This Monday (Saturday night press time), will mark the two week mark in Santa Marta. That sounds like a long time to be in the same hostel, but there is enough to see and do around here to keep me busy.
Few days ago a few of us went up into the mountains to visit the coffee town of Minca.
Like many things here in Colombia, things are rarely without a hitch. Our cabbie didn't know how steep the trek was up to Minca, and actually had his car overheat during our way up. He wasn't happy about it, but the compulsory bottle of water in the trunk to add to the coolant did the trick. 10 minutes later we were chugging back up the mountain.
One thing I've noticed about many taxis is that the speedometer rarely functions. It always reads 0kmph. After a while of wrongfully thinking the cabbies just use that as an excuse for their reckless driving, I figured it out. If the speedometer is busted, the mileage never increases. If only Ferris Buehler had known...
We went up to the excluded plantation of Victoria, where an employee 80 years young showed us around the facilities. Was very interesting seeing coffee at the source, and getting packaged for exportation to the US.
We then set off on a 2 hour hike through the mountainous jungle roads in search of a waterfall. When we finally got there, the cool waters were a welcomed refresher.
The next day we took a taxi to the nearby bay town of Taganga, then hiked over the mountain to Boca Grande, a decent beach with very calm waters. Great sunset followed by shrimp ceviche and finished with a filet mignon. Very good actually, all for about $15.
So here's an interesting story. I bought a big 5L bottle of water from the grocery store, but when I got back to the hostel I noticed the tamper proof top was missing and about half a liter of water was missing.
I figured "Ahh what the hell, what's the worst that could happen."
Well, I don't remember anything from that day. I do, but it was very blurry, as if it was a much more distant memory than it actually was.
The more water I drank, the more dizzy and disconnected from my body I felt. I nearly fainted walking to the bathroom during my 5hour nap at 1 in the afternoon. Went to bed at 9pm and woke up at 8am the next morning.
I thought about the possibilities, and am not 100% sure that the water was contaminated. I could have very well had a fever resulting in my delusional state.
As soon as I realized that the more water from the jug that I drank, the worse that I felt, I bought a fresh bottle with the tamper seal intact and flipped 180 degrees back to normal. I will never take being able to walk to the bathroom without fainting for granted ever again. Relish it, my friends.
When I came to, I quickly did a once-over on my body for signs of organ theft, and made sure my passport and other valuables were still in my possession. All good.
Lesson of the day? Don't assume an opened bottle of water on the shelf is safe to drink. Who woulda known?
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