The dot on the "where are we map" won't burn a hole into Cartagena any longer. We sailed on Wednesday to another Colombian island - Isla Rosarios. It was a motor through the Boca Chica channel - the large shipping entrance into the Port of Cartagena and South and West to a small island chain. We had to work our way through a reef and are comfortably anchored. It was great to jump into the clear water - finally. We hadn't been swimming since Punta Hermosa, on the Colombian coast before getting into Cartagena. But, unfortunately it wasn't time for pleasure swimming (though we both took a quick trip to the nearby reef to at least see a fish!). The bottom of Astarte needed some serious cleaning after being in the hot harbour of Cartagena. So we managed to get half the boat done after arrival. Today (Thursday) we'll get the other half done.
But let's re-cap what's been happening from the last entry. Most of the days were spent trying to get some serious provisioning done. As we get into the San Blas islands - we'll need to live off our stores as there are no major shopping stops in the island chain. We understand there is a boat or two that come by with fresh fruits and vegetables and a few supplies - but you can't count on those things. So we needed to stock up. Plus, we've been on the boat eight months and our supplies from Florida are pretty well used up. Things like cooking oil, olive oil, rice, pastas, flour and sugar had to be purchased. We went to several different stores throughout the days - looking for the best deals. We are on a budget! We got a good work out walking and carrying the goods back to the boat.
We shopped for beer and wine - pricing the various stores and a place called "contraband alley." The end result - after all that shopping and pricing - was that the best beer price was the closest grocery store. On certain days, they offer a 15% discount on local beers if you have your "tarjeta de Carulla" (Carulla's - the grocery store- discount card). So with the discount, on a Thursday, we could get the cheapest beer. Plus, it didn't require a cab, rather a nice young girl and the grocery cart, to walk with our three cases of beer and groceries two blocks to the dock.
Barbara also went back to the locals market - this time with Angelika - to buy the fresh veggies and fruits on Tuesday - prior to our Wednesday departure. That was a true adventure. We hired a young man with a beat up old cart to go through the market with us - picking up kilos of potatoes, onions, carrots, four watermelons, three pineapples, eggplants, oranges, plantains, tomatoes, limes, cabbage, etc. We bought fresh, unrefrigerated eggs by the "layo" (a layer of 30 eggs). It was fun negotiating and haggling over already very cheap prices. We bought a lot of stuff and didn't spend all that much. As we got in a cab to get back to the dock with all our fresh stuff - the cab wouldn't start. The cab driver had to play with the engine a bit and finally got it started.
While Barbara negotiated her way with vegetables, Michael was fighting off catfish as he cleaned the prop and rudder enough to keep the engine from overheating on the 20 mile run to the Rosarios. The water is pretty nasty in Cartagena - so getting in it - wasn't fun. He then had to clean up and get our paperwork to the agent to get us cleared out. Agents have to be used in Colombia for the clearing in and clearing out process. We used a guy named David Arroya and he did right by us. It cost $80 US for the paperwork. But unfortunately, our friends from Tumshi used a different agent and it cost them $150. It is amazing how the prices for just about everything vary, from person to person, and from day to day.
So we had our paperwork, our fresh stuff - we did a last run for some more meat and bread and then the crew of Tumshi and Astarte went out for a very nice dinner. This was more than we normally spend on dinner - but we figured it would be the last dinner (or lunch) out for months.
On Wednesday morning, we paid our last debt for dinghy dock, water, internet and laundry to Club Nautico, bought a chart to the Rosarios and went to the grocery one last time to spend the last of the Colombia money. We kept a bit in case we could buy a lobster or fish from the fishermen in Rosarios. And what would YOU spend your last pesos on??? Beer, of course! But not at the sale price.
It was a busy few days getting ready - but its great to be back underway and away from the city. We do love Cartagena - it's a great city and we had a great time. Practicing Spanish in real life situations was the best of language lessons. Now, we're back to island time. But the next few days in the Rosarios mean cleaning the hull and waterline; swimming and waiting for a good weather window to Panama.
Sorry, we never captioned the photos - internet was very iffy. And a reminder - if you contact us on aol, gmail, web page or facebook - you won't hear from us for a really long time on anything requiring an internet connection. Our sailmail and winlink still will work (hopefully)
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