Saturday, November 4 – Cartagena Capers

Cartagena is another in the Gump Chocolate Collection.  We have found a flavor we like, so to speak, and always pick it.  And we are never disappointed.

Things were a bit different on this visit, but it had nothing to do with our plan.  In the past 4 visits, we have walked off the ship, turned left at the model submarine, right at the Burger King and straight up Calle Mayor, Main Street.  Calle Mayor is filled with shops of all kinds from groceries to clothing to real estate offices.  And cafes too numerous to count.  There are parallel and intersecting streets also filled with shops and cafes.  Everywhere one looks, there are locals going about their business or relaxing with a drink [or two].

In 2009, we discovered a bakery-café less than 50 feet off the calle.  We were enticed by the aroma and enchanted by the displays, but we were brave.  We were brave again in 2011 when we returned.  Again, we had walked down Mayor and stopped to stare down the devil.  In 2015, the Devil won.  We met friends at the submarine and walked to “our” bakery where we talked for what seemed hours over coffee and calories.  We even had the courage to take a kilo of cookies back to the ship to share with the Trivia team. 

Our first shock today came when we walked to the end of the dock and discovered that the submarine was gone.  We found out later that it had been into the submarine museum since our visit last year.  As we started up Calle Mayor, we found ourselves in the midst of a local crafts fair.  Perhaps this is a regular Saturday occurrence and we had never been here on a Saturday before.  Regardless, it was a mob scene.

The crowds did not thin as we walked down the avenue.  There were people everywhere, talking, shopping, eating and drinking, sometimes, it seemed, at the same time.  We stopped several times so MA could rest; even with lidocaine patches and Tylenol, it was a long walk.  Finally, she sat on a bench while D went to see how far it was to the bakery.  He wasn’t gone long because it was about 100 yards farther up the street.  Target acquired.

We went inside to reconnoiter the baked goods, picked the ones we wanted and ordered two cappuccinos.  We found a table outside and waited for everything to appear.  The pastries were first, but we waited for the coffees before practically diving face-first into what was really our lunch.  Mission accomplished.

 What a life!  Pastries and Cokes yesterday, pastries and cappuccinos today.  What will tomorrow bring?  Lunch, for such it became, was a princely €6.80; yesterday, the bill was €9.00.  We expect to have a similar lunch in Palermo and perhaps other places as well.  Damn the calories!  We’re on vacation. 

We wandered back like salmon going upstream against the current and stopped at the BK to try to use their WiFi.  To assuage our guilt, we got a Coke [€2.60!], but the WiFi would not connect.  We should have asked for our money back.  We stopped several other times on the way home so MA could recuperate.  Once in the cabin, it was a lights-out SCAN.

TOMORROW – Barcelona, city of art and arguments