Today, we head from Cartagena to Tayrona National Park, east of us along the Caribbean coastline.
First is an hourlong busied which we catch from outside the city walls--it feels like we do 3 large loops out and back around different directions from the city before getting to our bus terminal destination. Maybe theres a better bus to take but this was the one in the guidebook and the only one we saw marked 'Terminal'.
As we arrive at the bus station, a man collecting cardboard asks us where we are going before immediately darting across the busy terminal to stop a departing Santa Marta-bound bus for us. We chase after him, hop on, and pay a reasonable price. Maybe this includes his kickback. We learn afterwards that bus tickets are one of the flexible value items of Colombia. No matter; we're happy to get on the right track to where we are going so quickly.
We relax for four hours, watching terrible US movies dubbed into Spanish (eg Gods of Egypt). We arrive at the Santa Marta bus terminal, a couple kilometers from the city center, around 3:30PM. The park closes at 5:30PM and the information desk informs us that we may be too late to get there tonight. We head out on a bus for Palomino, planning on hopping off at the park entrance at El Zaino.
As we de-bus at El Zaino, an excited cab driver rolls down his window and enthusiastically motions for us to run towards the park gates before they close. We make it through the ticket counter with 10 minutes to spare--much better than our LAX transfer.
We take a small collectivo to Cañaveral before an hour-long hike through forests, beaches, and boulder fields. We pass leaf cutter ants doing a final late-day shift hauling foliage back to their nests.
We pull into the state-run resort at Arrecifes and pay 30,000 pesos (~$11) each for hammocks in a large horse-shoe shaped palm-thatched gazebo dorm.
The bugs are not bad at all but each hammock still includes a nice mosquito net. The sound of birds, crickets, and the crashing waves lulls us to sleep.
First is an hourlong busied which we catch from outside the city walls--it feels like we do 3 large loops out and back around different directions from the city before getting to our bus terminal destination. Maybe theres a better bus to take but this was the one in the guidebook and the only one we saw marked 'Terminal'.
As we arrive at the bus station, a man collecting cardboard asks us where we are going before immediately darting across the busy terminal to stop a departing Santa Marta-bound bus for us. We chase after him, hop on, and pay a reasonable price. Maybe this includes his kickback. We learn afterwards that bus tickets are one of the flexible value items of Colombia. No matter; we're happy to get on the right track to where we are going so quickly.
We relax for four hours, watching terrible US movies dubbed into Spanish (eg Gods of Egypt). We arrive at the Santa Marta bus terminal, a couple kilometers from the city center, around 3:30PM. The park closes at 5:30PM and the information desk informs us that we may be too late to get there tonight. We head out on a bus for Palomino, planning on hopping off at the park entrance at El Zaino.
As we de-bus at El Zaino, an excited cab driver rolls down his window and enthusiastically motions for us to run towards the park gates before they close. We make it through the ticket counter with 10 minutes to spare--much better than our LAX transfer.
We take a small collectivo to Cañaveral before an hour-long hike through forests, beaches, and boulder fields. We pass leaf cutter ants doing a final late-day shift hauling foliage back to their nests.
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| Leaf cutter ants |
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| Skip the pricy Eco-habs, they said. |
The bugs are not bad at all but each hammock still includes a nice mosquito net. The sound of birds, crickets, and the crashing waves lulls us to sleep.
YOU ARE LIVING THE DREAM MY MAN THANKS FOR SHARING :) Sakit.info
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