Santa Marta's serene surrounds

It's no major revelation to state that the main reason most tourists go to Santa Marta is to visit the attractions surrounding it. 

In other words, the city is a tourism hub solely because it's close to places of greater interest and beauty. (Its historic centre is quaint enough for sure and it has a bog-standard beach, but they're not necessarily crowd-pullers in themselves.)

Of the many places of interest in the region, the best known are, arguably, Parque Tayrona and The Lost City, La Ciudad Perdida. 

Indeed, by all accounts the latter has become almost too well known compared to our first and thus far only virtually-solo trek there back in early 2009. It's not that 'lost' at all these days so it seems. An inevitable result of Colombia's growing popularity that.

A quite refreshing dip ...

Nonetheless — and thankfully for those of us seeking less-crowded locations — the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, this being the mountain range that surrounds the city, still has plenty of fairly remote spots to discover. And we don't have to go too far out of our way to find them.

In fact, about an hour's combined bus and moto-taxi ride from the city centre, via the suburb of Bonda and the village of Masinga, there's the quite stunning Paso del Mango. 

Similar to rural parts of Colombia's coffee region, many of the farms (fincas) here offer peaceful, sustainable mountain living but with the special bonus of the beach, should you want it, being just a stone's throw away, relatively speaking.

However, considering just the trickle of visitors the place seems to get, you mightn't be too pushed to leave the tree-shaded serenity it offers.

The small rivers that race towards the Caribbean around here regularly have their flow interrupted, resulting in impressive waterfalls that call out to you well before you can see them.

Peaceful surrounds ...

Aside from being picturesque, the little pools they've created provide a very refreshing dip after trekking in the tropical sun — not forgetting the natural massage the cascading water provides should you wish. 

What's more, there's a good chance you'll have them all pretty much to yourself in which you can relax and unwind.

Speaking of unwinding, another plus point for us was that there was no mobile phone signal in the finca we overnighted in.* 

Seeing as how addicted many of us have become to our handheld devices, rarely disconnecting even when on holidays, a bit of forced rehab is a very healthy thing every now and again. (At the risk of ruining the image, we must point out here that the finca's caretakers, a young local family, do have cable TV. We were able to avoid that, though.)

Lying in pitch darkness, the gentle sounds of a busy nocturnal jungle and flow of a nearby river are therapeutic-like (interrupted by the odd dog bark albeit and, if things get sticky, you may have to turn on a fan. Nothing's perfect, eh?).

Altogether, the biggest pull factor Paso del Mango has to offer is its tranquillity. 

With a few other fincas currently in construction, there is a risk it might lose a bit of that in the coming years. Here's hoping it doesn't. 

We're all for development, but when we're talking about a paradise like this, keep it sensible, sustainable and in harmony with the natural environment. It's not too much to ask, is it?

*For more information about Finca Entre Ríos, visit Aluna Casa y Café.
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Colombia's 'lost world'

'The Not Very Lost City'; now, where's 'Postlandia'?

It will come as no surprise to most of you to hear that Colombia is a land of many treasures. 

The majority of these are natural, although it has even got a man-made Indiana Jones style Lost City; well it's very much found now but it was lost, or at least hidden, at one stage. (Perhaps it can give advice to those of us who still feel a little wayward in this life? 'The Lost City Counselling Services' – you heard it here first.)

Impressive as that and the other treasures are, there exists what must be a truly magical place in these environs – aside from, the as of yet discovered, El Dorado that is. 

For somewhere out there, we can only assume, is a land awash with a host of goodies from both near and far. You could dub it Postlandia – the perpetual resting place for all that undelivered post. And by all accounts, it must be pretty extensive.

That's because there aren't too many expatriates here who haven't experienced at least one non-delivery of post from their respective homes – and generally, the bigger the item, the greater the chance of its finding its way to Postlandia rather than the addressee.

In fairness, I had been somewhat lucky in this regard; the main issue being a very long wait for post from afar to arrive, but it would arrive at some stage. 

However, that good run looks to have come to an end. Unless, that is, something sent over three months ago happens to turn up unexpectedly – for it will be an unexpected surprise now.

Being the altruistic person that I am (it's true), I only hope that whoever has got to enjoy the sweet goodies that were meant for me is a deserving candidate – a thin cat rather than a fat cat. 

Indeed, there are plenty of that former variety here who could do with some nourishment, even if it's not the healthiest fare. With Bogotá's La Perseverancia by my side, I'll soldier on without it.

Yet, this whole postal inefficiency – or non-existence to be more accurate – does raise the point of what you are supposed to do to get something delivered here from overseas when you don't have big bucks to spend on a courier service. 

The best solution, it seems, is the old refrain, 'If you want something done, do it yourself.' For the Colombian post 'service' is just another one of those things you can put into the 'unreliable' category in these parts.

Of course, you shouldn't come to Colombia looking for reliability. And sure wouldn't life be dull if it was too prim and proper? Plus, there's always the prize of discovering Postlandia to be won.