The best place to stay in Cartagena, Colombia

When booking our accommodations in Cartagena we were shocked at two things: 

1) Cartagena is expensive!! We had thought Cartagena would have comparable prices to Ecuador (the other country we were visiting on this trip), and boy were we dead wrong! Cartagena is no cheap deal...but my, is it worth every penny!! 

2) There are a gazillion options for accommodations in Cartagena!! I'm not going to lie, Kevin and I were a tad overwhelmed! The options ran the gambit from very expensive (and gorgeous!) resorts in the old walled city, to more guesthouse type accommodations. 

So, we did our homework and spent hours researching where we should stay! Should we stay in the old walled city? Should we do AirBnB and save a few pennies but be further away from the city? Or should we stay in Getsemani, the new up and coming neighborhood right outside the walled city? 

We ended up choosing to stay in Getsemani, and I am SO glad we did. Getsemani is a short walk from the old walled city, but is very historical in and of itself. In some ways, I loved Getsemani even more than the city center, as it felt very authentic and local. Walking down the street where our hotel was located, there were young kids playing checkers and chess, riding bikes, and old men sitting out in their rocking chairs laughing the night away. Many new hip restaurants dot the area, and it is so lively and colorful, especially at night! 

We chose to stay at Casa Relax. For the price we paid per night, it was totally worth it! It was a lovely little oasis tucked into a neighborhood in Getsemani, built in the original courtyard style houses. 

Here's what I loved: 

- It was family style eating along a lovely wooden table. Every morning we were served a yummy breakfast of eggs, pancakes, and fresh fruit and met tons of other travelers! 

- There was a pool and hammocks to relax in after a long day of site seeing

- It was a short walk to the walled-city, and conveniently located to many other places of interest

- It was a good bang for our buck (ie: we could afford it!)

What I didn't love: 

- No hot water in the shower. Seeing as Cartagena is pretty toasty and humid most of the year, this wasn't that big of deal...but I do love a hot shower at night! 

- They don't give you a top blanket. The room is lovely, but what I noticed right off the bat was that the bed has a sheet, but no top blanket. I never asked for one, so maybe they have some on hand? 

If you are going to Cartagena, and are on a budget, Getsemani is your best option!! Good luck!! 

To see other Cartagena posts: 

Cartagena Day 1

Cartagena Day 2

Castillo San Felipe de Barajas 

Isla del Encanto

Nepal

Many of you know that Kevin and I lived in Nepal in 2013. It became a dear dear place for us, and my heart is grieving over the massive earthquake that shook the country on Saturday.

Kevin and I were making breakfast on Saturday morning when we heard the news, and immediately my heart sank. My mind raced, wondering, "how are our sweet precious girls at the aftercare home? Are they hurt? Are they alive" ... "are our friends ok?" ... "how is our church family there?". Kevin and I got on facebook and many of our friends had sent messages that they were alive and surviving the chaos. We got word through text that each girl in the home was also ok, as well as the staff. Our hearts felt more grounded, but still...the devastation continued to overwhelm us.

Kevin and I have been watching countless videos of the damage. Almost every historical world heritage site has been destroyed or at least damaged. The roads are mangled. The buildings crumbling. But mostly the loss of lives is devastating. And the loss of emotional peace and security for many will haunt them in this next season of surviving.

It's hard to imagine being in such a huge natural disaster. Last year when there was an earthquake in my city, I remember being so frightened to fall asleep. I stayed up that night praying for people who lived in fear because of a traumatic natural disaster. The trauma and magnitude of what our friends in Nepal are facing is real and intense. Most of our friends have been sleeping in shelters the last few nights, displaced from their homes. Can you even imagine?

Would you join me in praying for Nepal?
For peace and comfort as they rebuild...
For resources of food, water and electricity to not run out...
For wisdom and good management of the relief organizations...
For unity and trust as people work together...
For God to do something amazing and bring hope when there is so much hopelessness...

Thank you friends. Your support and prayers are important.
If you are interested in giving, I found a list of charities doing relief work in Nepal here. I've had personal experience with both Samaritans Purse as well as World Vision, and know they are reputable!

Thankful that we can still play a part in the relief process by praying and giving:) May God take our small offering and multiply it for his purpose! Thank you for caring friends.

A few of our posts from Nepal:
Our Life in Nepal:                                       In the Girls Home:                   Travel in Nepal: 
Making a home in Nepal                              On Being Rescued                    Bhaktapur
My husband, redeeming a view of man       On Being Brave                         The Villages
Exploring in Kathmandu                             Celebrating a birthday        Swayambu {Monkey} Temple
Being Sick in Nepal                                                                                      Durbar Square
Our Marriage in Nepal                                                                                    Bodhnath temple
One year ago we moved to Nepal                                                               The time we almost died 
Our first week in Nepal                                                                                   Pokhara
Our first day in Nepal                                                                                      Chitwan
                                                                                                                   

Saturday Morning Breakfast // The Tradition Series

I am sooo excited to share both this tradition, and this lovely friend with you! Almost 2 years ago, I got a thoughtful email out of the blue from a most adorable reader in Salzburg, Austria! Sweet Gabriella, half British and half Austrian, has become such a dear friend to me. We've skyped a few times, and have written countless emails back and forth (yeah social media!). I hope you'll pop over to her IG and say hello {and see her dreamy pictures of life in Salzburg Austria!}....here she is to introduce herself: 

Hi there! I'm Gabi (or Gabby, Gabs, Gabriella). A 24-year old teacher in training, married to the love of my life, Steff (short for Stefan), and living in the dreamy city of Salzburg, Austria. I’m eager to grow and learn in so many areas of life (cooking, photography, faith, relationships, kindness!) and am excited for what the next years have to offer - highs and lows!

When I got married almost three years ago, we had this verse from James on our wedding invitations and thank-you notes “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.” that has been with me ever since and is a true daily reminder of God’s love and grace for us.

The first time I read about the concept of date-night (we really don’t have something like that in Austria) I was intrigued to try it, but my husband and I were students when we first got married and there really was no lack of time for just the two of us. Fast-forward a year later and we were scrambling to find a bit of quality time. Work (him) and uni (me) took over weekends, too, and so we shook hands on keeping Friday evenings to ourselves (yeah, we’re the kind of couple to shake hands on things and play a game of rock-paper-scissors to determine who gets to drink and who has to drive :)). Anyway, we soon realized that we needed to add on the morning after to really make the most of the time we had together - and so our Saturday morning tradition was born. Now, I can’t imagine not having that time to ourselves and have even started a Pinterest board solely for our Saturday morning inspiration ;)

We try to sleep in, but, really, sleeping in means 8 when you get up between 6 and 7 every day (church on Sunday starts at 8.30, so…). We love breakfast and trying out new recipes, so very often we’ll be sitting in bed scrolling through recipes to find a new item to try out. We’ve mastered quite a few new things and really look forward to carrying on that tradition once we start a family! If the weather is nice and nothing else is on for the day (a rarity!), we head into the city by bike and make our way to one of our favourite coffee shops for a coffee-to-go. Cup in hand, we’ll head to the farmers’ market and grab a few things we might need, or just enjoy the people watching.

We’ll sometimes get back only to go straight to bed for a mid-morning nap, or (if we haven’t before going out) we'll snuggle up with another cup of coffee and have our quiet time. Last weekend my husband spoiled me with the most beautiful flowers and they’re a daily reminder of great breakfast, strong coffee and an arm-in-arm walk through the city with my favourite person. I’ve learned to really live the little things in life - and let me tell you: they’re beautiful!

Social Media Links:
Instagram @gabriellahoell
Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com/gabriellafh/

Happy Weekend dear friends! I hope it's a great one!! It's my beloved's birthday today, so we are headed off to a fun birthday weekend on the beach in San Diego! Happy Birthday Kevin...thank you for being the wind in my sails, I love you with all my heart! xoxo