Top Picks - Colombia

•  A sunny afternoon hanging out around Parque 93 in Bogota
• Strolling through the Sunday flea market in Usaquen, Bogota
• Delicious tapas-style lunch at Bistronomy in Usaquen, Bogota
• Friday night drinks and a walk around Zona Rosa, Bogota
• Breathtaking sunset view from Cerro Monseratte in Bogota
• Renting an apartment inside the old city walls of Cartagena
• Spanish lessons at Colombo American Cultural Center in Cartagena
• Trying out some of Cartagena’s best restaurants: Tabetai for sushi, La Paletteria for home-made popsicles, El Santissimo for delicious meat, the Cevicheria and Pizza en el Parque
• A trip from Cartagena to Spa Karmaira hotel for a beautiful resort and amazing seafood
• Watching the locals dance to salsa over drinks at Donde Felipe in Cartagena

February 20 - March 11: Colombia

After 2 months of visiting family (including meeting our newborn twin nieces J), celebrating with friends, watching movies on our couch, sleeping in our own bed, and over-indulging in virtually everything that we had missed at home, it was time to get back on the road!

Colombia was an interesting start to South America, as most of it has clearly not yet become a common tourist destination (we probably saw less than a dozen tourists in our entire first week). While there’s something refreshing about getting off the “gringo path”, it also has its challenges – namely that very few speak any English (conveniently forcing us to work on our pitiful Spanish), and simply figuring out where you want to go (let alone getting there) can be a challenge.  We were also very surprised by how expensive everything was; food and lodging in the areas we visited was almost on par with Canada.

In line with our new plan of slowing down the pace, we only made 3 stops: Bogota, San Gil and Cartagena. Bogota was a success – fantastic restaurants, great markets (our favorite being the Sunday flea market in Usaquen), some beautiful neighborhoods (we stayed in Parque 93, which felt a lot like a Europe), a vibrant clubbing district (Zona Rosa), and a trip up to Cerro Monseratte for an awesome view of Bogota at sunset were our highlights. This was another city that surpassed our expectations in terms of development, with a strong transportation infrastructure (even bike and jogging paths) as well as a high level of security. Well worth a visit.

San Gil, on the other hand, was a complete flop. A small town in the countryside, it is advertised as being the ecotourism capital of Colombia (really?!?). The rafting that supposedly “just might cause our heart to stop beating” turned out to be baby rapids in a little 3-person dingy (check the photos to see our rafting taxi getting setup!); the only “breathtaking hike” that we found was a 20-minute stroll to a nearby waterfall; and the waterfall that “only maniacs should abseil down” turned out to have… well… basically the equivalent of a couple shower heads worth of water. On top of that, our boutique eco hotel happened to have a whole class of school kids staying with us. What can we say? Can’t win them all!!! Next J

Our last stop, Cartagena, was a much more pleasant surprise. It’s easy to understand why this colorful walled colonial town with cobblestone streets, beautiful churches and leafy plazas is renowned as Colombia’s most beautiful city. We stayed for a week and a half, took Spanish lessons at the local school, enjoyed the great variety of delicious restaurants (including some fantastic seafood, sushi and artisanal popsicles), and best of all welcomed our friend Pat to Colombia for a long weekend of the same. The only possible complaint was our failed attempt to find any nightlife, although we got our fair share of that at home over the holidays.

So that concludes Colombia. We had told ourselves that we would do less planning on this last part of our trip, but in hindsight this might be a country that requires a bit more planning (and budget) to experience to its fullest potential. We have been told that we missed some of the best spots such as Tayrona National Park and San Andres. Maybe that’s where the secret jewel of South America that we were hoping Colombia would be remains to be discovered…

Next up, Ace’s long awaited request: a month of surfing in Peru!

Photos - February 20-March 11: Colombia

Top Picks - South Africa

• Countryside living and fantastic food at Chrislin African Lodge in Addo
• Surfing with the locals in J-Bay
• Road trip down the Garden Route
• Breathtaking ocean side hiking on the Otter Trail
• Highest bridge bungee jump in the world at Bloukrans Bridge, Tsitsikamma
• Walking with cheetahs at Tenikwa Wildlife Center
• Brunch at East Head Cafe in Knysna
• Cage diving with great white sharks in Gansbaai
• Spending a night (or two) in the beautiful vineyards in Franschhoek
• Visit the famous Vergelen wine estate in Somerset West
• A meal to die for at La Motte in Franschhoek
• Paired wine and cheese tasting at Fairview, Paarl
• Drive through Chapman’s peak, Cape Town
• Trying not to get blown off the cliffs at Cape of Good Hope, Cape Town
• Camps Bay Ridge Guest House in Camps Bay, Cape Town
• Sunday night cocktails at trendy Caprice in Camps Bay, Cape Town
• Sundowners at the Roundhouse in Camps Bay, Cape Town
• Addis in Cape, etheopian restaurant in Cape Town
• Hiking up Table Mountain and Lion’s Head
• Afternoon at the Neighbourgoods market in Cape Town
• Watching hundreds of kite surfers at world-renowned Sunset Beach in Cape Town