Cartagena through the Centuries

One of the top sights in Cartagena is an enormous fortress that sits on a hill overlooking the historic walled city. Spain built fortresses throughout the New World to defend its growing empire, and none was larger than Castillo de San Felipe de Barajas in Cartagena. Named for King Philip IV of Spain, its strategic location on the mainland afforded unobstructed views of the land and the sea. 

 Construction began in 1657. After the fort was attacked by the English in the mid-1700s, the structure was enlarged and parapets and bastions were added. Although the fortress was stormed on many occasions, it was never captured. 

We set out to explore the fortress, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with our local guide David early on a Sunday morning (to avoid the midday heat as well as crowds of weekend tourists). 

As we walked up a series of ramps (helpful for pulling up heavy cannons), David pointed out the building materials – coral stone, limestone, and clay bricks. 

We walked through some very dark tunnels, part of a complex system that connected various points in the fortress. These tunnels were used for communication and supply distribution. In addition, they were acoustically designed to alert the defenders to the sound of the approaching enemy’s feet. 

 

From some of the highest parts of the fortress, we looked out at the panoramic views, with the tall towers of the modern city rising in the distance. 

 

The cannons point towards the mainland, to stop invaders approaching by land. 

Not far from the fortress is the historic area of Getsemani. Although it is located on the same island as the historic walled city, it was considered an outlying district for many years and wasn’t enclosed by fortifications until the 1630s. 

Nowadays, Getsemani is a very colorful neighborhood with inexpensive hostels and numerous brewpubs, cocktail bars, bistros, food stalls, and street musicians that attract a young crowd, especially after dark.

 

The center of activity in Getsemani is Plaza de la Trinidad (Holy Trinity Square). The bright yellow Church of the Holy Trinity is the second oldest church in Cartagena. It was built to provide a place of worship for people living outside the walled city. In the plaza, you will find a statue of Pedro Romero, an Afro-Colombian hero of Cartagena’s struggle for independence. 

Walking around the neighborhood, we stopped to admire numerous examples of street art.

We came across murals depicting Colombia’s Nobel Prize winning author Gabriel Garcia Marquez, who was inspired by his time in Cartagena and maintained a house in the city. 

The butterflies decorating this building are a reference to a literary image that appears in several of his works. The butterflies are a symbol of love and hope. 

 

Many of the streets are decorated with different themes. For example, flags of many nations flew over one long street. On another street, open umbrellas provided the decoration. 

David noted that gentrification is already starting to push up prices in the area and I suppose the character of Getsemani will change.

 

A more upscale neighborhood of the Cartagena is Boca Grande, which is filled with expensive condos, fancy restaurants, exclusive shops, and beach resorts. Often compared to Miami Beach, it’s a popular vacation destination.

 

One reason for our stop in Boca Grande was to learn about emeralds. 

We had a guided tour of the emerald museum at Caribe Jewelers where we saw examples of gold and gold/emerald objects made by indigenous people as well as items made for the Catholic Church. Afterwards, we wandered through the sales area of the store, admiring the dazzling jewelry. 

Although I did not buy anything, I learned a lot about emeralds. According to our tour guide, Colombia is the world’s major producer of quality emeralds. She qualified that claim by acknowledging that Brazil and Russia actually produce more emeralds, but Colombia’s stones are superior. The three attributes that determine quality are color, brilliance, and transparency. As far as color is concerned, darkish blue green is the most desirable. 

 

On our last full day in Cartagena, we traveled by chiva party bus to the fishing village of La Boquilla, located on the coast about 8 kilometers (5 miles) north of the walled city. Along the way, we were entertained by Los Fantasticos, a trio performing vallenato music. This is a distinctive style of Colombian music that originated on the Caribbean coast. It includes an accordion, a drum, and an improvised percussion instrument, in this case, a metal grater. I found an example on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqDpLVlhH_M

Our chiva bus dropped us off on the beach where students from a local drum and dance school welcomed us. The school was established to help the local young people learn about their Afro-Caribbean cultural traditions (a blend of the indigenous and African). After they demonstrated several types of drums and different rhythms, each member of our group had a chance to try drumming. 

 

Next, we learned about cumbia, Colombia’s main folk style of dance. Cumbia developed on Caribbean coast and bears some resemblance to West African dance forms. Traditionally, the dance is a flirtation between a man and a woman. The man is trying to win the woman’s love through his dancing. The woman wears a headdress and a long skirt decorated with flowers or sequins while the man wears a white shirt and pants and a typical Colombian straw hat. 

After watching the performance, we were all invited to join in. We also danced to some very lively contemporary music. Dancing barefoot in the sand was great fun! 

Before we left, I had a chance to walk in the surf and to cool off with a Colombian beer. 

 

Our final evening in Cartagena ended with a horse drawn carriage ride through the streets of the walled city and a farewell dinner. 

Then it was time to pack up and prepare to return home – and to start anticipating my next trip. 

Adios, Colombia. I'll always remember your gracious warmth and rich cultural tapestry. 

Discovering Cartagena

For a look at another side of Colombia, we flew north to the city of Cartagena. Alejo had told us ahead of time to expect tropical weather conditions. Sure enough, as soon as I stepped out onto the tarmac, my hair, which had been in a state of rebellion since drizzly Bogota, registered the stifling heat and humidity. (I still don’t understand how so many Colombian women can have long, sleek, glossy hair!) Aside from hair problems, I was delighted to be in Cartagena, a city whose very name has captivated my imagination for years.  

 

Actually, the official name of the city is Cartagena de Indias since it’s named for the city of Cartagena in Spain. Founded in 1533 by Pedro de Heredia on a small triangular-shaped island separated from the mainland by a very narrow channel of water, it is one of the oldest Spanish cities in the Americas. It gained its importance due to its strategic location on the Caribbean coast. It is here that the Spanish stored the gold and silver that they extracted from the Americas before shipping it off to Spain. Of course, this made Cartagena a prime target for pirates and the privateers commissioned by Spain’s enemies, namely England, France and the Netherlands. One of those privateers was Sir Francis Drake, who was commissioned by Queen Elizabeth I of England to attack Spanish settlements and steal their wealth. To defend it, the Spanish built walls around the city and constructed an immense fortress.

 

In the late 1500s, after an attack by Drake and his fleet, the Spanish built walls around the city. The walls still stand and this part of Cartagena, the historic walled city (“La Ciudad Amurallada” in Spanish), has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Later the Spanish constructed an immense fortress, Castillo San Felipe de Barajas, to provide additional protection. 

 

From the airport, we headed straight to the historic walled city. Our first stop was at a lovely restaurant (our first cloth napkin restaurant of the trip). Lunch was full of Caribbean flavors: ceviche, which I’d been craving; white fish (probably grouper or snapper) with mango sauce; moist and flavorful coconut rice; and a refreshing glass of passion fruit juice. Already, I was feeling in vacation mode. 

 

After lunch, we made our way through the congested narrow streets to the Hotel Bantu, our home for the next three nights. Formerly a pair of colonial mansions, the hotel has a prime location, just steps from the Parque Fernandez de Madrid (setting for Garcia Marquez’s novel, Love in the Time of Cholera).

 

The name Bantu didn’t surprise me since Alejo had told us that much of the city’s population has African ancestry. In colonial times, the city was the second most important slave port in South America, after Bahia, Brazil. Bantu was a group of languages spoken in western and southern Africa, the home of many people brought to the Americas. 

 

Despite the afternoon heat, I set out for a walk around the neighborhood to soak up a bit of local atmosphere: Blue skies, palm trees, Colombian flags, flower draped balconies, plazas filled with outdoor tables, shops selling emeralds and African-influenced handicrafts, hawkers, street food stands, motorbikes, music, the sounds of multiple languages surrounded me – and I was enthralled. But I was also grateful to get back to the hotel for an hour or so of air-conditioning before dinnertime. Below are some scenes of the historic center:

 

Later that evening, with a small group of fellow travelers, I joined the tourists enjoying Saturday night under the balmy starlit skies of Cartagena. We found a table at a popular (i.e. crowded and noisy) restaurant, dined on grilled seafood and vegetables, and then temporarily got lost trying to find our way back to the hotel. Streets and buildings definitely look different in the dark! 

 

Our group’s exploration of Cartagena began in earnest the next morning. Over the course of two very full days, our local leader, David, guided us around the city and the surrounding area. And because of the heat, we got a very early start each day. As we started our first walk, he noted that there is always one shady side of the street. In fact, he told us, the city was intentionally designed that way to provide relief from the tropical sun. 

 

A native of Cartagena, David was very familiar with the city’s history. The 12-foot high walls around the historic center date back to 1595 and were part of the original fortifications. In El Centro, the center part of the walled city, most of the buildings we saw were built of limestone and sandstone and date back to the 1800s. This was a neighborhood inhabited by the upper class. David pointed out architectural features and details, including the “barba" (bearded) windows and distinctive door knockers.

 

Note the "beard" shape under the window

Many of the large wooden doors had coats of arms and metal knockers that were symbolic. A lion represented nobility. The most common door knocker we saw was the iguana. The iguana represented power – because the iguana can go wherever it wants to go.

Of course, there were churches everywhere. One of the most well-known, and probably the oldest, is the Iglesia de Santo Domingo in the plaza of the same name.

Right in front of the church, somewhat incongruously, is a statue by Fernando Botero of a fleshy nude woman. 

Also in the plaza, we noticed a couple of colorfully dressed women with baskets of fruit on their heads. These are palenqueras. They sell fresh fruit and let you take photos of them for a tip. Their clothing is a reminder of the communities of escaped slaves that settled in the area. Within their communities, many still speak a language was based on Bantu. 

When I got home, I did some research and learned that the communities were established in the jungles outside Cartagena by escaped slaves about 400 years ago. The inhabitants returned to their African cultural traditions and as a way to earn a living, they started to bring fresh fruit and vegetables to sell in Cartagena. Although most of the communities were destroyed by the Spanish and the enslaved people were recaptured, one survives to this day – San Basilio de Palenque, located about 30 miles from Cartagena. It is one of the first independent communities in the Americas.  

 

We also visited Cartagena’s cathedral, Santa Catalina de Alejandra. The church is built of coral stone and features a sundial on the exterior. Santa Catalina was an indigenous woman, kidnapped by the Spanish, who served as an interpreter. The story made me think of Malinche in Mexico, a Mayan woman who helped Cortes and is viewed by some as a traitor to her native people. I was curious about the attitude of the today’s Colombians towards the Spanish conquerors. Although it is widely known that the Spanish subjected the indigenous people and enslaved Africans to terrible mistreatment, I didn’t hear much negativity.

Around the corner from the cathedral, we paused briefly in the shady Parque Bolivar. An equestrian statue of Simon Bolivar stands in the center of the park. I learned that the pose of the horse, with one leg up in front and one leg up in back, indicates that the rider didn’t die in battle. 

Facing the park is the Palacio de Inquisicion, an 18^th century building that housed the Holy Office of the Inquisition. In Cartagena, most of the victims of the Inquisition were Africans. The building is now a museum that tells the story of the Inquisition and exhibits all sorts of gruesome torture devices. (No, I was not tempted to visit.)

 

The biggest church in the historic center of the walled city is the Pedro Claver church. It is dedicated to the Spanish-born monk and Jesuit priest who devoted his life to helping Africans and who baptized many of them. He was canonized in 1888, the first person to be canonized in the New World.

Well, that’s enough about churches. The heat was building up, so we made a detour to GoYurt, for paletas. These frozen pops came in a wide variety of flavors. Some were made of ice cream, others from sorbet or frozen yogurt. I chose a combo pop – one side Nutella, the other vanilla. They were cooling, delicious, and a bargain at 7000 Colombian pesos (less than $2) each.  

There’s much more to share with you about Cartagena – the neighborhoods of Getsemani and Boca Grande, the Castillo San Felipe, the beach at La Boquilla where we learned to drum and dance. So see you again soon!