WE DISCOVED A WHOLE NEW PART OF CARTAGENA

our new hotel in cartagena is in the newer part and it is lovely too. sort of like a small dirty vegas with an ocean. but really quite lovely.

now we have moved into a 5 star hotel that i found online really cheap and i will begin my journay home tomorrow night. ayla will stay here alone untill friday.

this has been an adventure.

ask me about it sometime!

back to cartagena

we spent a week in providencia and it is very beautiful, we drove our motobike around the island a few times and found some lovely beaches (too cloudy and rainy).

our house had a hen and her 6 chicks and we spent time feeding them and watching them grow as the hungry looking 3 foot long lizard eyed them up too.

the owner of the house and her sister Grace were lovely women. they had homes next to us.

as we drove around the island i was suprised by how many people were injured from motorbike accidents. even our friend grace, we met on her way back from knee surgery because from an accident!

from san andreas to providencia!

we flew out to these beautiful carribean islands without realizing that they are so far removed from colombian mainland that they have their own weather season and unlike the rest of colombia it is the rainy season here. and boy did it rain!

we spent new years on the beach in providencia,off and on rain with inbetween beautiful starry skys. we rented a small house for $25 cnd per day and a motobike.

WE WENT PAST SOME OF THE MASSIVE FLOODING

OUR BUS TRIP FROM SANTA MARTA TO CARTAGENA TOOK US PAST SUBMERGED HOUSES ANS PEOPLE BEGGING FROM THE PASSSING CARS. THE BUS HAD A TV IN IT AND IT WAS TUNED TO A NEWS STATION THAT WAS DISCRBING IN SPANISH WHAT WE WERE SEEING OUT OUR WINDOW. QUITE THE EXPERIENCE.

THE UP RIVER SIDE OF THE ROAD WAS IN MUCH WORSE SHAPE, SO MUCH DEVASTAION AND OF COURSE NO CLEAN DRINKING WATER.

LOOKING AT HOMES WITH ALL OF THEIR POSSESIONS THROWN ONTO TREES AND ANYTHING HIGH.

AND AS ALWAYS THERE ARE THE BOYS. RUNNING AND JUMPING INTO THE WATER. USING THIER FRONT PORCH AS A DIVING BOARD!

BLESSINGS TO THESE PEOPLE.

SANTA MARTA WAS A BIT OF A LET DOWN

HERE ARE SOME PICS OF GIRON, THE HOTEL WAS OLD AND THE BALCONY LOVELY UNTILL THE 2ND DAY AND ALL THE CHURCH BELLS DROVE US NUTS! IF THEY WERE MENT TO SCARE AWAY THE DEVILS IT SURE SCARED THESE TWO WHITE DEVILS RIGHT OUTTA THERE.

WE ARRIVED IN SANTA MARTA YESTERDAY. SOMEONE STOLE MY CAMERA TODAY!

SO JUST PICTURE A NICE SMALL BEACH WITH LOCAL CHILDREN PLAYING ON IT, LAUGHING AND SPLASHING. THE SIN IS SHINING, BUT IT IS EARLY SO NOT TOO MUCH. THERE IS A SMALL ISLAND OFF SHORE WITH A LIGHT HOUSE ON IT. THAT IS THE PICTURE THAT WOULD BE HERE IS MY CAMERA WASNT STOLEN BY A MEAN PERSON.
ALL THE PLACES THAT I HAVE TRAVELED AND HAVE NOT HAD THIS HAPPEN. AND IT WAS IN A UGLY NET BAG AT MY FEET WHILE I WAS READING. THEY ARE SMART AND FAST BUT THE SADDEST PART IS THAT THEY ARE STRUNG OUT ON DRUGS.
WE SAW A YOUNG GUY NEAR OUR HOTEL LAST NIGHT SMOKING SOMETHING AND LOOKING AWAFUL.
THE SAD TRUTH IS THAT ALL OF THE TOURIST HERE HAVE BEEN TOUCHED BY THEFT.
BAD BAD SAD SAD. I AM BLESSED THAT I CAN REPLACE THOSE THINGS AND I WAS SMART ENOUGH TO HAVE TUCKED MY WALLET AND PASSPORTS INTO BALLED UP SHIRTS SO THEY DIDNT LOOK LIKE ANYTHING.
OKAY. I WILL GET OVER IT AND I WILL START USING AYLA'S CAMERA. AND I THINIK WE WILL HEAD OUT, SOMEWHERE TOMORROW.
MISS YOU ALL!