JJ's Travelogue

Just back from dowsing myself in a towering volcano of mud. Yes, voluntarily! Volcán del Totumo is a naturally formed tower of mud just 20m high, 10m wide, but reputedly over 500m deep! Huh.

Most people travel there with a tour group. I am not most people. I have all the time in the world, a quest for adventure, and I’m.. ahem, cheap. So a couple of buses and a few hours later, I’m getting closer.. when the bus breaks down. No problem, flag down a passing motorcyclist!

I finally arrive to see that it’s nicely rustic, just a collection of huts that locals have built to sell snacks from. I ease myself in, and pleasantly discover that it’s not hot (in this heat, that would be too much). In fact it’s completely neutral on every front – buoyancy, viscosity, temperature. You lay back, relax, and float! Or you can move (a strange sensation in itself) and wherever you leave your limbs they stay. Perhaps a noted soil scientist in the family can give us more details on what exactly this magical stuff is..

I had read ahead of time on Wikitravel that locals will massage you and take care of your stuff in exchange for small tips. Sure enough, I had a nice little massage while lying there while another friendly chap took embarrassing flattering photos. A school group from Barranquilla had just gone in, and they all wanted to practice their English while I was in this compromised state. After you’ve had your fill, they walk you down to the edge of the lake to wash you off. A woman comes out of nowhere, plants you in the lake, and proceeds to scrub all the mud off. It had gotten in all sorts of places the sun don’t shine.

Good fun. By this point of course I had missed the last direct bus back into town, but I caught a ride on another motorcycle part of the way, another few buses, and somehow made it back. It’s nice sometimes to just put my fate in the hands of strangers.

Photos and more stories after the jump…

This was my first taste of Colombia’s countryside. I don’t know what I expected, but it looks just like Central America. Small concrete houses with tin roofs, poor subsistence farmers, trash-strewn highways.
According to the Happy Planet Index, Colombians are the second-most happiest people on earth. The map is fascinating.. most of the world, unsurprisingly, is not particularly happy. The U.S. is ranked #150, behind Kazakhstan, Moldova, and Eritrea. Huh.
Maybe I’m imagining it, but I feel like I got a glimpse of this happiness today. There was a lightness of spirit – friendly, laughing, teasing.

The Colombian tourism board’s slogan is “Colombia – the only danger is wanting to stay.” I saw these ads incessantly in Central America (in English, on CNN usually), and now I know what they mean. The current president has spent the last few years improving safety dramatically, especially in tourist areas. The travel message boards are full of people saying the same thing – the dangers are all in the past, and the country currently feels safer than most other places in Latin America. I say all this partly to  encourage you to visit. Admittedly I’ve only seen Cartagena so far, but that alone is worth the trip. It’s only five hours from NYC, and Andrew found a ticket for less than $300. Have I tempted you yet?

I’ve come across several live music groups here in Cartagena. In the middle of the day, night, parks, clubs, just happened upon them. Contrast with Central America, where I couldn’t find any despite searching high and low.

Addendum, written the next morning:

Walking around last night I passed a number of clubs with live salsa bands, but my body doesn’t know how to respond to those rhythms. Then I happened upon a ska band – one of the only types of music I like to dance to. They were great – high energy – two guitars, bass, drums, male vocals, alto sax that often carried the melody, and two percussionists. Uncomfortable at first, I finally overcame my self-consciousness and danced like no one was watching. It was so nice to get out of my head for a while. Traveling solo leaves me too much time to naval gaze, which leads to self-criticism and insecurity. Perhaps it’s time I settle down for a while and volunteer. They say that only in service to others do we find ourselves.

I’ve been surprised to see so many overweight people in Latin America. I don’t think they’re overfed the way Americans are, rather I suspect it’s from all the carbs in their diet: rice, plantains, corn, beer.. a lot of women look pregnant even when they’re not!

Speaking of eating, I’ve still got that stomach bug. It reminds me of coming back from Indonesia about 10 years ago. It was Thanksgiving, but all that luscious food I ate just went straight through me. (Some would call that lucky.. Arnie!) I went to the University of Washington travel clinic where we had gotten our shots, they took a stool sample, and the next day the doctor called me very excitedly – “it seems you have a rare strain of cryptosporidium that hasn’t been seen in this country before. Colleagues from across the country are calling me up, asking for more stool samples!” Imagine, my 15 minutes of fame brought on by my shit. I’ll give Cipro another few days before changing to something else.