Coffee, llama sweater, and chilll. When your over travel days and just want a bed, like a real bed and know your not going to get one. Been traveling the past 30+ hours. First 20 hr bus ride from Mancora, Peru. Then a flight last night at 9pm, followed by an 8hr layover in Bogota, Colombia. Sleep....maybe 5 hours, and one more flight to Cartagena. And want do you know, another bus ride to Santa Marta. Fuck if you thought your days were long, think again. There is no mental prep for this shit, you just go with the flow. Breathe and drink lots of coffee and bring SNACKS!! Booking flights with long layovers are cheaper, keep this in mind. It can also give you the chance to catch up on Internet bullshit and writing. If you do have a long layover at night especially, bring warm clothes. The airports get cold and if you trying to sleep anywhere extra jacket or sweater goes a long way. Try to check in and head inside the airport if possible. Much easier to sleep and there is more chair space and CARPET. Yes carpet, making it easier to sleep on the floor. Another thing to keep in mind when traveling is your baggage. Make sure you check a bag with the purchase of your flight. Some airlines may other offer it and charge you anywhere from 15-35 USD.
Airport info: do not exchange money in the airport. You will get the best rate at the bank in town, so wait. If you don't have any cash your best bet is to pull from the atm. They usually give the appropriate exchange rate. When you do so, pull out a large amount. There is no point in withdrawing a small amount and being charged more from your bank because you hit the atm more frequently. When leaving the airport, if you have Uber use it. A lot of countries have Uber now and you get a better rate. Taxi usually try to rip you off so be aggressive with them and know your price. Ask someone in the airport or Google it and you can find taxi rates pretty easily. Also, make a friend and share a ride, save some cash. This makes life easier on your wallet and thought process. 2 brains are always better than one, well I guess not always.
Arriving in Cartagena I head straight to the bus station for Santa Marta. I take a taxi outside the airport, not at the airport, those will cost you more. It costs me 10,000p (3 USD) to get to the Marsol bus terminal. The bus runs to Santa Marta every hour or so. Spending 46,000p (15 USD) on a 4 hour ride. I would prefer to take a more local form of transportation. Sometimes you have to treat yourself after 2 days of travel. You ride in a large van with AC. Oh and you will be happy to have the AC, Colombia is so hot. Hot and humid. The sweat pours out of your body, a little cleansing. I pass the next 4 hrs, reading, writing and making small talk with some other travelers. My energy is running low so I'm not feeling super social at the moment. I would really like a cold shower and a long sleep.
Airport info: do not exchange money in the airport. You will get the best rate at the bank in town, so wait. If you don't have any cash your best bet is to pull from the atm. They usually give the appropriate exchange rate. When you do so, pull out a large amount. There is no point in withdrawing a small amount and being charged more from your bank because you hit the atm more frequently. When leaving the airport, if you have Uber use it. A lot of countries have Uber now and you get a better rate. Taxi usually try to rip you off so be aggressive with them and know your price. Ask someone in the airport or Google it and you can find taxi rates pretty easily. Also, make a friend and share a ride, save some cash. This makes life easier on your wallet and thought process. 2 brains are always better than one, well I guess not always.
Arriving in Cartagena I head straight to the bus station for Santa Marta. I take a taxi outside the airport, not at the airport, those will cost you more. It costs me 10,000p (3 USD) to get to the Marsol bus terminal. The bus runs to Santa Marta every hour or so. Spending 46,000p (15 USD) on a 4 hour ride. I would prefer to take a more local form of transportation. Sometimes you have to treat yourself after 2 days of travel. You ride in a large van with AC. Oh and you will be happy to have the AC, Colombia is so hot. Hot and humid. The sweat pours out of your body, a little cleansing. I pass the next 4 hrs, reading, writing and making small talk with some other travelers. My energy is running low so I'm not feeling super social at the moment. I would really like a cold shower and a long sleep.