First Week Impressions: Bad traffic, but a funny one. Lost in transportation :) 

I’ve been living  In Cartagena for a week so far and I even didn’t  have time to write a post for my blog. Well, maybe I had some, but the hot weather makes me very lazy… :)

First thing that I want to share is that the traffic here is just crazy! It’s a circus! I have never ever seen anything like this before: there are almost no traffic lights in Cartagena and once you see one nobody cares what color it currently shows. It’s a real piece of a jungle. Crossing a street is very dangerous for pedestrians because drivers don’t pay attention to them at all. So far I am not really fond of crossing any big street on my own, I prefer being accompanied by some locals to be sure not to get hit. Traffic accidents are very common.

Then you have this kind of public transport that is very unusual for Europeans. First, there are no urban cards here, you always have to pay 1500 pesos (about 70 eurocents) to the driver for a ride, no matter how long. No tickets needed. Mostly there are old buses, without any type of air condition. Well, actually they have one: they just never close the doors :) Not only for better “air conditioning” but also for the passengers to get in and out whenever and wherever they want. Yes, bus stops do not exist here! You only have to wink to the bus driver so he stops and you get in and then you just scream “paraaaaaaa” (Spanish: stop) so he lets you out. And no route maps either. Actually it’s also difficult to get a city plan, there are only small plans of the historical center. For the rest you better use google maps and that’s it. So, you have to know exactly where you’re going. If you’re new to the city – you’re lost, that’s it!

Anyway, I don’t see it as a bad experience, just a different one. For sure It would be more comfortable if they had this kind of transport I’m familiar with, I just need some more time and some courage to explore the whole city without getting lost every second…;)

PS: They have begun to organize TransCaribe, a bus transport system that would be similar to the european one, but according to what I've been told the problem is that the authorities of Cartagena are constantly stealing money for that so after 8 years of work they still haven't made it :(