Located at the northern tip of the country, Cartagena was once a very important harbor for the Spanish, as they shipped off all their pillaged goods from all over South America back to Spain. The city quickly became very wealthy and very large target for pirate attacks. As the number of attacks and sieges on the city increased, the construction of the Walled City began.
Stunted by numerous pirate attacks and attempted invasions, the entire wall took many years to complete and is now known simply as the "old town", a huge section of modern day Cartagena still rests behind 11 kilometers of cement walls, forts and auxiliary doors. After completion in 1756, the city was simply impossible to take cover.
Century old cannons still line the outer walls facing the ocean, and the majority of the architecture and churches within the walls are preserved from the 1700s.
Cartagena is a big city though, and holding true to my pattern of travel it was time to get away for a few days. I took a boat to Playa Blanca, a small Caribbean island off the coast for my own personal version of “Cast Away”. I took my essentials, tent, food and water, sunscreen, and books for entertainment, as there are not hotels, permanent structures, or electricity on the island. The water was the most incredible turquoise blue I have ever seen, and I spent my days reading on the beach, swimming, trying to touch sunsets, and trying not to drink all my fresh water before the boat came back 3 days later to pick me up.
