We were up early this morning so we could be at the dock for 8am when the boat to Playa Blanca (white beach) was scheduled to leave. We got there early to get good seats on the boat as we knew it was a trip that took several hours and didn`t want to get sun exposure. What we didn`t know was that they would wait until the boat was full before leaving. So 1 hour later we were still docked and wishing we had stayed in bed longer.

Eventually we got going and in no time it became a party boat. The capatain was a wannabe entertainer and just loved to sing karaoke along to very bad spanish pop! He then got everyone to play these games against each other which basically involved taking your clothes off!! It was very funny but i have never been so happy to feign "I don´t understand!"

After several hours we arrived at Isla Rosaria where there was an aquarium that was on the bluest water i have seen for a long time. It cost extra to go into the aquarium, and we didn`t have high expectations, but it actually turned out to be really good. We were imagining lots of fish in glass tanks but actually came across a boardwalk setup that had marine life in pens similar to a fish farm. It meant we could look down on them easily and get a great birdseye view in the clear water. We saw massive leatherback turtles, sharks, tuna, stingrays, dolphins, starfish etc. A guide took us around and spoke spanish but we were able to get the gist. The whale sharks (wide and flat burgundy/brown sharks)were very impressive and clearly very tame. You can see in our photos they are up on the pontoon and apparently they can stay out of water for up to 45mins!But aren` t aggressive toward humans....phew!

Ufortunately, whilst in the aquarium, I was camera happy and our battery ran out. This shouldn`t have been a problem because we had our back up camera only when we started it up the memory card was locked from when we burnt our last photos!! Neither of us worked out that there was a switch on the card we needed to flick and so we took the rest of our photos on Kate`s phone which we are yet to retrieve...doh!

Finally, after what seemed like too long, we arrived at Playa Blanca. We enjoyed a fresh fish, rice and salad lunch before ditching the tour to go and find accommodation. We met a lovely columbian doctor and his brother over lunch and it turns out we were the only ones impressed with the aquarium! ha

We found accommodation further down the beach at "Hugo`s Place" which was a collection of hammocks, tents and 3 little huts on stilts! On advice from Kate and Jane we decided to stay the night because on the day tour you only have one hour to swim here before leaving again. It is too long a day to do a return journey. By staying we were able to head back to Cartagena on the return leg tomorrow at about 3pm.

Luckily we were able to claim one of the huts which contained a bed and....no that was it! Underneath the huts Hugo and his family cooked food and served drinks. Mark and I jumped straight in the water and it was so clear and calm...pure bliss! There were some weird sea moss covered rocks in the shallows that reminded me too much of the movie Cocoon and I kept thinking they were going to hatch!

We watched a beautiful sunset whilst eating fresh seafood and drinking ice cold beer! Sorry, but we did! There were a few stray dogs hanging around and I grew fond of one that was really in the wars. It was blind and sore covered and had to contend with bumping into the beach furniture all day as everyone kept moving the chairs and loungers! We named him "Lucky" and fed him any food we could when Hugo wasnt looking. He would often take shade under our lounger and was genuinely thrilled when we called out to him. I have never seen such a sorry dog be so naturally happy with his lot. Max, you have no idea!!!

The next day was spent swimming and lounging even though the weather had become slightly more overcast. We met our tour boat at 3pm and got on with the next group back to Cartagena. Just when we thought the captain had exhausted his repertoire out come the sequinned dance costumes and he and his lady friend entertained us with some choreographed moves! It was utterly cringeworthy and fabulous...all at the same time....I LOVED IT! Its been too long since i could enjoy reality TV so this was my fix!! Mark read his book.

Mark and I came back to our hostel in Cartagena eager to shower given there was no running water at Hugo`s. I am sure Mark could have stayed there longer but it was enough for one night, ha! We were changed to a different room down the hall and the cleaner took great delight in pointing out to me the two mating tortoises outside our door! They stunk and left a present for us too!I tried to explain this to reception but my spanish really didn´t have the words until eventually a guy asked what i was trying to say. When I replied "A tortoise has crapped on my doorstep" he said "Thats not what i was expecting you to say!"

It has been a real thrill to see the caribbean coast from Columbia and we only wished we had more time to explore it further. Would definitely recommend to all beach goers! Much love from us xxx