Cartagena

Back in the Old Town, we had a walking route planned out to take in all the sights. We started at the San Pedro Claver Church where the peace and coolness (with added electric fans) meant we spent rather longer in the church than we usually would. The structure itself was fascinating - part church, part museum/gallery, part botanical gardens. The gardens in the central courtyard were really a stunning addition to the church and worth calling in for alone.

Continuing on around the town, we walked to the Palace of the Inquisition in the Plaza de Bolivar, stopping for a cheeky frozen lemonade in a cafe overlooking the square. The small cobbled streets were heaving with tourists, sellers and locals all mingling in the midday sunshine. Going north past the Cathedral, where a service was going on, we headed for the city walls where the sea breeze was mercifully welcome. Passing the Heredia Theatre en route, we weaved through quieter, colourful streets alive with flowers and trees from every balcony. It reminded us a lot of Cuzco in Peru, albeit more colourful.

The dungeons at the northern end of the walls now houses local market traders and we stopped in for a look along with endless tourist coaches. Looping back into town, we headed back towards the clock tower, looking for somewhere to have a quiet drink before returning to the ship. The Juan Valdez cafe in the shadow of the clock tower made a superb final stop, before Ben quickly bought a hat and we headed back to meet Manuel to take us home.

Without the taxi, the 40 minute walk each way to town would have made the day unbearable in the heat, but we really lucked out with such a great driver/tour guide! An early departure of 4pm from Cartegena as we head on towards Colon, Panama tomorrow.Read more