Our flight to Bogota was spot on time with the added benefit of surprisingly decent food too which is rare for any airline let alone a South American one! Our taxi took us through the centre of Bogota (which was nothing like the war zone we expected) and into a residential street which looked like the last place you'd find a hostel. Thankfully trusty old Hostelworld came good again and the place turned out to be a very nice conventional house with the bedrooms used as dorms. It was all pretty much brand new having only been open for a couple of months and we were upgraded to an en suite room for free which always helps!It poured with rain that evening so Sarah and I went to the local supermarket, picked up some food and cooked ourselves a meal back at the hostel. Shamefully it was the first time in two months that we'd managed to summon up the enthusiasm to do that and it turned out to be a big success. More due to Sarah's input than mine though!

We spent the next day exploring the city and spent a few hours around the historic old town which was very nice. Many of the buildings were very ornate and this coupled with a real hustle and bustle to the area really made it feel like we were experiencing a 'traditional' South American city. The main square was a haven for people watching and after a gorgeous raspberry ice cream (so nice it had to be documented!) we walked around the outside of the heavily guarded presidential palace and stumbled upon a changing of the guard type ceremony which was colourful but a little ramshackle compared to our equivalent. The altitude was proving to be an issue again and we both felt wiped out so we jumped in a taxi and spent the evening crashed out at the hostel in front of the TV.

On the advice of the very friendly hostel owners we visited the Cerro Monserratte (a large church) the next day. The church is on one of the highest points in Bogota so we needed to catch a cable car up to the summit. It was slightly cloudy but despite this the views across the city were excellent and being a Sunday we also got to see how the locals enjoyed their Sunday rituals. We watched one of the church services and then wandered around a large street market attached to the grounds of the church complex which sold everything from tacky souvenirs to livestock! We spent a couple of hours amongst the locals exploring the market and then spent almost as long in the food area which seemed to be where everyone headed for a family lunch. Much of the food looked distinctly odd and we hesitantly tried some of the local fare despite it making my cooking look good on the presentation front! To round off the day we hopped into another taxi and headed for a large shopping centre where we had dinner at the Hard Rock Café and then took in a film. It was only when we went to enter the cinema that we were told that we were an hour early and we realized that our watches were an hour ahead and we'd been an hour early for everything since we arrived in Colombia!

We spent our last day in Bogota at a salt museum which was almost like a mini theme park with lots of activities (climbing walls, walking tours etc) on the surrounding area. The salt museum was fascinating and we spent a few hours underground exploring the huge cathedral and vast network of salt mines which even had a 3D theatre in one of the caves. Sarah even got to try her hand at being a real miner by going mad with a pick axe in one of the caves. I couldn't help but think she was imagining the wall was me though! We braved the local transport to and from the salt cathedral which was great fun as the buses don't actually stop. There's a guy hanging out of the side door yelling the destination and it's your job to jump on when the bus slows down enough. Can't see that catching on in Englandsomehow!

Throughout the trip I'd been very keen to experience the 'real' Amazon whereas Sarah was very reluctant due to her reaction to mosquito bites which in fairness was hugely likely to happen. We'd been discussing this for a weeks and eventually decided to go our separate ways for a few days. We said our goodbyes at the airport and I headed south to Leticia for my Amazon adventure and Sarah went north to the Caribbean coastal resort of Cartagena for a few days of sunshine. It was a little odd to be travelling alone again but I also immediately felt as if a weight had been lifted and I could just focus on myself which was bliss! The flight in took us over dense jungle with chocolate brown rivers snaking off as far as the eye could see and after landing at the tiny local airport I stepped off the plane into stifling heat which made it feel like I'd landed in another country. As I walked across the apron the heavens opened and a huge thunderstorm swept in which lasted all of 5 minutes before the bright sunshine crept out again…..welcome to the Amazon!

I'd booked my accommodation online at the last minute (as usual!) and had received no confirmation so I wandered out of the airport unsure whether I had anywhere to sleep or not. Thankfully I was greeted by a little man with my name printed on a piece of paper (I'll never get tired of that!) who ushered me into his car and whisked me to the hotel. The place was awesome and exactly as it appeared on the internet. The whole place was brand new and my room was huge with a big double bed and, best of all, a superb hammock outside. The owner was very friendly but spoke no English so my limited Spanish was tested to the hilt as I tried to explain where I was from and what I wanted to do during my stay. He seemed to get most of what I said and I must say I surprised myself with how much I'd learned since the start of the trip. I wandered into town to get my bearings but was forced(!) to stay in a bar due to another torrential downpour which literally turned the roads into rivers. I rounded off the night with a spot of dinner and a couple of hours in my hammock….bliss!

At breakfast the next day I was joined by the owner and we had another stuttering conversation during which it dawned on me that I was the only guest at the complex! I was served a great breakfast by Mariella (gorgeous Colombian lady!) and then given a lift on the back of the owner's motorbike to my pick up point for a day trip to Puerto Narino. Personal service at it's best for sure!! The day trip took us along the Amazon where we saw some pink dolphins and countless different birds. I couldn't help but think back to a similar trip along the Mekong in Cambodia the previous year but the scenery was nonetheless gorgeous. We stopped at a small village for lunch on the way back where we saw a traditional Colombian dance by the locals who then proceeded to try to sell us lots of tat. I did get to hold a Boa constrictor for a while though which was a first!

After another lovely breakfast with Mariella I was off for another day trip to Monkey Island which turned out to be very good. Unsurprisingly the island is teaming with monkeys and we got the opportunity to hand feed them as we explored the jungle trail round the island. We also had an hour long canoe ride through dense forest and narrow waterways which, with the stifling heat and noises from the birds and monkeys in the trees, really made it feel like the Amazon I'd imagined. The size of the spiders on some of the trees was also quite surprising and I couldn't help but wonder what I'd do if one decided to hop in the canoe for a ride as we were told there were caiman and snakes in the water! I met an English/Colombian couple at lunch and after having a giggle through the afternoon we decided to carry on with a few beers after the trip.I'd verbally agreed a deal to do a night safari including crocodile spotting that night with the guide from the previous day's trip and talked Dave and Carolina into it too. Sadly the guide didn't show so we wandered down to the jetty and used Carolina's language skills to try and blag our way onto one of the many boats. There were some very shady looking characters hanging around and we weren't having much luck as many of the boat owners were reluctant to take us in case they lost their license. That was until a guy in shorts, shooting jacket and a deer stalker approached us and offered to take us. He was a dodgy looking character at best and with a Rambo sized knife strapped to his leg and a rifle in the front of his boat it was with some trepidation that we joined his party and set off into pitch darkness along the river. I was hugely excited at the prospect of seeing wild crocodiles and caiman but after 2 hours of searching along narrow rivers with the spotlight scanning the riverbanks we saw……….two frogs! A great experience nonetheless and I was happy to have made it back safe from the clutches of Colombia's answer to Crocodile Dundee!

The next day saw me say my goodbyes to my fabulous hosts and make the trip up to Cartagena via Bogota which was very smooth and even got me in to Cartagena an hour early. It was nice to see Sarah again and we spent the evening wandering around the gorgeous old town and enjoying a lovely meal in an open air restaurant. Having spent the previous evening on a rickety old boat in the middle of the Amazon this was most welcome! We spent the next day exploring the old town in more depth and it certainly lived up to all expectations with a multitude of shops, bars and restaurants, lovely tree lined squares and streets and fabulous architecture throughout. Friendly locals and After dinner that evening we found an open air nightclub overlooking the harbour which turned out to be great fun. Nightclubs were a little out of character for us but the music and atmosphere really made it feel like we'd done something different and experienced some of the 'real' Colombia. As with every country we'd visited so far though the shadow of evil (pickpockets, prostitutes etc) was never far away and the need to have your wits about you after dark was always apparent.

Our original plan was to take a boat to Panama via the San Blas Islands which we were told were idyllic. Sadly the timing of the departures and length of the journey meant we would burn more days than we'd have liked so we decided to skip that idea and fly to Panama instead. This was yet another example of there simply being too much to see and do wherever we went. There's just not enough time to see it all!

Next stop was a coastal town called Santa Marta which we planned to use as a base to visit the nearby Tayrona National Park. We hopped onto one of the many pimped up old US school buses for the journey to the main bus terminal which was again a great experience as the buses don't actually stop moving unless they absolutely have to! When you have a backpack and a rucksack on this is quite a challenge! Once again we stuck out like the proverbial thumb and drew many curious glances from our fellow passengers. To add to the theatre, at every junction a different hawker would hop on trying to sell everything from juice to DVD players. Comical! We arrived at the main terminal and it was chaotic as we were dropped off in the middle of the street and had to dodge cars and buses coming from every direction. A very shady looking black guy shouted out our destination and beckoned us over. Without any information desk or English speakers anywhere in sight, we hesitantly followed him and were quickly ushered onto a bus which looked full. Despite questioning this, we were told it was ok and had to sit at the back of the bus on a shelf over the engine! Cue more curious looks from the other passengers which turned to sympathy when we tried to question the price! In hindsight we should have got off the bus there and then but being typical English we were far too polite and just took it! Never again I told myself.

After a hot and uncomfortable journey we arrived in Santa Marta and used 'the bible' to find a decent hostel. Despite a tatty beach, the seafront area was very nice and had a Spanish resort feel to it with gift shops, restaurants and bars throughout. After a nice meal and a few drinks that evening, we spent the next day exploring the town and surrounding area. There was nothing special about the town itself and we struggled to find any trips to the Tayrona National Park that weren't either expensive or too long. Luckily we found a hostel on the same street as ours which ran a bus to the park so we jumped on that the next day along with three Aussies, one of whom worked for STA Travel! They were staying in the park for a few days but we'd planned to make it a day trip which turned out to be a good move. The park was billed as one of the best in the country and the walk through the wooded area was lovely but we were again quite disappointed by the beach. I went there expecting white sands and palm trees but the reality was a dark sand beach littered with natural and man made debris. It's such a shame to see plastic bottles littering what would be a lovely area and we'd seen it pretty much everywhere we'd been so far. Our day wasn't helped by a rain storm while we were waiting for our bus back to the hostel so despite a few nice walking trails we were left a little flat by our Caribbean experience so far.

After the disaster of the journey there, we'd played it safe for the return to Cartagena and booked an air conditioned mini bus for the journey which was much more comfortable. We also used a different hostel for our return visit which was very nice despite the initial shock of the owner's motorbike being in bits in the reception! It was a little odd to go back somewhere we'd been before and a big convention meant much of the old town was fenced off for the evening for the delegates which was a shame. We had a nice evening though and after several days of just saying no to everyone, Sarah and I both caved in and bought a picture from a passing hawker. I think the beers had an effect on that decision though! We'd booked a flight to Panama for the following day so it was time to say goodbye to Colombia. I'd certainly been impressed with the country and friendliness of the people in particular and our visit had banished many of the stereotypes I held before I arrived. Cartagena itself will definitely go down as one of my favourite places and I'd definitely go back sometime in the future. Next stop Panama………………..