The speed boat to Playa Blanca took about 40 minutes, it was a much smoother ride than we had had in Galapagos! Although at the start it was tilting significantly to one side so the driver asked me and another girl to swap with Nathan and another guy to balance out the weight! It was cloudy when we left Cartagena but the skies were bluer when we arrived at Isla Barú. The beach was pretty much empty when we got there, we strolled around looking for somewhere to stay and found Hugo's Place. It was the first place we came to and someone had recommended it to us so we reserved two hammocks right by the sea. The beach is lovely and clean as we had hoped, although it is lined with cabins -some of which are bars and restaurants and some are accommodation - and has become quite commercial with people trying to sell you everything from deck chairs to massages to jewellery. As we were staying at Hugo's Place we could use the seats, deck chairs, lockers and bathrooms there - otherwise we would have been charged elsewhere! We had a relaxing day going between sunbathing, swimming and snorkelling. Although it seemed fairly cloudy the sun was strong and we both got a little burnt. I did end up paying for a massage which was a little expensive but probably worth it. Although the water was lovely and clear, it wasn't the best place for snorkelling but we did see lots of stripy yellow fish, some white/ sandy coloured ones and a school of tiny ones. The water was so calm and warm that it was nice just floating around looking for things. Unfortunately we didn't have much of a sunset as it became cloudy again, but by the afternoon the day visitors had gone back to Cartagena so the beach quietened down again. Showers were a cup and half a bucket of water! We had dinner at Hugo's which was cheap but wasn't great, we had a couple of cocktails at happy hour before going next door to have crepes for pudding. They took a while to come so he gave us a free taster of warm plantain with strawberry sauce which was actually really nice. We walked along the beach both ways although where we were staying was definitely the liveliest area with the most people, either side seemed quite deserted! They switched all the lights off at about 9.30pm - time to go to bed (our hammocks!).