On my final day in Medellín, I was a walking black cloud. I couldn’t stop crying, I had no energy and I genuinely felt horrendous. In the madness, I thought, ‘I should do something impulsive, that’ll make me feel loads better’, so I booked my sailing trip to Panama for the following week. The next day, I received my monthly punishment, (or gift, depending on how you look at it), for not being preggo. Suddenly, the ridiculously heightened emotional state made sense, (it’s wild how this happens every month, yet every month I am shocked and confused. In my defence, it was 5 days early!). Still, the plan was in place: I needed to make my way up to the Colombian Coast because I was sailing to Panama in one weeks time.

My original plan was to do the whole Tayrona National Park thing and even considered the Lost City Trek. Obviously, my timelines didn’t allow for either of those things, added to the fact that I wouldn’t have wanted to trek for 5 days or sleep in a hammock on the beach whilst bleeding so I made peace with the fact that I wouldn’t do either. Instead, I headed to Santa Marta and did a day trip to Minca from there.

People talk a lot of shit about Santa Marta, and there are defo. some areas to avoid, especially at night which is the same for almost every city. I personally didn’t feel like it was any more ‘dodgy’ than anywhere else I had visited and whilst staying at the Masaya Hostel, everything I needed was within a short walking distance. Santa Marta has two big claims to fame: 1) it’s the oldest city in ‘New World’ South America, being the first Spanish settlement in Colombia in 1525, and 2) it’s where Simon Bolivar died and was originally laid to rest before being moved to Venezuela. It’s very much a seaside town with a relaxed vibe about it. I wouldn’t say the beach is one you’d want to sunbathe on, but it’s nice for a stroll. Toward the centre of town, there are two main streets, Calle 19 and Calle 20, full of bars and restaurants which gets really lively after dark. ‘La Casona’ came highly recommended for a sit down dinner and ‘Dealer Taqueria’ is apaz a good spot for some quick tacos. I went to Ikaro Cafe, a fully veggie spot for brunch and loved it. The interior gives hippie, earthy, relaxed, the food is great and they had soursop juice on the menu which got them a gold star from me.

In hindsight, I wish I had spent one night in Minca and done a bird spotting tour, (stay with me here). I’d heard people rave about it and I actually found myself getting quite excited about seeing different birds especially seeing as Colombia is home to the largest number of bird species in the world, (22% or some 1,200 types), and Minca is home to 320 of those. I’ve also heard the sunsets in Minca are outrageously beautiful – something I didn’t get during my time away which I was truly disappointed by.

Anyways, I booked my day trip to Minca with Sendaria Travel which included return transport, a guide and lunch for $210k pesos, (~£40). Our day started with a walk to a coffee farm which is grown across Minca. They plant fruit trees around their coffee plants to add flavour and act as a natural fertiliser. After a quick cup, we walked through the jungle for a dip in the Oído del Mundo waterfall which was almost completely empty and so peaceful. Our day ended with a little cacao workshop before the heavens opened and we wrapped up the day.

Santa Marta is a great jumping off place for Tayrona, Palomino, Minca and the Lost City Trek too. If I could go back the only thing I would change is spending a night in Minca, I think 2 nights was enough in Santa Marta itself.