Cartagena, Columbia

Cartagena is a city of remarkable contrast. The Old City has been preserved, yet it is surrounded by modern skyscrapers. Over 1 million people live in Columbia, which covers 220 square miles. The capitol is Bogota, which is a short 45 minute flight from Cartagena, but to travel the route by car takes 23 hours. This was our first view of Cartagena as the ship was making it way into port.

Cartagena was founded in 1533 by Don Pedro de Heredia. When the Spanish conquistadors discovered that the interior of Columbia was rich in gold and emeralds, these items flowed into Cartagena for shipment to Spain. To defend against pirate attacks, King Felipe II ordered a protective wall to be build around the city.

The investment in the wall paid off in 1741 when England attacked with a force of 24,000 men and 186 ships, but Cartagena successfully defended itself.

The San Felipe de Barajas Fortress situated just outside the walled city. This enormous fort is considered to be the most outstanding feat of Spanish military engineering in the new world.
On our tour we visited the Heredia Theater built in 1911 from the ruins of the old Mercy Church. The inside of the church, including the ceiling (shown below) was just beautiful.

We were treated to a folkloric show of music and dance by local artists in the main auditorium. The show consisted of dances from the three most important regions of Columbia - the Atlantic Coast, the Pacific Coast and the Los Andes Region.

Today, Cartagena's economy is largely centered around platinum and timber, coffee and oil products. Tourism, roses and emeralds also contribute.

Statues like the one shown below are numerous around the old city. They mostly represent past customs. There were also living statues present. A man and a little boy would stand perfectly still until someone gave them a tip and then they would change their positions.

Baseball is the favorite sport in Cartagena and people still dress up when going out to shop, etc. They can always spot a tourist because of the casual dress, especially in the old city. There are thousands of motor bikes in Cartagena. Not only are they used for personal transportation, but they are also taxis. Every other Friday there are no motor bikes allowed in the city.

We also visited the San Pedro Claver monastery built in homage to the protector of slaves. It is ironic that Cartagena spent so much of its past trying to break free of Spain. Our tour guide explained that a large percentage of land, buildings and businesses are now owned by Spaniards.