Santa Marta

Today is Tuesday, August 28th and I am currently staying at The Dreamer Hostel in Santa Marta. I arrived here last night after 6 days in one of the prettiest cities I have ever seen called Cartagena. Time since the last blog post has been consumed with beaches, a boat ride to sandy Playa Blanca, pizzerias, and bar hopping around Calle Media Luna. It was a truly great experience and the Makako hostel housed some really cool people from all over the world. On Saturday a group of us wandered through plaza after plaza in search of a good discotech and Friday was a fun night with a buddy from the UK as we stumbled upon a Reggaeton mini bar dance spot. For anyone interested in Playa Blanca it is a little over rated but the beach is nice if you can avoid getting trapped by the persuasive beach vendors. Cartagena, being a major Colombian tourist destination, is very lovely but is swarmed with people trying to sell anything from fake Ray Bans to sea food supposedly good for improving ones sex drive.

Santa Marta is a very relaxed town, a 5 hour bus ride north of Cartagena, and serves as a gateway to the famed Tayrona National Park. Unfortionately I do not have enough time to do an overnight trip so instead I have decided to take surfing lessons tomorrow at a nearby beach. I have committed a major travel blunder and accidentally left my money belt, holding both my credit and debit cards, in a Taxi while enroute to the Cartagena bus station. After calling the Makako hostel and public transit authorities to no avail, I learned the hard way that it is actually really easy to wire money from home. After cancelling both cards my Dad wired money via Western Union and within 10 hours a crisis has been averted and now I have access to money from my savings. I luckily was holding onto my passport which avoided a complete disaster.To celebrate not being broke and left in a Colombian gutter I am laying low with a couple Aguila beers. On Saturday I return to Bogota to begin a three week volunteer assignment with Emerging Voices.

Cartagena

After spending one full day in Bogota I have since travelled north to the coastal colonial fort city of Cartagena. Referred to as the Miami of Colombia, Cartagena boasts some of the most attractive scenery I have ever seen. Each building has its own bright colors and culture and the streets of Old Town are consistently crammed with countless pedestrians. The aura feels like New Olreans with humid air, vibrant colors, and well preserved architecture from generations ago. Cars zip through the narrow, exotically shaped brick streets and honk every few seconds to avoid collisions with innocent locals. Each corner is surrounded by fruit, shoe, telephone, and service vendors.

I have been in the walled city for two days and it easily is one of the most beautiful and frustrating places i have ever visited. Being situated along the Caribbean, with temperatures being consistently hot, it is easy to see that this is a tourist hub because everyone is trying to make money. People yell for your attention, cabs honk to see if you need a lift, and random strangers pretend to be your friend to try and sell you something. This sounds like a big turn off but once you play the game and don't take it seriously the city is a true gem.

Today I took a tour with an 80 year old local named Madrida who has been giving tours since the 1960s. We walked all around the walls and saw the major plazas that Cartagena had to offer. He was a really cool guy until he started to ask for more money and citing various reasons why he felt he needed it. I felt bad but he was blatantly trying to con me and despite his age I had to walk away. It was a great experience and it really shed light on the cities' character. Afterwards I checked out a Spanish castle that was erected a few hundred years ago. Tomorrow I am going to La Playa Blanca and in a few days will bus up to Santa Marta. the hostel I am staying in is the Makako Chill House and it really is CHILL. more updates coming soon!

Americano's en Bogota

It's 9:30am in Bogota and I just bought some coffee at a Juan Valdez Cafe. The plaza where this cafe I located sits between a church and a large bank. People dressed in suits, students with notebooks, and walkers with expressions of determination stride around me. The air is fresh and the coffee tastes pretty good at this time of day.

I've been up for a few hours and finally my mind is slowly beginning to clear after 24 hours of traveling and stress. After a failed attempt to sleep in the Houston airport and during the plane ride to panama city, I arrived in bogota a strung out tourist who felt very unfamiliar with his surroundings.

After passing customs, large travel pack on my shoulders, an older man In a furry suit came up to me and asked if I needed a taxi. His taxi name tag and slicked back white hair was enough for me and I followed him to a nearby mini yellow taxi. He opened the door, I sat down, and the driver took me to the apartment where the volunteers for emerging voices live. After 30 seconds of awkward silence in the taxi I broke the ice and asked a few questions in terrible Spanish. The man understood me and we ended up talking for the entire ride even. It was my first conversation in a foreign language ad it was really fun.

After paying the man and meeting Monica, the Colombian born volunteer coordinator , I met the other volunteers and most of them are either American or kiwi so it was a taste of familiarity. The apartment is pretty fancy and there are 16 of us living there. I was wiped and not functioning vey well so I decided to avoid deep conversations with people and go to bed. Today the goal is get a SIM card for my phone, bank, and book hostel reservations for Cartegena.

I will fly to Cartegena tomorrow, a colonial coastal city located along the northern carribean side of the country. I will be there and in Santa Marta for 10 days to soap up sun and not get bitten my mosquitos hopefully. It is very san francisco like here with mild temperature and mostly cloudy skies. After exploring the streets aroud this part of the city i have come to the conclusion that we are in a very safe neighborhood. Each block has army or security guards and some of them are carrying automatic rifles. It's really different but also very exciting. More updates coming soon but I am safe and miss everyone from back home. Have a good day.

3..2..1

In 8 hours I will board a flight to Bogota, Colombia and begin a trip that will span 4.5 months and hopefully guide me through 6 countries. Despite the fact that time is really limited I still have to pack my bag and probably should not be writing haha. Post Missoula life has consisted of visiting Portland then driving to California to be with friends, family, and seeing my girlfriend Anna. She was able drive down to CA with me for a few days and we got to check out the Outside Lands Music Festival plus a Giants game. She is now back in Portland and all energy is being devoted towards the departure. Emotions and stress are rising now that the reality of leaving is on the forefront of my mind. I am pretty anxious right now and truly thankful for everyone who has supported this trip. Here are some details: The flight will be long: Leaving San Francisco at 8pm today and arriving at midnight in Houston with an 8 hour layover in Texas. Afterwards I will fly to Panama City then enter South America at 4pm on Monday August 20th. Bogota is 2 hours ahead of San Francisco and 1 hour ahead of Missoula. I have signed up to volunteer with a Bogota based volunteer organization called Emerging Voices and starting September 1st I will begin a three week homeless feeding project. The project will be with other volunteers from around the world and while working we will live together in a community house. A major goal is to take Spanish classes alongside working with Bogota homeless. There will also be a two week gap of time between landing in Bogota and commencing the food service project. My plan is to bus north to Cartegena and Santa Marta, two Caribbean bordering cities, and explore for a little over a week while staying in a few hostels. As of now I am planning on seeing Ecuador for about a week starting in late September and hanging on the coastline then going to bus down to Peru. This is a very loose idea and things might change. More updates will follow once I'm down south!

Last Missoula Days

My name is Danny Catena and this is a blog that I will continue to update for the next 5 or so months in an attempt to keep friends, family, and loved ones informed concerning my where-abouts. Today is Friday, August 3rd, 2012 and this is my third to last day as a Missoula, Montana resident. After 7 years of living in one of the most beautiful places ever conceived, surrounded by some of the greatest people I have ever met, a decision has been made to pack up my belongings and explore some different places. I am deeply thankful for every friend, co-worker, and acquaintance that I have met while living in Missoula and know in my heart that we will remain close. Moving will be a considerably bittersweet experience because I love living in Missoula but inside there is a desire for something new. The next few days will be filled with moving chores and spending time with as many people as possible before leaving on Monday. The official plan is to fly to Bogota, Colombia on August 19th and spend 4.5 months as a vagabond learning Spanish, volunteering, dancing Salsa, and meeting people from different walks of life. My ending point is going to be Rio De Janeiro, Brazil and on December 29th I am going to be returning home and making my way to Portland, OR where my girlfriend Anna lives. This is my loose schedule for now and more updates will pour in as new ideas and events take place. This trip is something my heart is craving and thank you for your support, friendship, and love. Have a nice day, you look really good right now :)