Web site of Michael, Jeri, and s/v’s Cloud 9 & Aphrodite

Cartagena Columbia is a beautiful Spanish colonial city. We spent many weeks there doing boat work and waiting for the Fed.Ex 2-day delivery which was held for ransom in Bogota for 3 weeks. We learned first hand how a drug lord can make things happen in Columbia, thankfully in our favor.

A few years after Cartagena was founded, the Spaniards designed a defense plan in which the main strategy was the construction of a walled military fortress to protect the city against the plundering English, Dutch and French pirates.  They also constructed a submerged seawall blocking the entrance to the main harbor . The remnants of this seawall still exists today, forcing incoming travelers to enter via a distant fortified entrance.

The Spaniards stored the many treasures they plundered from Peruvian Indians in Cartagena, while awaiting transport to Spain. Therefore, during the 16th century this coastal town was the target of many pirate attacks   The most famous being Sir Francis Drake in 1556.