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We got my nephew a present for every day we saw him in Las Vegas during
Christmas time. This was the first gift he got to open (sound
bar)!
MGM Sports invited us to the Las Vegas Bowl with club seats that were
like $275 a piece at Allegiant Stadium since I am a VIP member of MGM
Rewards.
I wore red to support the Utah Utes, but the club seats were on the
Northwestern side of the field. LOL.
The first half was pretty boring. Northwestern ended up
showing some offense later and won the game.
These are the Utah Cheerleaders performing during a break in the action.
Allegiant Stadium's club seats were very nice with thick padded seats.
This was my first bowl game ever. It was cool seeing the
bands on both sides of the field too!
After the Las Vegas Bowl, we met an old high school buddy of mine at
Lawry's The Prime Rib for dinner.
Lawry's had carolers who saw for each table if requested. I
asked
for "Adeste Fidelis" since we had to learn that in Latin when I was in
private school.
Aakash is opening his Christmas Eve gift here. It was a Fast
& Furious Lego Challenger which I told him I can help build
with
him during the Cowboys game.
For Christmas Eve, Joy and I went to Cathedrale at Aria which opened
fairly recently.
The entrance into the restaurant was very elegant and long just like
Catch next door.
Cathedrale was beautiful inside!
Cathedrale warranted a nice B&W shot of us. Cheers!
The hamachi crudo and grilled octopus were both great starters!
My first drink was a Weller Reserve bourbon. The large ice
cube
had Cathedrale etched in it. This was only a $40 pour.
My lamb chops were so delicious!
Our desserts were huge! We got a Greek Napoleon and Pistachio
Baklava ice cream. I got a Dalmore 15 for my second drink.
It was only $53 pour. Our bill was like $425!
We left for Colombia the day after Christmas. We flew first
class
from Las Vegas to Miami for the first leg of the journey on American.
I love the predeparture beverage in first class.
I went with a cranberry mimosa for my beverage of choice after take off
since it was too early for bourbon. LOL.
The breakfast service was yogurt with a fruit tray and an assortment of
breads.
In Miami, we had access to the Turkish Airlines Lounge since I have a
Priority Pass.
The self service liquor choices were decent. We were able to
order small plates also to our table in the Turkish Airlines lounge.
Brugal Rum from the DR had a tasting booth at Miami Airport.
I
love the Brugal Leyenda that I had when I was in the DR so I went in to
taste what they had.
This is our boarding selfie for the business class portion on American
to Cartagena from Miami. It is the same cabin as first class
for
domestic routes.
Our business class stewardess was very good. She brought me
two Woodford Reserve bottles to begin my drinking in the air!
I was actually surprised at how the pasta was decent.
It was still pretty warm when we landed in Cartagena!
We had a car service arranged through our hotel to pick us up at the
airport.
We had a nice view of the naval base from our high floor room at the
Hyatt Regency Cartagena in Boca Grande.
We had these premium coffee pods from Juan Valdez in our room since we
were in Colombia! What else!
The Hyatt Regency had a complimentary snack of hummus and bread with
some veggies ready for us in the room.
We woke up to this view of the bay in Cartagena and the naval base.
This was the view of the Caribbean from the Hyatt Club which we had
access to.
The complimentary breakfast in the Hyatt Club included a lot of great
tropical fruits like papaya.
Of course, I had the lounge attendant make me espresso with Juan Valdez
Colombian Coffee beans!
Joy and I checked out the three story pool deck which had great views
of the Caribbean!
The hotel had a Coffee Experience bar too where I tried some cold brew.
We had some delicious local empenadas at the Bocagrande Mall next to
the Hyatt Regency for lunch. They were so amazing!
After lunch, we got on a hop on, hop off bus tour of Cartagena!
It was pretty hot!
This is some of the Christmas decorations that were still up around the
old walled city. At night, they were lit up really cool!
Here is an old colonial building that I saw from the tour bus.
This was one of the older and rundown parts of Cartagena near the
Castillo de San Felipe.
Here is a good picture of the old walled city of Cartagena with the
beautiful colonial buildings in the background.
We went back to the Bocagrande Mall to cool off with homemade ice
cream. Maracuya is a South American popular flavor that is
like
passion fruit.
I doubled up on Maracuya with the ice cream flavor and yogurt flavor of
maracuya!
I had to get a Coke Zero in the Hyatt Club after we got back since it
was so hot! Sin Azucar means no sugar!
The Hyatt Club had great afternoon snacks for us. I love
being a VIP!
We went to this amazing restaurant called Alma in the walled city for
dinner that night. The inside was so beautiful and looked
like an
old colonial building.
Our first course was a fresh ceviche served with yucca chips.
I am sporting the Panama hat that I bought from a street vendor in the
walled city before dinner here with my cocktail.
I got a typical Colombian dish with sea bass prepared in a banana leaf
with a red sauce and served with coconut rice and fried plantains!
Dessert was a seven layer creation of coconut! I loved it!
We posed for some great pictures at the hotel where Alma was located.
The next morning, I had the club lounge hostess make me an iced
Americano with those delicious Juan Valdez coffee beans. She
wrapped it up nicely too. Unfortunately, there was a paper
straw.
We departed for our five islands tour after breakfast from the harbor
in Cartagena Bay.
Here is a picture of the old walled city in the background as we were
departing the harbor.
This is the Bocagrande area in the background as we were departing
Cartagena. The Hyatt is the tall grey building.
The Rosario Islands are a chain of beautiful islands off the coast of
Cartagena in the Caribbean. They are part of Colombia.
The Rosario Islands had pristine Caribbean water!
I did get to snorkel in the Rosario Islands, but it was not as good as
other parts of the Caribbean. The water was very warm however!
I believe there are about twenty seven islands in the Rosario chain.
I am chilling on the boat here with our group in the Rosario Islands.
The weather was very hot and humid that day!
Joy is on her phone instead of admiring the amazing scenery.
LOL. We both had good cell coverage down there.
We went to an island which housed Pablo Escobar's retreat for lunch.
I am enjoying a pina colada here.
The lunch spot had a small infinity pool which overlooked the small
channel between two of the islands.
The typical Colombian lunch consisted of chicken, rice, plantains, and
some salad. It was pretty good!
I caught Joy on her phone again! LOL.
We went to Cholon next. This is known as the party island
where people are in chest high water and drink!
The water felt great as we enjoyed our tropical drinks!
We are back on the boat here after enjoying Cholon!
We went to Baru next which is technically a peninusla and not an
island. However, it is pretty isolated and was only accesible
by
boat until a bridge was built.
That was my view on Baru as I relaxed on the lounge chairs.
We stayed at Baru until nightfall so we could see the plankton that
glow in the dark in the lagoon.
This was a nice sunset picture of Joy and me in Baru.
The sunset was so amazing!
The bioluminescent plankton were really cool to see! They
glow in the dark when one stirs the water up!
The next day, we took a car service over to the Castillo de San Felipe,
which was a huge fortress that helped guard the walled city from
pirates and other invaders!
It was a trek to hike up to the top of the fortress!
These are the entrances to the many tunnels within the fortress that
soldiers used to position themselves during an attack.
The tunnels were pretty narrow and dark. It was kind of scary!
Joy and I are posing on top of the fortress here with some high rise
buildings in the distance.
One can see how the canons were positioned too so they could attack
ships in the Caribbean Sea also.
It is amazing how this fortress is still standing! How did
they build such a magnificient structure back then too!
Here is a nice view of the cathedral in the walled city from the
fortress.
Bocagrande can be seen in the distance from the fortress here.
The Chocolate Museum is down there by the hop on, hop off
bus.
We checked that out too.
This is a local bus by the fortress. Cartagena had so many
vendors trying to sell water and other stuff to tourists. It
got
annoying.
This is a statue of Admiral Blas who was a Spanish officer who helped
defeat the British during an invasion of Cartagena.
After that hike to the top of the fortress, I refueled at the Juan
Valdez cafe next to our hotel with these treats!
I also relaxed on the infinity pool deck of the Hyatt Regency and went
for a swim.
I love life! I travel so much for work and pleasure that I
used points to cover the three nights at the Hyatt Regency!
We spent the last three nights in Cartagena at the Hilton Cartagena.
I used points for these nights too. This was our
view of
the bay.
This is the view of the lagoon from the Hilton VIP Lounge.
The Hilton had a nice pool area with multiple levels of pools also.
This is the upper pool. I loved how warm the water
was!
This is the lower pool which the water slide empties into.
Only kids can use the water slide however :(
The Hilton sent up a nice plate of fruit to welcome us since I am a
Diamond guest. Life is great!
Joy and I are enjoying some drinks and snacks in the VIP Lounge before
dinner.
We took a car service over to dinner in walled city that night again.
This is a horse drawn carriage trying to enter the narrow
street
into the city.
Joy is standing outside the Argentine steakhouse called Quebracho here.
I love Argentine steakhouses!
This is the guacho way to prepare meat! Argentines are
experts at grilling meat!
I asked for the best rum they had so the waiter brought me Dictador 20
year. I loved it! I figure since South America has
a long
history of dictators, I could be the next one after tasting this rum!
Joy and I are ready to indulge in some great meat!
The steak was amazing!
The restaurant had live music too!
The flan was a good way to end the dinner!
The walled city is really colorful even at night!
The next day, we went on a long tour along the eastern coast to
Barranquilla and Santa Marta. I was able to buy these
strawberry
cookies with my limited Spanish at the tollway rest stop.
This is the Barranquilla sign once we got into town.
Barranquilla is the fourth largest city in Colombia.
The "Window To The World" monument in Barranquilla represents how
Barranquilla is a major port city on the Magdalena River which goes
deep into the heart of Colombia.
The Magdalena River is so full of silt that it reminded me of what the
Amazon looks like on TV.
The Sharika statue in Barranquilla was new when we got there.
She
is from Colombia and part Lebanese since there is a large Lebanese
community in Colombia.
Barranquilla is known for having one of the top soccer teams in
Colombia. This monument is for their soccer team.
The cactus we saw once we crossed in the department (state) of
Magdalena, I saw these cactus along the coast which reminded me what I
saw on Aruba. Aruba is pretty close to this part of Colombia
too.
The wealth disparity in Colombia is very big. A lot of people
live in these shanty villages along the highway.
This was the view as we were entering Santa Marta with the mountains in
the distance where coffee is grown.
Valderrama was the captain of the Colombian national soccer team.
They have a statue to him in Santa Marta.
This is the usual colorful sign that most cities have now for tourists
by the sea in Santa Marta.
This is a statue of the founder of Santa Marta, a Spanish Conquistador
who also conquered Panama.
This is the Caribbean Sea by Santa Marta. I think the water
was clearer here than in Cartagena.
This is a statue of Simon Bolivar who was the liberator of Greater
Colombia from Spain. He was born in Venezuela, but he lived
in
Santa Marta for a long time.
This was a historic building in Santa Marta.
The Basicila of Santa Marta is the oldest church in South America.
They were having mass inside the church when we got to look inside.
It was not air conditioned.
The church had lots of nice statues inside as well as the ornate
depictions of the stations of the cross.
Santa Marta is very colorful and historic. Our walking tour
was fun, but it
was so hot! We were in need of something to cool us off!
After our tour was over, we went to a local hotel by the beach for
lunch. I got the fried fish filet served with rice and fried
plantains.
Joy and I walked down to the beach after lunch. I wore my
Cowboys shirt since we had a game against the Lions that night.
The beach in Santa Marta was nice, but I felt a little uncomfortable
with the crowds so we did not go in the water.
We did get some fresh pineapple juice on the beach from this stand.
They use purified water from bags so it was safe.
We got a snack at an air conditioned restaurant near the beach to cool
off. This shrimp cocktail was loaded, and it was super cheap.
We got to use the pool at the hotel where we had lunch so I put my feet
in the water to cool off.
We also explored the shops near the hotel for souvenirs. I
got a
bag of the local coffee that is produced in the mountains above Santa
Marta.
We enjoyed the breakfast buffet at the Hilton the following morning.
As a Diamond guest, it was included.
I liked the decor of the breakfast area. One can imagine
being in Colombia during the colonial days.
This was a cool vintage cash register in the breakfast room too.
I had a massage at the spa at the Hilton to kick off New Year's Eve.
Although my company gives me a massage allowance, I was not
sure
how I would expense this with the currency conversion. LOL.
I went down to the private beach area after my massage to chill on the
daybeds.
These ladies went around and offered to do foot massages for like $20!
She rubbed my feet forever too!
All I needed was a pina colada to cool off from the heat as my feet
were getting a nice massage. LOL. Life is good!
This is not a bad way to spend New Year's Eve!
The only annoying thing was they had vendors like almost everywhere in
Colombia trying to sell us stuff. We did have security
however
watching over us.
For lunch, we went to Restaurante Arabe which was recommended by the
concierge at the Hyatt earlier.
Since there is a large Middle Eastern population in South America,
there is great Lebanese and Arabic food in Colombia!
I got a Hatsu which is a local iced tea brand. They sweeten
it
with Stevia so it is zero calories! I liked this a lot!
We started with an appetizer platter with hummus and egg plant too.
The beef was amazing!
The chef makes the ice cream too! The pistachio and cherry
ice cream were both amazing!
We walked over to the Juan Valdez Cafe so I could get a frozen coffee
drink too after lunch.
That night, we started off in the VIP lounge. I liked the
Colombian soda, Postobon, a lot!
These were our tickets for the New Year's Eve party at the Hilton.
Each ticket was roughly $250 US.
We got our party favors and are ready to ring in 2024 with a bang at
the Latin influenced party!
Welcome 2024! 2023 was a great year for us both. My
company
did really well, and I made a lot on my stock options and RSU!
We
also returned to global travel after the Covid bull shit!
The backdrop for the party was so amazing! It was on the
beach with the high rise buildings in the background.
Each party had their own table with fresh flower arrangements.
There was a lot of great food at the international buffet including
ceviche.
Also, there were so many great desserts!
We liked the food a lot. The aluminum bags had grapes in
them.
Colombians like to eat grapes on New Year's Eve for good luck!
The party was pretty packed with guests. Many looked like
they
were Colombian so there is an element of very wealthy people in
Colombia too.
The guests were dressed pretty well despite not being a black tie event.
We are on the dance floor here.
They had a Cuban style band perform for us as we were all ready to ring
in the New Year!
Happy New Year!
The fireworks were pretty cool too after midnight!
The party and dancing continued into the early morning hours!
Our flight back on January 1 was later in the afternoon. The
Priority check in line for American was pretty busy for that flight to
MIA.
We were able to use the Sala VIP (lounge) in CTG before departure.
The food offerings were decent.
We boarded our 737 using stairs since CTG has no jetbridges.
It was hot inside the plane, but the flight attendant got us cold
towels in business class to cool off while the peasants in coach
boarded.
After being nice and refreshed from the cold towel, I was ready to
depart for Miami!
We were delayed a little leaving CTG. I saw some military
personnel come into the airport on that truck so I was wondering if a
coup was underway. LOL.
After take off, the business class stewardess brought us cold water and
warm nuts. I would hate to be one of the people who fly
coach!
LOL.
I got my usual Woodford Reserve in the air with Coke Zero.
After a quick connection in Miami, we boarded another American Airlines
flight to DFW. We were served the same meal in first class
that
we had going to CTG.
We had to spend the night at the Hyatt Regency DFW since our flight
back home was on January 2nd due to the time difference issues.
We were able to relax in the Club @ DFW before our flight.
I saw my company stock was up a lot to kick off the first day of
trading on 1-2-24 so I exercised some stock options in the air!
I got a cranberry mimosa to celebrate all the money I made that morning
when I exercised my stock options! Yay!
The breakfast service from Dallas/Fort Worth was decent in first class!
As usual, my company
gave us the week between Christmas and New Year's off as a part of our
holiday schedule. So, Joy and I planned a long trip to South
America after we spent time in Vegas for Christmas with family.
Our holiday break began the Friday before Christmas weekend
when
we flew down to Vegas. I used my MGM Rewards Gold perks to
reserve a room in the tower of Luxor. After getting the
rental
car, we checked into the Luxor via the VIP check in line which let us
bypass the huge line of people checking in even at 1:00 AM.
Vegas
had lots of flight delays that night so we got in really late!
As
usual, I got free valet parking and no resort fee as a MGM Rewards VIP
guest.
The next day, we went over to my
brother's place
early so we could spend a lot of time with my nephew and let him open
his first gift. My parents flew in a few days before us so
they
were already there too. We enjoyed hanging out with Aakash
and
bonding. In the afternoon, we were invited by MGM Sports to
the
Las Vegas Bowl at Allegiant Stadium. We got two club seats
which
were like $250 a piece for free since I am such a "high roller" with
MGM. LOL. We were able to walk over from Luxor
since they
closed the bridge over I-15 during game days. This ws the
first
time I went to a college bowl game. Northwestern played Utah
in
the Las Vegas Bowl that year. Our club seats were really
comfortable too! The first half had little offense, and it
was
pretty boring aside from looking at the cheerleaders from Utah.
LOL. In the second half, we saw a little more
offense, and
Northwestern ended up winning the game. After the game, we
met my
high school buddy, Patrick, for dinner at Lawry's The Prime Rib.
As usual, Lawry's was decorated pretty nicely for the
holidays.
They even had a group of four carolers go around from table
to
table to sing holiday requests. I asked for "Adeste Fidelis"
in
Latin since I had to learn that when I was in private school growing up.
On Christmas Eve, we spent the morning
with family
at my brother's place. Aakash got to open his second gift
which
was a Fast & Furious Lego model of the Dodge Challenger.
I
figured Aakash and I could build it during the Cowboys game that day.
He was getting into watching the Cowboys with Uncle Anirban
now.
That evening, Joy and I enjoyed a Christmas Eve dinner at
Cathedrale at the Aria. This fine dining establishment has
their
original restaurant in New York City. The decor was really
cool!
I started off the evening with Weller Reserve over a big cube
which had Cathedrale etched in it. We had some delicious
hamachi
crudo and octopus for our appetizers. My lamb was delicious!
I got Dalmore 15 scotch to pair with the two amazing desserts
we
ordered. Life is good! We dropped $425 that evening
on
dinner. Just another night out for the rich and famous :)
On Christmas, we spent the whole day
with family,
and Aakash got to open his main gift from us which was a WIFI action
camera that he wanted. I got him a really nice one with the
underwater cover too. He loved it! That evening, we
stayed
at a Courtyard Inn near the airport since they had a shuttle to take us
to the airport for our early flight out.
After arriving at LAS, we went to the
Priority Check
In Counter for American Airlines since we were first class to Miami
followed by business class to Cartagena. However, the agent
told
us we had to do this weird immigration form for Colombian Immigration
and show them verification. So, Joy and I were pressed to do
that
on our phone. However, it was pretty easy overall.
After
checking in, we went to the Club@LAS to get breakfast for our flight.
After boarding our 737, we were served a predeparture drink
while
the coach folks boarded. I love being able to fly first
class!
Once we were airborne, I got a cranberry mimosa before the
breakfast service. The fruit plate with yogurt was not bad
since
I like light breakfasts. Our first class flight attendant was
pretty attentive to us for the whole flight and even refilled my Diet
Dr. Pepper without asking. We had a decent layover in Miami
so we
went to the Turkish Airlines lounge which I had access to as a Priority
Pass member. They had some nice little plates we were able to
order on an app as well as some liquor too. After leaving the
lounge, we saw that Brugal, a Dominican rum company, had a tasting room
set up in the terminal. One of my favorite rums of all time
is
the Brugal Leyenda which is only available in the DR. So, I
went
in and tried what they were sampling.
We boarded another 737 operated by
American Airlines
for our flight to Cartagena. American sells the premium cabin
as
business class for the Caribbean flights. However, the seat
is
the same as domestic first class. Our first class stewardess
was
very good. She took good care of us as we enjoyed our dinner
too.
Mixed warm nuts were served with the beverages. I
asked for
Woodford Reserve, and she brought me two bottles to start.
The
flight time to Cartagena was just under three hours. As we
were
landing, I could see how dimly lit the streets were. It was
typical of many parts of Latin America. After clearning
immigration pretty fast, the car service we booked through the Hyatt
Regency was waiting for us outside. We boarded the little
French
SUV and were on our way to the Hyatt Regency! Once we arrived
at
the high rise luxury hotel, the front desk staff welcomed me as a Hyatt
VIP guest. We were upgraded to a high floor king room with a
view
of the Bay. Also, they left a small snack for us in the room
too.
The first day in Cartagena, we went up
to the Hyatt
Club after we woke up for a great breakfast that included coffee with
Juan Valdez brand Colombian beans. The lounge attendants were
very attentive, and the concierge team on site in the lounge were very
helpful! The views of the Caribbean from the Club were
amazing
too. Afterwards, I checked out the three story pool deck
which
had multiple infinity pools overlooking the sea. I got a pina
colada and just chilled in one of the lounge chairs that were partially
in the warm water. Afterwards, Joy and I checked out the Boca
Grande mall next door to the Hyatt where we got a quick lunch of
empenadas before going on a hop on, hop off bus tour of Cartagena.
The tour started out in Boca Grande and went by the old
walled
city and Castillo de San Felipe, which is a large fortress the Spanish
built to protect the walled city from pirates and other invaders.
The tour guides referred to the Spanish as the "slavers."
Colombia has a large population of blacks since lots of
slaves
were brought to Colombia.
That evening, the hotel made
reservations for us to
have dinner at Alma in the walled city. We had a car service
booked through the Hyatt to take us to dinner as well as to a salsa
dance tour we booked and back to the hotel. Getting around
Cartagena was pretty easy, but the safest option was the car service
since we did not want to be kidnapped. LOL. The
yellow
taxis are relatively safe, but there is no meter so one should work out
the price ahead of time. Uber is also very safe in Cartagena
since it is tracked. Alma was a great restaurant inside a
historic hotel that reminded me of the old Spanish colonial
architecture I have seen throughout Latin America. We got
ceviche
to start, but I got a traditional fish dish from Medellin that had a
red sauce on it. It was served with fried plantains like many
typical plates in this part of the world. Our dessert was
amazing!
I would say that the language barrier in
Colombia is
pretty bad. The drivers do not really speak English so we
made a
mistake by asking our first driver to take us to the salsa tour since
the car service arranged another guy to pick us up at Alma and take us
to the salsa tour. So, this guy brought us back to the hotel.
WTF! We barely made our salsa class after fighting
the
traffic to get back to the salsa dance studio. We got about
an
hour of salsa lessons before we headed back to the Hyatt.
Cartagena is known for salsa dancing. I was
somewhat able
to pick it up, but I am not the best dancer. LOL.
We went on a five islands tour the next
day.
The Rosario Islands off the coast of Cartagena are like
typical
tropical paradises one finds in the Caribbean with warm and teal blue
waters. Our tour picked us up at the hotel, and we departed
from
the main marina in the bay for the Rosario Islands. On our
way
out of Cartagena, we were close by the naval base that we could see
from our room. They even had an old naval ship that was
probably
there for show from maybe the 1800s or before. Once we got to
the
Rosario Islands, our guide showed us the old private island of Pablo
Escobar. We got off the boat there and did a little
snorkeling to
look at an airplane of Pablo Escobar's that is below the water.
The government now owns that compound, but they have not done
anything to it. Afterwards, we went to another location to go
snorkling some more. The water was super warm, but the
snorkeling
was not that good. I saw a few of the typical sargeant major
fishes that one sees in tropical waters. After snorkeling, we
went to a little resort next to Pablo's private island to have lunch.
The resort had two small infinity pools that were almost the
size
of a large hot tub. I ordered a few drinks from the wait
staff
and chilled in the smaller pool. For lunch, I chose the
typical
Colombian plate that had chicken. We also got coconut rice
with
our food as well as a popular sweet drink. For dessert, we
got
these sweet plantains or bananas in a sauce. After lunch, we
went
to Cholon, which is the party island. They have all these
tables
and umbrellas in shallow water where people enjoy drinks and snacks and
party! I ordered a drink inside a coconut. Our
guide told
us to beware of the vendors since they are known to rip off tourists.
We had a good group with our tour, and we had some good
conversation with couples from Texas and a family from Miami who are of
Colombian descent. After Cholon, we went to Baru.
Baru is
technically a peninsula, but it was only accessible by boat until a
bridge was built recently. Baru has a small pristine stretch
of
sandy beach where there are shanty hotels where people just relax in
the lounge chairs and drink. We had access to one of these
shanty
hotels. The water was really warm and clear so I got my feet
in
and just relaxed. It was a really hot day however until the
sun
finally went down. After the sun went down, we went to a
lagoon
where we saw the glow in the dark plankton. We were allowed
to
swim, but I did not feel safe so I just moved my hand in the water to
see the cool blue light the plankton emit when the water is disturbed.
It was so cool!
Once we got back to the Hyatt, we walked
over to a
local restaurant that served sushi, pizza, and great desserts.
It
was a casual place, but the food was good. The Boca Grande
area
is very safe to walk around even at night. The waitress did
not
speak much English, but these group of four young ladies who looked
like college students helped translate for us. We could tell
they
were part of the elite class in Colombia by the way they dressed and
conducted themselves. Also, one of the girls had a brand new
large SUV too. All four of them were really pretty, and the
girl
with the SUV could be a model! The wealth disparity in
Colombia
is very obvious! These girls had plenty of money, but the
waitress looked like she was struggling. Joy and I ordered
sushi
, and I got introduced to the Colombian soda brand called Postobon.
I got a grape flavor one. Colombia is very health
conscious
about sugar intake since diabetes is very prevalent among hispanics.
The soda had some cane sugar, but they used artificial
sweeteners
too to keep the overall sugar content down without sacraficing the
sweetness!
The next day, we went to the Castillo de
San Felipe.
Although we had the hop on, hop off bus ticket still, we took
a
car service from the Hyatt after breakfast to get there faster.
The hike to the top of the fortress was pretty hard!
Inside
the fortress, there are lots of tunnels where soldiers could easily
position themselves with guns and canons to fight off invaders.
After touring the castle, we went to Chocolate Museum.
Colombia is known for chocolate too in addition to coffee.
Then, we went to a jewlery shop to get Joy an emerald.
Colombian emeralds are very high quality! We took
the hop
on, hop off bus back to the hotel, but we decided to go to the Juan
Valdez Cafe inside the Boca Grande Mall first to get some drinks and a
snack. I also got the Juan Valdez pods for the original line
Nespresso machine to bring home. I got some good pool time
too
since we had a 2:00 check out since I am a Hyatt VIP guest.
After
checking out, we took a car service to the Hilton Cartagena which was
pretty close to the Hyatt where we stayed for the last three nights of
our trip.
The Hilton welcomed me as a Diamond
guest. I
had VIP Lounge access as well. While Joy took a nap, I
explored
the pool areas. There were three pools and a waterslide for
kids.
The resort also had a private beach area. Joy and I
went to
VIP Lounge for their happy hour before we departed for our dinner
reservations at Quebracho, an Argentine steakhouse in the walled city
by car service. As we entered the beautiful walled city, one
can
see horse drawn carriages too. Quebracho was an amazing
dining
experience. I asked for a top shelf rum so the waiter brought
me
Dictador 20 Year. That is a Colombian rum also. We
started
dinner with empenandas. Then, I got a delicious steak.
The
restaurant had live music as well. The Dictador 20 was so
good
that I got a second one. The waiter even gave me a little
extra
after looking around to make sure his boss was not around. We
were really impressed with the service!
We had a long tour on Saturday!
I booked a
trip to Barranquilla and Santa Marta, which are on the eastern coast of
Colombia. Our tour bus arrived around 4:30 AM to get us.
The hotel was nice enough to pack us a hearty breakfast since
I
get free breakfast as a Diamond guest. Most of the people in
our
tour were Spanish speaking, but we had a dedicated guide who spoke
English for us and a few other tourists. The drive to
Barranquilla took almost two hours so we were able to nap until we got
to a rest stop along the tollway to use the restrooms. I was
able
to buy these strawberry cookies with my limited Spanish.
Queiro
los galletas de fresca por favor! LOL. Our first
stop in
Barranquilla, which is the fourth largest city in Colombia, was the
large letters that spelled out the name of the city. We took
pictures there before going to their "Window To The World" monument.
Barranquilla is on the Magdalena River which goes deep into
Colombia so a lot of trade goes through this city.
Afterwards, we
went to the large monument to the city's soccer team which was a
national champion. Soccer is very popular in Colombia.
Then, we saw the new Shakira statue that was erected by the
Magdalena River. The river reminded me of the Amazon since it
was
so wide and mirky with silt! Shakira is Colombian.
Our tour
continued into Santa Marta which was about another two hours away.
We crossed through three departments or states on this tour.
Along the way, I saw abject poverty along the side of the
roadway
where people lived in absolute misery. The garbage was
overflowing right by the shacks. It was pretty sick.
Once
we got into Santa Marta, we went to a famous statue of Valderrama who
was the captain of the Colombian national soccer team. He is
the
dude with the funny hair. Once in the old town of Santa
Marta, we
went on a walking tour that took us to the statue of Simon de Bolivar
who was the liberator of greater Colombia from the Spanish.
Greater Colombian included Venezuela, Panama, Colombia, and
even
parts of Peru and Ecuador. It was super hot and humid as we
walked through the old part of town. They also showed us the
oldest church in South America. However, we were looking
forward
to getting back on the A/C bus! Afterwards, they took us a
local
hotel near the beach for lunch. I made the mistake of
ordering
fried fish filet instead of chicken. The fish had a weird
taste!
Colombians love their fried fish. Joy and I
explored the
beach a little, and we also checked out some of the shops and
restaurants. The hotel had a pool that we were able to use if
we
wanted. Afterwards, we headed back to Cartagena. We
went
through the downtown area of Barranquilla and got to really see how the
locals live from the bus. Once we got back to the hotel, we
had
dinner in the lobby bar of the Hilton so I could watch the Cowboys and
Lions game. The game was on the Spanish ESPN.
The next morning, we had the buffet
breakfast at the
Hilton which was free for us since I am Diamond. Afterwards,
I
had a fifty minute massage scheduled at the spa at the hotel.
Then, I went down to the beach to chill on the daybeds, but
vendors still kept coming by to try to sell goods or services.
The day beds and chairs were only for guests, and they had a
security guard too. However, vendors were still allowed on
the
beach. A lady came by and offered me a long foot massage for
$20
USD so I took her up on the offer. It felt good to relax on
the
daybed as she rubbed my feet and legs while I had a pina colada!
Life is good! Afterwards, Joy and I went to an
Arabic
restaurant for lunch. There is a large Lebanese population in Colombia.
We loved the food at this restaurant which the Hyatt
concierge
recommended to us. Aftertwards, I got some Cuban cigars and a
frozen coffee drink at the Juan Valdez Cafe before going back to the
Hilton. That evening, we had the New Year's Eve party at the
Hilton that we bought tickets for. Each ticket was $250 USD!
Joy and I enjoyed the Latin influenced party which featured a
Cuban music band. The international buffet was great!
I
loved the setting on the beach with the backdrop of the high rise
buildings. They also had a private fireworks show for us too.
We had a half day to chill on January
1st before we
had to leave for the airport. After the breakfast buffet
which
included made to order fruit smoothies, we departed for the airport via
the car service I booked through the Hyatt. Once we got to
the
airport, we used the priority check in line to get our boarding passes
and check in the luggage. We had access to the Sala VIP
lounge
too so we got some snacks before we boarded for our flight to Miami.
The plane was super hot since everyone enters using stairs
instead of a jetbridge. Our business class flight attendant
brought us cold towels to cool off however, but I was shocked she did
not get us a predeparture drink. We were delayed leaving CTG,
and
I saw some military personnel come in on a truck so I was wondering if
a coup was underway. LOL. One never knows when one
is in
South America! That reminded me of an episode of Knight
Ridder
where a fictious country to the south of the US had a coup, and Michael
Knight and KITT had to go in and rescue some Americans. I was relived
there was no coup, and we were in the air shortly after. Our
flight attendant did bring us cold water and warm nuts after take off
before the lunch service. In Miami, we had a short layover
before
we boarded for DFW. We were in first class to DFW.
They
served us the same meal for dinner that we had when we went down to
CTG. Since we left CTG so late, we spent the night at the Hyatt Regency
on site at DFW since our connection to California was not until the
morning. I used points to book the room so we got to sleep
well.
We were in first class again, and I decided to exercise some
stock options since our stock was doing well on the first day of
trading for 2024. After I cleared a lot of money on those
options, I celebrated with a cranberry mimosa in the air. I
love
life!