The emerald lady of Colombia
(BY: Sandman-Preface. This is an edited reprint of a report I did on TSM. At the urging of several Hombres’, I decided to submit it for consideration to Hombre. Many of the girls mentioned are already posted on the board under a very abbreviated Ctg. report. I will send Pictures to Hombre of the other locales and ask him to insert them in appropriate places.)
The hot days and cool nights are surpassed only by the beauty of the sea and the festive atmosphere of the emerald lady of Colombia.
CARTAGENA-HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE:
Cartagena was founded in 1533 by Spanish Conquistador Explorers. Within months of their landing, they had decimated and enslaved the indigenous native Calamari tribe of Indians and became the masters of this soon to be very important port. It became the treasure city of the Spanish Main and served as the primary transshipment port for precious gems and minerals destined for the coffers of King Ferdinand. Many Spanish Galleons, laden with riches from the new world, were attacked and seized by Pirates and English war ships. King Ferdinand ordered the city to be fortified to protect Spain's treasures. The fortress you see today and the Castillo San Philippe took nearly 200 years and 245 tons of gold to build.
Cartagena suffered invasions and sackings in 1544, 1560 and in 1586 (by Sir Francis Drake). In 1741, the English Commander, Edward Vernon, with 186 ships and 25,000 men laid a three month siege to the city. He was so certain that Cartagena would be his, he had a medal struck commemorating his expected victory. However, the Spaniards, outnumbered seven to one, held firm behind their walls and fortresses. The smaller cannons on the English ships were able to bombard the outer walls of the fortress seen today as you drive along Boca Grande beach but could not reach the distances and heights of Castillo San Philippe. The castles cannons on the other hand, made prime targets of the English ships whenever they ventured within range. Vernon lost over 70 ships and 10,000 men in his ill fated attempt to take the city.
Today, Cartagena is a lazy seaside city boasting great restaurants, cobblestone streets, rows of colonial-era homes and high rise apartments along its seaside beaches. Surrounding its’ old city is a wall, built half a millennium ago, fifteen feet thick and topped with cannons.(Insert Old City Fort Pics) Amid violence in many other parts of Colombia, Cartagena lies in a tranquil setting overlooking deepwater ports and glistening seas. It s inhabitants enjoy a slow paced lifestyle during the always present hot humid days and party atmosphere at night, fueled by the cool Caribbean breezes. Although tens of thousands of Colombians, displaced by Civil War, have moved into squatter camps less than a half hours drive from the city, very little of the strife felt in other parts of Colombia can be seen in Cartagena. Nevertheless, the US State Department renewed its warnings to Americans about the dangers of traveling in Colombia and did not exempt Cartagena. However, cruise ships laden with Americans, including the US based Princess Cruise Lines, deposited over 200,000 passengers, nearly 95% Americans, in the city of Cartagena in 2000 and 2001. The mayor of Cartagena proudly asserts to the US State Department that not a single incident has occurred involving an American cruise line passenger.
There are many fascinating places to visit and explore in Cartagena. From museums in the old city, a wide variety of restaurants which boast local, American and European cuisine, to just sitting on the old fortress walls and viewing the pristine waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Because of the warnings, many people do not consider Cartagena as a possible vacation destination. That may be the reason there is a noticeable absence of T-Shirt and other typical touristy types of shops. Cartagena is truly, unsullied by artificiality and remains the Emerald Lady of Colombia.
And now, for more on why single mongers are making CTG a destination of choice:
I hope all of you enjoy this report as much as I enjoyed capturing the moments! (This turned out to be a labor of love; then a labor. I put over 300 hours into this project; from scanning photos, to editing text.
Preface#2
It was of course, another visit to Cartagena. Actually, my second in the past year, but with a slightly different twist. My first visit was associated with a business trip and I only had the weekend to experience and learn about this wonderful city. This trip was a planned vacation for an entire week plus two weekends, but actually, turned into more.
Originally scheduled for the end of October through the first of November, my boss persuaded me to postpone my trip until the first week in January and made it very worth my while. As fate would have it, all flights and accommodations were full for the 1st. so I scheduled my trip for January the 5th-13th and began making contact with fellow mongers by posting travel plans on TSM and a few other sites. I began to search for accommodations but found most places were full or incredibly expensive as this is the high season for Cartagena.
NOTE: I DO NOT RECOMMEND ATTEMPTING A VISIT TO CARTAGENA DURING THE HIGH SEASON BETWEEN DEC.15TH AND JANUARY 15TH.
Not only are the prices astronomical, places to stay non-existent, but the crowds are overwhelming and the city is full of families from all over Latin America and Colombia; and, most of the girls have gone home to visit their families. More on this phenomenon later in this report.
This report is not intended to be a blow by blow of encounters with the women of CTG but more of an expose on other elements of the culture, lifestyle, updated and additional information on the area, new places and restaurants to visit, new adventures to experience, some names, pictures and contact information of some of the regulars and of course, a lot of pictures. I literally took over 600 photographs of places, people and a fair share of girls, clothed, topless and nude.
I have been fortunate, due to business, to travel all over the world and have logged just over 4.0 Million miles on various airlines. I discovered, quite by accident, that there many places all over the world where women are willing to share their favors for an opportunity to be with an American. Most are P4P but many are also freebies.
I had not planned to make this a working holiday. I had thoughts of a Report of Distinction on TSM but nothing more. I was discussing the trip by phone with a friend who is in the Publishing, Advertising and Public Relations industry who loaned me his company logo for some business cards and letterhead to establish credentials for taking pictures and writing an article.
My first thought was that perhaps he might want to join me. Even though he is happily married with a beautiful child, he still enjoys a mongering opportunity now and then. We had traveled to Italy, Monaco, the French Riviera, Spain, Hong Kong, Macau and Thailand together on previous business trips. I knew him to be a great travel companion, very compatible and a hell of a lot of fun to party with, especially when chasing women.
He couldn’t join me but he did suggest several places we could sell a story and pictures if the trip was successful.
I bit the hook and agreed. But the plans had to radically change. I had to plan for hiring models, bring a lot of photographic equipment, pre-search for locations for photo shoots, plan story slants to cover the multiple article requirements and a lot more. Basically, I needed help locally. I poured over previous TSM reports on CTG as well as doing a lot of research on the city itself on the Internet, the local library and previous travel articles. I didn't want to write about the same things that others had reported. To my surprise, there was actually quite a void of information on the city except in Latin Travel reports. There was, I must admit, a great deal of information on TSM and other single travel boards that helped me to prepare. Thanks to Big Bob, White Cat, Metal Man, Hunter, Tree Shark, Moon Dog, Phil Law, Bon Vivant and countless others who contributed so much of their Cartagena experiences as to make my planning simple, easy and allow me to maximize my time while there.
I hope all of you enjoy this report as much as I enjoyed capturing the moments!