Santa Marta, Colombia - Jan 8

Well, my day did not start very well. I had virtually no sleep because of the pain and I was getting very nauseated from the pain. Then, I had some dry heaving and diarrhea. I came out of the bathroom and Greg asks “what’s the plan Stan?”. I said it looks like you are touring without me today. He showered and went up to breakfast. I laid down for a while and I said I was feeling better and I could probably make it. I showered and went up and grabbed some pastry thing as I didn’t feel like eating anything, but felt I should put something in my stomach.

While it’s not our first time to Colombia, it is our first time in Santa Marta. We met Rick & Janie and we got off as soon as the ship was cleared. Rick & Janie were in Santa Marta recently, but did not get to Tayrona National Park. One of Colombia’s most popular national parks, Tayrona is spread across 7,410 acres of sea and 29,650 acres of land in the rainforest-clad foothills of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta. Established in 1525 by the Spanish as a base of conquest, Santa Marta sits at the foot of the world’s highest coastal mountain range, the towering Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta.

 sail in

There was a free shuttle to take us out of the port where we met our driver, Tatiana. The first thing we noticed was her car was tiny. We didn’t see how we were going to cram ourselves in there. We did, but it wasn’t comfy. It was about an hour drive from Santa Marta to Tayrona National Natural Park.

 walking from shuttle to car through the vendors

 sights from the car

 arrival at the Park

 Rick, Janie & the guide Tatiana and the little car....

I booked the tour with Vergel Tours Vergel Tours and they don’t offer this tour, but really went above and beyond to put together the tour for us. We met our guide Manfri and translator Jose and we set off to do the 9 Stones Trail. I started out doing well, but my nausea returned and a couple of times I felt I was going to barf and maybe feint. The leg/back pain wasn’t fun either. In hindsight I should have opted for the 45 minute hike instead of the whole 1.5 to do all of the 9 Stones Trail. Rick & Janie couldn’t have been nicer accommodating my pace. Jose helped us all up and down some of the slippery areas. We finally made it to the mirador (lookout) I was feeling really bad at this point and I said I thought I was weak from not eating much and Jose cut up some Dragon Fruits for us. Wow, they were tasty. Hit the spot. From there we walked about 20 minutes along the beach to get to the restaurant for some lunch. It’s an all inclusive resort, but they do offer meals to anyone. We had some shrimp & cheese empanadas and I asked if they could bring a side of plain rice. So, I ate mostly rice and a few bites of the empanadas. They were really tasty. We chatted with Jose and he was talking about the family business and the tour they normally do. (dirt bikes in a different area of the park and his mother cooks a local food for lunch) When he said Vergel was his last name I asked how he was related to Christine and he proudly said it was his wife. Christine was so helpful in putting the tour together for us. She is originally from Scottsdale, Arizona and met Jose and fell in love. For their usual tour check out their website, it really looks like a fun tour and the Vergel family and their friends could not have been nicer.

 ticket area

 Jim, I'm pretty sure this cat could use a forever home!

 These are the stones along the 9 Stones Trail. Rick said it was like an Easter Egg Hunt

 Jose & Manfri

 Cicada

 Crimson-crested Woodpecker

 mirador (lookout)

 Tropical Kingbird

 we walked the beach to the restaurant

 all-inclusive resort where we had lunch

 dining room

 teeny - tiny little spiders

There were horses to rent, needless to say I begged off

Tatiana came back and drove us back to town. It was later in the afternoon and it was too late to visit the market, cathedral and gold museum. So, we strolled along the Malecon (walkway next to the beach) where families were swimming and just relaxing on a Sunday afternoon. A few performers and lots of food vendors were all along the walk. I stopped and got my token magnet and key chain I can format into a Christmas ornament. I also had a “choco cono” (ice cream) that tasted pretty good. We ran into one of the couples from our dinner table and we chatted for a short while about our day since we both missed dinner in the dining room to stay longer in port.

 from the car on the ride back to town

 the malecon

We grabbed the shuttle back to the ship and got cleaned up and had dinner upstairs in the buffet. We sat with Rick & Janie and picked their brains about the river cruises they have recently taken. They are on our list to do at some point and it was good to get their perspective. There was yummy shrimp and I was glad I had an appetite.

We went to the show which was Uber Rossi, a visual comedian. Princess does a great job of finding unusual and varied talent on these long voyages. While he by no means will be our favorite performer, there is something for everyone along the way.

There was another medical emergency this afternoon and it delayed our departure. It was getting too windy to sail out by the time the ambulance left and they closed the port, so we spent the night sitting in port and we sailed around 6 in the morning.

My leg/back is still painful so, we opted to relax in the cabin after the show.  

We are on our way to Panama! We will pass Cartagena on the North Coast of Colombia and enter the Gulf of Darien to minimize the movement caused by the north westerly swell in the area.

Tomorrow we have a day at sea.