Cartagena Day 2: Cloudy Weather
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“A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving.” That was the motto of our second day in Cartagena. We had planned to focus on the Old Town’s history and museums. Per our itinerary:
Begin your morning with breakfast at Café Stepping Stone, a social‑impact café in Getsemaní known for excellent coffee and wholesome plates. From there, take a short taxi or a longer walk to Castillo San Felipe de Barajas, the imposing hilltop fortress that once guarded the city. Arrive early to avoid the heat and crowds, and explore its tunnels, battlements, and sweeping views.
Return to the walled city for a cluster of museums all within a few minutes of one another. Start at the Palace of the Inquisition on Plaza de Bolívar, then cross the square to the Gold Museum (Museo del Oro Zenú) for a compact but fascinating look at indigenous craftsmanship. Continue toward the waterfront to the Naval Museum of the Caribbean, which offers engaging exhibits on maritime history. If time allows, pass by the elegant Teatro Adolfo Mejía, a jewel of Cartagena’s cultural scene.
Lunch awaits at La Cevichería in Getsemaní, a lively, walk‑in‑only ceviche bar made famous by Anthony Bourdain.
Spend the afternoon strolling through Old Town’s boutiques, emerald shops, art galleries, and handicraft stores. As evening settles, relax in Plaza Santo Domingo, home to Botero’s famous sculpture “La Gorda Gertrudis.” Street performers, musicians, and warm lamplight make this plaza especially atmospheric.
Dinner tonight is at La Vitrola (reservations required), one of the city’s most iconic restaurants, known for its Cuban‑inspired ambiance and refined Caribbean dishes.
The weather forecasters, however, dashed our hopes for an outdoor excursion. Facing an 80% chance of mid-day rain, we put off our entire Day 2 itinerary and instead fast-forwarded our Day 7 plans, which involved shopping at the indoor Plaza Bocagrande Mall then exploring the Castillo Grande neighborhood, once the rains stopped. And so we headed out to the mall, confident that our revised itinerary would keep us dry.
It did, but not because the mall shielded us from the thunderstorm. Irony of ironies, it never did rain, so our cunning reshuffling turned out to be completely unnecessary. Doubly unnecessary because the mall itself had very few stores that were overpriced for our expectations, so our shopping ended quickly. The food court had plenty of options. The one we picked served us a Colombian fish stew whose recipe has been handed down for generations. Unfortunately, the fish in it had also seemingly been handed down for many generations.
The beaches just outside were as expected: underdeveloped with broken sidewalks and unkempt foreshore vegetation. The menacing clouds chased away the crowds but not the vendors, who politely but valiantly wanted to braid my hair.
Still, we had a lovely walk through Castillo Grande, the upscale and quiet neighborhood near the mall. There is a well paved walking trail on the Bahia the Cartegas side of this small peninsula. The other side has a very narrow, very local beach, the aptly name Playa Castillo Grande. At the very point of the peninsula sits the Fuerte Castillogrande, but don’t make the mistake we did. The fort sits inside a Naval Officer’s club, so it’s not open to visitors.
In the evening after washing the sweat off, we decided to explore the old city again, following the route we charted for our Day 1. Entering through the clock tower at Plaza de los Coches, we drifted through Calle Santo Domingo, Calle de la Factoria, and caught the breathtaking sunset at Las Murallas near the Baluarte de Santo Domingo for a golden‑hour panorama. We then wandered around the old city, ending up at the sweet‑filled Portal de los Dulces, where every cocada looked the same. Dinner was at La Vitrola. Highlights there included a live show by folk-Colombian musicians and an especially tasty yuca seafood empanada, whose seafood was from this century . The evening ended with a round or four of drinks at the very lively Mondo bar. We may have seen Colombian pop stars there but our pop-star knowledge begins in the Bay Area and ends in Puerto Rico.
A good traveled knows how to roll with the punches. And we did.
Check back tomorrow for more updates from our trip!
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