Hello! This is Camilo Mazo, currently writing on a 3-month (and counting) road trip through Colombia. This newsletter is all about travel, photography, food, and some self-reflection.
Travel Role Models
On my last few days in Cartagena, I was having a cup of coffee at one of my favorite cafés in Cartagena, Abaco, when a very interesting lady walked in.
She grabbed a small display full of postcards, sat at the table next to mine, and started counting and restocking the display. I was intrigued and couldn’t help but ask her about what now clearly seemed to be her postcard business.
Her name is Yolanda. She is from Mexico but has been living in Cartagena for a while now. She started selling postcards of Cartagena because she loves photography and used to go out all the time to take pictures of the city. She used to have an importing business bringing handicrafts from Mexico and Guatemala to Cartagena, but it was proving to be very stressful. This is why she decided to focus on postcards instead.
I found her story and business so inspiring. Meeting people who are on a similar journey as the one you dream of is motivational. I’ve been considering and testing creating prints to possibly sell, and seeing a person in real life doing exactly that becomes a strong motivator.
Cemeteries & A Life Worth Living
Whenever I visit a new place, I always make a point to visit the local cemetery. This tradition started after visiting the beautiful Recoleta and Chacarita cemeteries in Buenos Aires, Argentina. While in Cartagena, I went to visit the Manga Cemetery. While not the most striking, I find each visit to a cemetery humbling and grounding.
Graves of young people, old people, middle-aged people. When I start to see the graves, I can’t help but wonder that most of the people lying there left this world without knowing exactly when it was going to happen.
I think about this and realize that it can truly happen at any point. If that’s the case, then what’s the best way to live the present time? Is there a life worth living, that if taken from you at any point, you could say, “Fine, I’m ready”?
Spending time with your loved ones, exploring amazing places, doing the work that you love, and enjoying the little things. This could be a good start.
Minca
Continuing my road trip, yesterday I arrived to Minca. From Cartagena, I passed through Puerto Colombia, Barranquilla, and Cienaga. I paid more tolls than seemed right and almost left Minca because I couldn’t find a place to stay with proper car access.
At the last minute, I ended up finding a great hotel called La Veranda, and I’m so glad I did. After spending over a month on the Caribbean coast, my body was craving mountains and cooler weather. And boy, did Minca deliver.
My first impressions of Minca:
- The town is minuscule: With just two intersecting roads and a small church. The roads, except for the main one, are narrow and in poor condition, making driving tricky. Luckily, there is proper access to accommodations on the main road. The best accommodations, however, are not in the town itself but in the mountains surrounding it.
- The views!: At La Veranda, and probably other accommodations and viewpoints, you get this beautiful combination of elements in the scenery. You have the mountains, lush and mostly untouched. You have Santa Marta’s skyscrapers in the distance. Beyond that, you have the view of the sea. Add a sunset to the mix, and you have a truly spectacular panorama. Along with Mompox, Minca is one of the most striking places to watch a sunset on my current road trip.
- The possibilities!: Just by looking at the map on OpenStreetMap (using an app like organicmaps.app), you can see the number of trails, waterfalls, and places of interest around the mountains. I could definitely see myself staying here for a while just exploring the trails, visiting coffee and cacao farms, and enjoying the nature for a while.
