My Amazing Life in Colombia

Landing in Cartagena, Colombia

The departure date of July 30, 2022, from Tulsa, Oklahoma was an exciting day for me. I had been out of the hospital for about a month and a half, and I was ready to take on new adventures. I cannot say that I was one hundred percent physically prepared, but I was strong enough to step into something new. I had come to the conclusion that it was time to make drastic changes in my life.

When I had made that decision, I knew that it was time to join a friend of mine in Colombia. I had decided that my destination would be Cartagena, Colombia and I knew that there were treasures untold just waiting for me there.

Once I had arrived to the airport that Saturday, I was not sure about making it through the ticket counter or the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) workers. I was having issues filling out an online app that needed some important information for my boarding the plane and leaving the country.

When I had approached the ticket counter, I had told the agent about the problem that I was having regarding the app that would allow me to board the plane as well as leave the country. I believe it was the visa app that would allow me into Colombia.

The ticket agent did not seem to think that it was very important and so the ticket agent processed my ticket and gave it to me. I thought, well, it must not be that big of a problem. However, the information in the app stated that it had to be filled out before leaving. To make a long story short, I was able to make it to Cartagena without any problems. My next step was to get through customs once I had gotten off the plane. I really did not think that I would make it past customs.

I thought that they were going to pull me aside and send me back to Miami or Tulsa.

The line to customs was very long. While standing in line at customs, I was hoping that customs officer would not ask me for anything other than my passport.

When it was my turn the officer motioned for me to come forward. He said, “May I have your passport.” I had hesitated a second because I was for sure that he would ask for more. However, I had then realized that was all he wanted. I gave him my passport and he gave me the nod of approval. I asked, “Is that it?” He smiled, and said, “You’re good.”  I said, “Cool!” Then I left. I was so glad!

My next step was to find a taxi and go to my hostel that I had booked prior to coming. My first hostel in Cartagena was Casa de la Cruz. How could I ever forget? It was located on 36^th street just a block away from the main street where the city buses and the Transcaribe buses flew by every few minutes.

I knew I was ready for a new life in Colombia. I had finally made it! Had I not wound up in the St. Frances hospital in Tulsa, Oklahoma, I am sure that I would have continued working at the gas station at Costco. I was grateful for the unfortunate change that had taken place.

However, and regardless of my job, I knew I had more to offer life. I had just fallen into the mode of punching the clock, making money, going home, eating and sleeping, and starting all over again the next day. I had dug myself into a hole, and deep inside I knew that I was not living. But, when I opened the door to my new room at the Casa de la Cruz hostel in El Central, Cartagena, I knew that life would be different for me in Colombia.

This is especially true when I smelled that dank Caribbean tropical humid smell. I was so glad and excited, because I knew that this was my time. I knew that whatever adventure stood before me, it was going to be great, fun, and exciting. Call it immaturity, call it childish, or call it what you want, but I felt like a kid all over again.

Casa de la Cruz Lobby

Casa de la Cruz turned out to be a good start for me. I had become a little familiar with the area after the second or third day. The street where my hostel was located was full of people on each side of the street. I mean crowds of people were always passing by my place. It was in a very busy area. The hostel was the type of place that as soon as you would look out the door during the day, throngs of people would be passing by. Those passers-by were heading in one direction or the other.

Once the throng of people came near my door, I would often watch to see where they were going or where they had come from. The one thing that I will say is that anticipation was in the air and I was ready to enjoy life at my sweet age of 57.

I must say that what I loved most was that everything seemed new. I cannot tell you how great I felt. My anticipation and excitement were very high. I was traveling alone and that is one of the best feelings in the world because I could do whatever I wanted to do whenever I wanted, morally and legally speaking, of course.

My hostel was a great introduction to Cartagena, Colombia, and as with any situation, I did not explore the area as much as I should have. But, I did not care, I was free.

The time did come, however, where I had to make a change. I had only scheduled a few days in the Casa de la Cruz hostel. I was not able to schedule more days because other patrons had already chosen to stay in my room weeks in advance.

Not only that, but my bed was very hard and difficult to sleep on. I was not able to get a good night of rest. So, I left for a place called Bocagrande.