Weekend in Santa Marta

 I know most of my last posts have been kind of depressing, just talking about crime and my bad luck.  So I decided to talk about my weekend which was a really nice one.

The Colombo (where I work) takes all teachers on a trip to Irotama in Santa Marta to spend a day there and enjoy the sun, the beach and the good food.  Irotama is a really nice 5 star hotel and everyone had an awesome time there.  To get there, the school rented these really comfortable buses. During the bus ride some were listening to music, others were talking and telling jokes. But EVERYONE was taking pictures. Including me, even though I was trying hard to fight back nausea. I get motion sickness, you know.

Me and a coworker at Irotama

When we got there, I was welcomed with a whisky shot by one of my coworkers. He said it would make me feel better but it didn’t. Instead I was all shaky and everyone was making fun of my shivery hand every time I took a picture.  So once everybody had settled in, it was picture time! I took a bunch myself too. Some funny ones of my coworkers and me and others of the landscape.  I promise I will post them on Flickr for you to see them.

Picture of a flower I took in Irotama

The buffet style lunch was awesome. The food was really good, but after I ate I was so full, all I wanted to do was sleep. Some of us dozed off for a bit after lunch and then we hung out in the sun until it was time to leave.

Me and two of my friends decided it was not time for the fun to end. So we decided to stay in Santa Marta for the rest of the weekend. We took a taxi to El Rodadero and then walked along the beach, looking for a nice hotel. After walking for a half hour, we found a small but clean place to stay. We went out dining and walking that night and I slept so well after we got back to the room. I think it was the AC. LOL

A friend and me at the beach in El Rodadero.

The next day we got up early to hit the beach and we worked really hard on getting a nice tan.  We had a nice lunch at the beach, the usual fried fish with tostones, coconut rice and salad.  After lunch, we went back to the hotel, showered and got ready to go back home. The ride back home was a little hot. No comfortable buses this time.  But I slept through most of it. When I finally got home I was so tired, I just crashed after taking yet another shower.

So as you can see, my weekend was pretty cool. I especially enjoyed  the company of my friends and being in another city, seeing different streets and different people. I have to confess I was a little paranoid walking the streets of El rodadero at night with my camera, but everyone kept telling me, “relax, you’re not in Barranquilla”. I guess the crime wave of my city has really affected me. I hope my paranoia doesn’t last forever. 🙂