Welcome to Paradise... Almost

On March 11th, we left Kumu in Colon to be put in a container shipped

to Colombia and took a bus back down to Panama City. We got on board

the sailboat Flamboyant and left early the next morning to cross the

Panama Canal. The following is a brief look at the amazing trip that

we embarked on. The good parts anyway, read below to find out a little

of the nitty gritty.

So I just realized that Youtube has blocked the sound of my video... If anyone has a solution for this it would be good to know because it seems a little strange without the music! 

All beautiful things come with a price. Not an hour after leaving the
San Blas Archipelago, our good moods and sunny complexions were
punched in the face by massive 15 meter waves. Now to imagine this,
think of the high platform of an Olympic dive pool, times it by 1.5
and turn it into a wall of millions of gallons of water staring you in
the face as if you were nothing but a tiny annoying piece of lint in
its belly button. Not the most pleasant thing to experience. Even the
magnificent blue shade of the water did nothing to dispel my
nervousness... oh did I mention at times we were in only 20 feet of
water with the 15 meter waves as we headed out to open ocean?
We were assured that the waves would die down once in deeper water.
Lucky for us they went down to a whopping 5-10 meter swell with winds
of up to 38 knots. For you non-sailors out there thats about 75 km/h.
Needless to say it was a LONG two and a half days. Andrew manned up
and was up and about most of the time, while Daniel, Ramona and I laid
uselessly in our beds not wanting to move for fear of throwing up...
again. All shame was thrown out the window the first night when,
refusing to go into the tiny little bathroom, I dropped my drawers and
hung my self over the side of the boat while harnessed onto the
railing and grasping Andrews hand for extra support. Not my shiniest
moment.
Never-the-less, on the 19th at 11:30 at night ten nights after
boarding the ship, traveling through the canal and the San Blas
Islands and across the Caribbean sea, we finally arrived at our South
American destination, Cartagena, Colombia!! We attempted to disembark
quickly and went out onto solid land to celebrate our arrival in
style... pizza and beer, the best style we know!

We are now waiting earnestly for the public holiday to end so we can
head to the port and be reunited with Kumu. In the meantime we are
exploring the amazing colonial city of Cartagena. A big thank you to
Eric and Isabelle, our hosts aboard the Flamboyant, for providing an
amazing adventure, great food and fun times!

Here are a couple pictures from our first day in Cartagena!

I think I just just embrace my extra few pounds as they seem to do here!

Andrew and I on The Wall. A huge 10-15 ft wide wall that encompasses all of the old city of Cartagena

Traditional dancing in the streets.

Your guess is as good as mine?

Clock tower marking the entrance to the old city