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My guilty pleasure has been getting a hotel on a Saturday night, having fun, night out, then taking myself on a date/excursion on Sunday. Here goes...
Today I woke up at 3am to someone in the hotel room next to me barfing! I wonder if it was the girls I share a balcony with? Yesterday, after I returned from the hotel pool, I thought it would be nice to watch the sunset from my terrace/balcony. As soon as I got comfortable, these two 20-year-olds burst through the glass sliding door. They were screaming and yelling about how exciting their first trip to Colombia would be. I could have been friendly and given them recommendations of where to go, but I was annoyed by the fact that they were disrupting my peace Plus they kept yelling, “Miami in the house!” …So, in I went and continued my Netflix movie!
Thank You…Next! (Ariana Grande voice)
You will be happy to know that once I put on some makeup and my cute comfy dress, I was in the best mood! Despite the early wake-up call, I felt refreshed due to sleeping with the AC on allllllll night long. It wasn’t the best hotel, but Hotel Playa Norte was just what I needed for a weekend getaway. It had a pool, bar, restaurant, it was walking distance from the beach, and it did not break my budget! Remember, I am traveling for 3 whole months. I am strict about my traveling budgets.
Next! Off to brunch and painting on a secret rooftop!
I was worried that I would miss my early 10am rooftop art class because there was construction and so much traffic getting to the walled city. Thankfully, my taxi driver got me there in one piece while playing the best Sunday worship music. He made sure that my good mood stayed. Shoot my good viby mood is still here as I type my blog entry. I am even listing to my favorite worship/gospel songs:
Voice of God – Dante Bowe
The Blessing – Elevation Worship
Ever Be – Anthony Evans
Choose Me – Latice Crawford
Cycles – Johnathan McReynolds
Once I arrived at my paint class, I was immediately ecstatic because once again, I was the only person to reserve the activity. Another private tour for the price of a shared tour (who said solo traveling didn’t have its perks). They fed me a light breakfast, turned on a fan and made sure there was great background music playing! I was ready to paint!
The instructor Augustine spoke only Spanish, but that did not stop us from laughing and having a great conversation. Each day that I am here, I amaze myself at good my Spanish is becoming. I mean, I can still read better than I can speak, but I LEGIT had the best convo with my instructor haha. We talked about the best restaurants in town, the different dialects of Colombia and we talked about the different dance styles you can find all around Latin American and the Caribbean. I honestly think that they could charge way more than $34 for this activity. I mean, they had mimosas (because it was just me, it was bottomless).
Instructor Augustine was so great with his instructions! As soon as he found out about my blog, he said to take all the photos I wanted. Here is a step-by-step of how we pained. The fact that he's been painting and studying art for 30+ years was an honor!
I'll Have the Fish!
After my class was over, I had to decide if I wanted to go grocery shopping, then home. Or, have lunch in the walled city. Of course, I chose to have lunch in a nice restaurant with the cool AC. However, I had no clue where to go, so I just started walking until my nose and stomach told me to stop (literally).
Now, had I know that La Casa de Soccorro was poppin on a Suday afternoon, I would have come back during the week. Luckily for me, I arrived right as they opened, so I got a great seat where I could people watch and enjoy the cool air. As I waited for my food, taxi upon taxi arrived to drop people off at the front door. I kept thinking, how is there a line with this heat and humidity. I am not going to lie though. Seeing all the people waiting for a seat made me feel like I picked a great spot. Even the front house manager raved about the food!
"It's true and very traditional food from Cartagena. The Colombian and Caribbean flavors there" – Manger for front of house
Once my waiter arrived, I decided to order the fried red snapper in soup. You all might not know this about me, but I am a sucker for a really great soup with a well-balanced broth. Back at home in Las Vegas, I make a fresh batch of tomato soup each week. Like foreal! I make it with heirloom tomatoes, fresh basil, shallots, garlic and other Italian herbs. I purposely don't add any dairy or meat brother so that I can freeze it and have it last longer.
But back to this soup. MY GOD! This photo really doesn't do it justice, so I hope you're following me on Instagram so that you can see the video that I drop on this. The broth was so well seasoned, the plantains were cooked to perfection, the coconut did NOT overpower the savory flavor of the fish...I mean I can go on and on and on about what I ate today. You can't tell by this photo, but the bowl was also very deep. I eventually had to ask them to bag it up (along with the coconut rice it came with) to go so that I can eat if for dinner tonight, and lunch tomorrow. That's how much was left.
Fried red snapper, brown coconut rice and a savory fish broth with herbs and plantains.
Back to reality
After paying my bill at the restaurant, I grabbed a taxi and headed to my favorite supermarket; Carulla Santa Lucia. I don't know why I love this store so much, but I just do! I picked up my water and groceries for the week, grabbed some cash at the atm, then headed to my apartment. I was SO PROUD, because I didn't' use Cabify or Uber this time. Instead, I waved my hand in the air and hailed my taxi driver down! Am I a local yet?
When I arrived to my place, there was a DJ blasting local music, a backyard BBQ going, and everybody (and their momma) had chairs and tables set outside. I asked my Airbnb hosts, and they informed me that a few local kids had graduated school, and this was a traditional party. I am convinced that I won't get any more peace for the rest of my time here. HAHAHA. Again, I am still in a pretty good mood, so I just put in my noise cancelling headphones, washed the dishes, did laundry and mopped my floors.
Adulting at its finest..I should have picked my shoes up though!
Wondering what time, they are going to stop playing this loud music!
I've been sitting at my kitchen table typing this post for about 2 hours and the music is still going. With that said, I think it's time to take a shower, pop some ZzzQuil and try to wind down. I mean yes, it is HELLA early, but walking the walled city and sweating my butt off in the humidly really does drain me. I just end up feeling so weak.
Until next time....
Your friend,
Brookelynn the Friendly Blogger
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