Day 10: 9th Wedding Anniversary Marked by Chocolate and the Castillo in Cartagena

Today’s our 9th wedding anniversary. James kept calling it our “university,” and asked where he was when we got married. When we explained he hadn’t been born yet, he goes: “So I was just air?”

We slept well, with everyone up around 7:30. Our early-riser, Willa, has been loving her quiet Kindle time in the am, and reads chapter books while the rest of us sleep. Big hits right now: Nate the Great and Cam Jansen (latter was also my fave growing up).

We had a pretty packed day. And have thoughts about it all, as we continue to figure out the pacing and style of year we want to have. More on that later.

We did some quick shopping this am — I got a set of Colombian-made placemats and some items at Loto Del Sur, an amazing fragrance/candle/lotion shop I also visited in Bogota. They only have it in Colombia and don’t easily ship to the US. Amazing stuff.

The dollar is so strong here it almost feels unfair. For a couple fresh off a year of no clothes/shoes/accessories shopping (yes we did that in 2018 – see our inspo here), the good, cheap shopping here is hard to resist.

Our first activity today was at a chocolate museum, where we learned the process for making chocolate, got to make some drinks made with cocoa beans and finally, decorate some chocolates with toppings in a mold, which we picked up later.

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I’d say it was a cool activity…for a 10-year-old. Sort of interesting for Willa, definitely not for James. His favorite part of the whole thing was the clear plastic flaps hanging down in the doorway between the outside and the AC’d cooking room. He was boxing with them.

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There was a dual meltdown toward the end after James fell off a chair and Willa cried because, in falling, he messed up her chocolate. She also pouted earlier because she knocked over all the sugar and was “so embarrassed.”

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I feel like telling any tour organizer that whatever you think a “kid activity” is, shave off 80% of the talking, explaining, showing, doing, time — and you’ve got something fit for a 4-year-old. But again, more on that later.

Once again — what is wrong with us — we let lunch slip back until 1:30. This was James:

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It was good though. Juan del Mar down the street — and Picky James ate a plateful of crab claws. What is happening??

There was a gay guy couple from Washington, DC at the next table in town for a girlfriend’s bachelorette party. Chatted with them and admittedly envied their kid-free party week ahead.

Back at the hotel James was spent — and started crying hysterically for his stuffed animal penguin, which we left in the US (intentionally – he doesn’t really care about it).

Next up: a historical tour of Cartagena. Perfect timing!!!

Bogota tour was a bust, as regular readers will remember, so we needed to try another before writing off historical tours altogether. We were wary.

The organizer promised a kid-friendly experience. So we visited the Castillo San Felipe de Barajas, the most iconic landmark in the city, framed as a “treasure hunt” for the kids with a guide and helper dressed as pirates.

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They’d hidden wrapped plastic toys around the tunnels and barracks and gave Willa and James flashlights to find them all.

Somewhat groan-worthy, and doubt the kids learned anything of meaning about the landmark, but admittedly they were entertained while we got to actually hear some of the history:

In the 1500s, Spain needed to protect its resource jewel Colombia from pirates and others, and Cartagena was the gateway to the rest of the country. So they constructed this sophisticated military fortress that helped stave off pirates, the French, English and others over hundreds of years.

Things we learned:

• The walls were made with limestone, brick, corral, shells and …cattle blood. See above.
• Pirates’ patches weren’t to cover injured eyes. Instead, pirates wore them so they always had one eye accustomed to the dark — if you ran into a dark fortress/tunnel you had to rip it off and be able to see right away. Wait 30 seconds for your eyes to adjust and you might be dead.

Our poor guide Fernando has a graduate degree in Colombian history and had to wear an eye patch and feign glee whenever the kids found a plastic bouncy ball or Elsa tiara.

The tour was supposed to go another two stops (whaaaa) but we “quit while we were ahead” and called wrapped at 5.

Quick and light dinner at a Colombian chain called Pezetarian where JAMES ATE SALAD.

Back here at the hotel there’s quite a scene: a local medical spa is hosting a big “white and gold attire” influencer cocktail event sponsored by Tanqueray right in our tiny hotel — so, loud speakers, rooftop mingling, etc. Teddy went up and got us some cocktails to drink while we write. Willa and James’s heads share a wall with the party. They were asleep in two minutes despite the rattling bass.

Observations/thoughts/”noticings” as Willa the Blue Schooler would say:

Our NYC kids really don’t bat an eye at street chaos. They’re terrified of bugs, but jostling and yelling and traffic doesn’t even seem to register with them.

Cartagena is not really kid-friendly. We have no regrets, but man, it’d be so awesome to be here without kids. Everything is oriented to a non-kid experience. It’s a cool and sexy place.

Lol: An elderly American tourist passing through the chocolate museum stopped to observe the four of us grinding cocoa beans using mortars and pestles and asked with a straight face if we worked there. I mean, we *were* all wearing branded aprons and chefs hats.

James wanted to know today why everyone in town is selling something. The old city is definitely all hotels and restaurants and street vendors for tourists, but not in a totally off-putting way. It’s still crumbly and real enough to feel interesting and not Times Square-ish.

I have yet to break out my brand new amazing “big camera.” Painful. BUT I think where I’ve landed is that it will come out for special picture-taking time when I’m on a mission to take great pics of a place, and not snapping away at the day to day. The Pixel 3 is just too good for the day to day. And when the kids are with me, I have to be paying attention to them not running into the street instead of spending 5 minutes “making a photo.”

Willa is claustrophobic. The Castillo had this amazing labyrinth of underground tunnels that were low-ceilinged and dark — and she really wanted OUT. Millions of years of evolution at play.

Further thoughts on kids and touring:

• Lunch has to be at noon.
• No activities longer than 45 min — one hour max (4 year old bday parties are 45 min, and that’s when they’re having the time of their lives).
• Keep it simple. Eg a cooking lesson can easily just be: How to prepare coconut milk. That’s enough. A full 3-course meal is waaaay too much.
• According to Willa, the ways she likes to learn best is via: “Games instead of worksheets,” “Experiments,” “Things that make my hands messy” and “Research and interviewing people.” James answered the same question with: “With things like PE with balls”

Most interesting: Cartagena is a complex place. On one hand it’s seductive and charming and authentic and romantic and stunning. On another it is a massive former slave port with a dark, terrifying past.

We’ll be back. For now, we have a free day tomorrow to explore more.

More pics:

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