Volcan de Lodo El Totumo

I have a few Colombian friends who had recommended a few places to visit for while I’m there, one of them being the Volcan de Lodo el Totumo! He had mentioned something about mud and people giving you a bath. I was so confused but of course I was down to try it.

Volcan de Lodo el Totumo is a huge tourist spot! We got to the place, and my dad looked at me and was like “you made us come all this way for this tiny thing.” I didn’t know what to expect. It was a small volcano, nothing else; there was nothing around besides small huts were they had bathrooms and people selling food.

Apparently, you’re supposed to climb up the stairs, (which were extremely unsteady and uneven), and at the top, there’s a huge pit of mud where you “chill” and take a bath”. I didn’t come all the way there to not go in, but I did second think to myself. It looked so unsanitary and completely slimy but I thought hey, why not.

My brother and mum went to the top but didn’t go in, they were the official photographers. My dad and I went in, and boy was it an experience. The mud was super soft, and we were floating like crazy in there. It was extremely deep but you didn’t even have to tread water. It was super cool. While you’re in the mud, there are local pe

ople who are in there who give you massages and talk to you [I didn’t understand what they were saying obviously] but the massage was so relaxing.

 

We were in there for about 20 minutes, and then I was done. I wanted to wash all this stuff off.

There were no showers. Just a lake, which I had been warned 10 minutes prior to watch out for the alligators. I live in Florida, so I know gators, but it still freaked me out. I went down to the lake and there was a lady there with a bucket, telling me to get in the water so she could wash me off. I was shocked, I didn’t know what to do, I haven’t had anyone give me a bath since I was a baby. I did it anyways and it was actually kinda cool.

No alligator bites or injuries! :D

I felt like a new woman! Super fresh and my skin felt extremely soft.

Same country, different city

Second time in the country, but first time to this city. Last time I went to Colombia, I was in Bogota for a wedding, and now I’m in Cartagena for fun!

Cartagena is much different, well so far it is. Its less busy than Bogota since its not the capital, but still a lot of people. Cartagena itself has about 1 million people.

There are a lot of run down areas in this part of the city, but I find that the people are very nice, and everything is way cheaper.

I’m bad with names of places especially when I can’t even pronounce them, but in English, the area is called Old Town. At this place they have a lot of small stores and restaurants. There was a famous clock tower there also which was really nice to see.

Around the town, they had horse and carriage rides, people selling food and bracelets on the street, and locals dancing and singing. It was so cultural and fun to see how the “people” of Colombia do things!

Horse and carriage ride à went around the town for about 15 minutes, and the driver gave us a tour in Spanish; kinda redundant but I was able to understand a few bits and pieces. It was funny because at the start of the ride, we were delayed because the horse had to pee; he filled up a whole bucket.

Crepes and Waffles à When I went to this place in Bogota, I fell in love. This was one of my favorite dessert places!!! I love nutella and crepes so this place was heaven to me. I had my own dessert, and devoured the entire thing. Definitely worth it. We ended up going a few times just in the short amount of time we were here. The waitress began to recognize us and we were able to order without even looking at the menu!

What happens in Miami, stays in Miami

Miami, a city filled with flashing lights, loud noises, and parties! After a 4 hour drive, which was supposed to be 3 ½, I have finally arrive in Miami (Biscayne area) from Orlando, Florida.
I am here to visit my brother as he recently moved from LA.

His apartment kind of speaks for itself as it has the most amazing view of the city and body of water.
I woke up to a clear sky, sun shining, and wind blowing. Had breakfast on the patio which extended from one side of the apartment to the other. I could really get used to this! haha. The waffles and fruit were so tasty :P

First time in a very long time that I was able to relax and do absolutely nothing. It felt good not to think and just sit; no school! Time didn't pass but it felt good to relax.

Night #1: Charity event at Nikki Beach sponsered by Neat Stuff Incorporation.

The night started of slow because for once, we were on time, and when I say on time, literally 8:00pm on the dot. The venue wasn't even ready.
At this charity event, they had set up casino tables, buffet, and an open bar for their guests. The theme was Las Vegas. I had attempted to learn how to play the game "Krabs" but slowly gave up after an hour. I just enjoyed rolling the dice and prayed to roll a number that they told me to do.
I think i'll stick to my coin slots or roulette!!

Towards the end of the night, they had prepared an auction for the guests to bid on. All the money raised was then going to go to orphan children who didn't have clothes or the necessities for this World. There were paintings, jewerlly, tickets, and many other things.

Cerro de Monserrate

What a phenomenal experience!!! My mum, dad and I went to the top via cable car to see the view of Bogota and the church. It was a little scary going up because we were basically held onto by a cable, and we went about 1200 meters up.

At the top, the view was amazing!! You could see the entire city, absolutely stunning. Since it was a tourist attraction, we ended up meeting lots of foreigners from all around the world, it was like the United Nations.

Coming down was way more scary; I could see the cable shaking and it went faster than it did going up.

Colombia bound

The worst thing about traveling is the transportation part of the trip. Long, tiring and unnecessary stress. What made this a lengthy process was that I had to wake up at 5:30am for my flight, but on the same day as daylight savings. I was so worried that my alarm would ring an hour late, and that the clocks wouldn’t automatically change.

I woke up periodically through the night in panic that I would miss my flight.

GOOD NEWS. I didn’t miss it. I had a stop over in Fort Lauderdale, which wasn’t bad since the fight was only about 45 minutes with the same layover time.

Arrival: the stress continued as I landed in Colombia and my bag wasn’t at baggage claim. I saw the same suitcases going around and around, but no sign of mine. The conveyer belt had stopped moving so no new bags were coming. I started to feel slightly anxious; 45 minutes passed by, and I went to a lady who worked there to ask but she didn’t speak English. I thought to myself, GREAT, another problem -__-.

After about an hour, the conveyer belt started moving; I was the happiest girl ever.

Martha (the bride) and her family came to pick me up from the airport, and took me out to eat some lunch. The restaurant was called Colombia Club; the food was amazing. I was able to eat the traditional Colombian food [arepas, empanadas, arroz con pollo, fresh juice].

Hotel: WOW!! The hotel is beautiful, very nicely decorated and lots to do. No others were in Colombia yet, so I was alone at the hotel. It was time to order room service, hit up the spa, and just relax. I went into the sauna, and Jacuzzi and it was so relaxing.

Turned out to be a great day after all.

Day trips are fun too

Pretty spontaneous trip to Miami. Two days and One night.
It doesn't matter how long you go, but what you do and who you go with.

This trip started off being really hectic, a four hour journey from Orlando to Miami, two stop overs, many re-routes of direction, and a wining person wanting to use the bathroom (me).

My mum and I decided to go to Miami for the night as she had an appointment the next day in downtown. Why not make a trip out of it?
I'm trying to find this hotel amongst all the tall buildings, cars hooting at me, and being just completely unfamilar with the area. I ended up going down the wrong way on a "one way" road, driving around in circles, and entering a parking garage thinking it would lead us to the hotel. (It didn't).

We had to ask for directions and call the hotel.
Finally, we found it and boy were we happy!
The exterior of the hotel didn't seem that great, but the inside was beautiful!! The amenities, decoration, and service was astounding. My mum and I went to go check in, and they asked if we wanted to be upgraded to the suite complementary!! Obviously we said yes!

Our room was HUGEEEEEE!!! it had a king bed, a study room, living room, two bathrooms, and a tv in the toilet! It was crazy; and the view was fantastic. We were right on the water, surrounded by tall buildings, and the city lights.
We explored the hotel and saw that the hotel had an indoor billards room, bowling alley, swimming pool, and fitness center. Pretty nice.... I just wish we were here for longer than one day. So much to do but very little time.

Our night ended with visiting the bar in the hotel; the food and company was great!