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| Colombian jungle version of Jack and the Beanstalk (the mosquitos are oversized too) |
We've transitioned successfully to boat life after our trip to God's freezer (Wisconsin). It remains here, in a word........hot. Kirstin and I are both pretty fit but the heat here is so debilitating that you actually cross traffic to get to the shady side of the street, where it's a relatively cool 93 degrees. All around us Colombian women wear Levi's and long sleeves in the hot sun.......of course without sweating or ruining their uniformly perfect hair. Not sure how that works.
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| Venezuelan money-purse workshop; low overhead in this sidewalk virtual sweatshop |
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| You can't choose your neighbors |
As we've made our loyal readership aware, sometimes the "haves" and the "have-nots" come in uncomfortably close contact. We may have mentioned the cramped, old 40 ft steel boat next to us with a mom, a missing father (back in Europe earning money), 6 children ages 10 months to 15 years, a loud dog, two parakeets, and a hamster. The deck looks like Sanford and Son's junkyard. We've become friendly with the mom and the basketball team-sized family she manages........the other day she said "I've got the life I've always dreamed of" as she washed pots and pans on the dock in 100 degree heat. If those were my dreams I'd surely be under a psychiatrist's care. She's quite the sailor as well, and asked me about the jet of water coming from the port bow sea-water outlet of our 53 foot Amel Super Maramu Red Line (the Ferrari of the seas)..........her expression visible sank when I told her it was the cooling water for one of our three A/C units. I'm fairly certain she hasn't felt air cooler than 90 degrees in 3-4 months. Maybe now she will take us up on our offer of happy hour.
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| Easily 20 degrees hotter down there |
In our never ending pursuit of leisure we decided to once again vacation from our vacation.......and go to Minca, a rural mountain hamlet overlooking Santa Marta. Not lost on us is the fact that due to Minca's elevation, it's about 20 degrees cooler.
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| A bit more scary than McDonald's play area |
Driving almost straight upwards in our natural gas (under)powered taxi, we climbed higher and higher........passing signs warning of squirrel crossings, monkey crossings, and one animal characterization we were not able to identify. We arrived at our eco-hut and Kirstin broke the news to me gently that a) there was no A/C but b) we wouldn't need it. Grumble, grumble.........I'll be the judge of that.
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| Eco hotel- very Tarzan and Jane setting |
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| Million dollar view but the whole tree house sways when you walk around |
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| Hopefully that's not runoff from the house above |
Not much to do in Minca other than eat, hike, and drink so we did all three for a couple of days. The hike we took reminded me of the charming British penchant for undertaking incredibly difficult adventures without proper equipment (i.e. Hillary, Shackleton). We left on our jungle hike with what we thought was proper attire and our trusty Deep Woods Off bug spray. Hours later we return literally covered with bug bites. Kirstin fared far worse than me (her athletic gear being a bit more hoochie than my staid attire). As of this writing, 3 days after "Bugpocalypse".......we're both scabby messes who wouldn't look odd in a medieval black death scene. Gross. The scenery in Minca was breathtaking and although not strictly speaking in the Colombian jungle proper, it does give you a sense of how wild this country really is.
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| No paved roads immediately outside Minca |
We getting ready now for both Princess Emily's visit to Cartagena and our departure from Colombia at the end of December. The complicating factor is we are really heading off the grid from here to the San Blas islands...........home of the Kuna Indians (vs. the more familiar variety from Cleveland......little sports joke there). The important factor here is there is no chance to provision for about a month after we leave Colombia so we will be doing some mega shopping runs here to make sure we don't run out of the essentials (wine, cheese, mouthwash).
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| Not pictured.....Tom, who doesn't do 50 degree water |
I'm curious about these indigenous Panamanians. Cruising forums have painted quite the mixed picture of them........they don't like you scuba diving, spearfishing, kite boarding, dinghying, laughing, smiling, chortling, etc. But they seem to be fine coming up to your boat expecting to receive gifts. Ho, ho, ho........here's a smallpox laced blanket from Uncle Yanqui for old time's sake (it worked for the Pilgrims!!!) . Actually, we have purchased some useful items for them but refuse to furnish them with their first choice gifts (oreos and money). As the kids say, shit will be getting real when we untie from here.
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| Minca's Nativity Display |
