With narrow streets designed for a world where horses, and not cars, were the norm, Cartagena Viejo is a fine reminder of another age. On the American continent there is no older city. In the late 1500's the city became by far the largest and safest Spanish fortress in the new world. Cartagena's history is filled with numerous tales of pirates and sieges. Legendary figures such as Sir Francis Drake, Henry Morgan, William Vernon and Jean-Baptiste Ducasse attacked and besieged the city between the sixteenth and the nineteenth centuries. The spirit and bravery of its people allowed Cartagena to endure the attacks of the enemy and earned Cartagena the well deserved fame of Heroic City. It was also the first Colombia territory to declare its independence from Spain. Some of its historic constructions, convents and narrow streets have been recreated in the magic realism novels of Nobel Prize winner Gabriel Garcia Márquez. Cartagena is nowadays the most touristic location in Colombia. Its people are well known for being the most cheerful and happy in the country. Its romantic balconies, sea and streets make it the favorite place for honeymooners and lovers. Declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, Cartagena Viejo has all the ingredients for an extraordinary place to live: a colonial city enclosed within stone fortifications, cultural riches, modern and luxurious hotels, beautiful beaches, restaurants for all tastes, exciting excursions and an animated nightlife. Expatriates from around the world have purchased and renovated some of the cities older homes. I asked about prices and heard prices ranging from $45,000 and up for an older building. There are miles of streets with old colonial houses and buildings. In some cases renovation would be required, and in other cases the renovation has already been done. I met and talked to a lot of Italian expats in Cartagena Viejo; many of whom have opened restaurants, chic shops, cyber-cafes, galleries, and boutiques. The place is already happening, ...even so, I met few Americans. To buy and renovate a 300 year old house with an interior patio garden would be a labor of love the result of which would be a house that would be a work of art, a pleasure to live in, and a joy forever. Living On Isla Manga
Manga also has a spectacular yacht club, fine restaurants and quiet tree covered streets. The pace is less hectic in Manga than it is in the walled section. Real estate prices here tend to be a bit higher than within Cartagena Viejo, possibly because many of the city's wealthier residents live in Manga. But don't be discouraged, there are sections of Manga which are slightly tarnished, with older slightly run down houses that would command a lower price tag. Manga's tree lined streets are a pleasure to walk through, with open-air fruit stands, corner markets and bakeries giving a pleasant sense of community to the area. If I couldn't find what I wanted in Cartagena Viejo I would certainly pick Manga as a very good alternative. While it doesn't have the excitement of Cartagena Viejo, it also doesn't have the negatives such as loud music at 2 in the morning or throngs of tourists like the older city often does. Summing It Up This article is far from exhaustive and I know that. It is impossible to put an entire city into an article, or even into a book. My goal has been, as it often is, to put the flavor and ambiance of a place into words that may reach across to the reader. What have I left out? Enough to fill an encyclopedia. For instance, there is also a long beach which stretches along the coast to the north-east of the city. That beach is very Caribbean and would be a choice place to live. I've included a photo of this area on the next page with the resources. Would Cartagena Be A Good Place To Lay Low?
Freighters enter and leave Cartagena on a daily basis. Freighter travel is an excellent means of low profile travel. Most freighters will give you a ride for a price. The negatives are common knowledge. Colombia's 35 year civil war has made entry and exit to and from Colombia a body-search affair. They aren't looking for fugitives, nor for those folks who are simply trying to lay low; they are looking for FARC - The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia - People´s Army. They are also looking for drugs. Neither of these things need concern us, unless politics & violence is our game and drugs our obsession. There are so many ways to disembarque in a boat, or from a private plane at a private landing strip that no intelligent fugitive intent on disappearing should have to go through a body search in standard customs. Of course, if you are not intelligent you might end up in world of trouble. Someone with years of experience slinking undetected through the world's great cities could probably do it if they tried it without their grenade launcher. South American Fake Passports Also, it is important to note that is easy to get a second passport in several South American nations, including Colombia. Colombia is a major source of fake passports. In Colombia it is a common practice to use the birth certificate of someone who is deceased to create a second passport. These passports are usually available for $5,000 to $15,000. Use appropriate caution in the purchasing of such a document if such is your intention. There are other nations in South America where it is possible to get a questionable second passport. Do not contact the author nor this website for information on the purchase of such a passport; we don't have them, we don't recommend them and we won't direct anyone to a source for such a document.
We have a page of resources based on this article on the next page. Take a look at it. There is also some information there on Cuba, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, second passports, fake passports, landing strips, and a good deal more; all of which were also mentioned in this article. This article is not meant to be a Blueprint on how to disappear, it is only meant to offer some information that is not readily available anywhere else, and to point out some mindless and dangerous discrepancies that are currently being pandered as professional knowledge on disappearing. Professional knowledge on disappearing is seldom dispensed by those who are not on the lam, and never dispensed by those who are. If you get to Cartagena, I may be somewhere else. ...then again, there's good chance that I may be there . . . watching you. Resources
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The
most exciting location in Cartagena, in my opinion, is Cartagena Viejo,
the old colonial section where 300 year old buildings with three foot walls
can be purchased for bargain prices.
Another
fine neighborhood is the Island of Manga which is connected to Cartagena
Viejo by bridge. A neighborhood which in addition to some fine colonial
houses has some houses which are more modern. (i.e. Less than one hundred
years old, see example to the left.)
If
I were going to pick a place to lay low, I'd pick somewhere off the beaten
track. Cartagena is certainly off the beaten track. Its yacht
basin means that you can enter and leave the country via boat, plus there
are multitude of small harbors near Cartagena, and Cartagena is close to
Venezuela in case one wants to fade into another county.
If
you do pursue such a dangerous route, note that it is imperative to speak
Español and/or Portuguese when you are traveling on a false travel
document that has been issued in the name of a nation whose national language
is Español or Portuguese. A Colombian Passport is not a great
travel document, but it may get you through a bad situation in an emergency.
Of course it could also get you into a worst situation than the one you
are already in.