us, took us to the beach, took us with her family into the hills on a Saturday and even thoughtfully provided her young daughter, Sofia, for Tali to play with!
Despite no common language, the girls hit it off. The family could not have been nicer! So welcoming we had a lovely time with them.
Santa Marta itself is not hugely lovely, apart from an old town. However, I liked that it was where local people came to holiday (it's a beach resort) and it was fun to see how Colombian's do beach holidays (like other places really).
Santa Marta is also the gateway to the Tayrona National Park. Famous for stunning beaches. We didn't really get into the park proper as it involves a 2 hour hike in and the same in reverse. Not terribly feasible with Tali (I'm tired) Chiu. Still we dipped in and had a lovely day at the beach there.
We stayed in the medium sized town of Santa Marta for about a week. Santa Marta has the honour of being the oldest still inhabited town founded by the Spaniards in Colombia, and the second oldest in South America (the oldest European founded town is in Venezuela).
We had an air bnb lined up and when we explained that we were looking for Spanish lessons, our host, Raquel said she would be happy to help us with that herself. And she did. And then some.
For the next few days Raquel drove us around, spoke Spanish with us, took us to the beach, took us with her family into the hills on a Saturday and even thoughtfully provided her young daughter, Sofia, for Tali to play with!
Despite no common language, the girls hit it off. The family could not have been nicer! So welcoming we had a lovely time with them.
Santa Marta itself is not hugely lovely, apart from an old town. However, I liked that it was where local people came to holiday (it's a beach resort) and it was fun to see how Colombian's do beach holidays (like other places really).
Santa Marta is also the gateway to the Tayrona National Park. Famous for stunning beaches. We didn't really get into the park proper as it involves a 2 hour hike in and the same in reverse. Not terribly feasible with Tali (I'm tired) Chiu. Still we dipped in and had a lovely day at the beach there.
First lunch in Santa Marta grilled fish and grilled chicken while we sat out the huge downpour!
flooded streets after the rain
Tali and Sofia in the Santa Marta art museum
Fabulous fish on the beach near Tayronna Park
A very relaxing day!
Morning trip to the village of Taganga
An evening out with Raquel and family
Day out in Minca - up in the hills above Santa Marta.
Cooler weather and a lovely lunch.
Paddling in the river. That was as far as we got - the water was VERY cold!
It comes straight off the mountains!!
Old Colonial town of Santa Marta
More beach time - with beach snacks.
Shredded coconut drenched in honey/sugar!
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