There are some moments travelling when you have to take a look at your ordinary life and really question why it’s so difficult. These moments, by and large, take place when you visit the Caribbean, and you sample the laid back lifestyle of the people there. Music, dancing and general enjoyment rule the day (and night), creating a relaxed atmosphere that feels a million miles away from my usual urban slog.
I had one of these moments in the Colombian Caribbean. Having taken a boat from the lively fishing village of Tolú, we’d arrived on an island inhabited only by a luxury Colombian hotel and a few vendors selling drinks. We took a walk around the island, visiting hotel Punta Faro, swimming in its beautiful private beaches and relaxing on its white sands. So far things are pretty close to perfect, I thought as I dipped my head underwater. But the best was yet to come.
We took a walk through the island’s centre, a place made up of trees and dry mud paths, before coming to the island’s other beach. Here were all the others we’d travelled on the boat with, enjoying the sea, looking at the fish, diving off a short wooden pier. We’d had our fill of swimming, so we sat down on some chairs to take a drink. I was recommended a Coco Loco by a Colombian lady and, being the adventurous type, I willingly took the recommendation. Sure, it’d be easy to get worried when the first thing that happens after asking for a Coco Loco is that the guy making it draws a huge machete from behind his stall, but relax, that’s for the coconut.
The Coco Loco arrived after a few minutes of preparation. I took a sip. All that heavenly rum (two different varieties), vodka, coconut, banana and pineapple goodness slid down easier than any cocktail I’d had before. I looked out to the horizon where the turquoise sea stretched out as far as I could see, took a sip from my cocktail in a coconut and just when I thought life couldn’t get any better, the guy who made my Coco Loco stops by. “More rum, señor?” he asks.
Perfect.
Ryan
Antigua Hotels on
Will be there (Barranquilla) next Autumn. I cannot wait.
Paul on
Awesome, you’ll love it I swear!