Travel Story: Stuck in Cartagena on Election Day
I spent my first day in Cartagena, sort of getting a feel of the area. I walked to a small café and had a really amazing breakfast. The exchange rate made things very inexpensive, but a total check being 20,000, or 50,000 pesos made it hard to figure that out at the start. I really got a hang of where things were because I went on a one-hour ATM hunt, trying out multiple banks to eventually figuring out what bank I could withdrawal from.
As the sun began to set, I headed back to my hostel to regroup and find out what some other people were up to. As I sat in the common space reading a travel guide, the television in the hostel was showing the news, and was reporting on the what turned out to be some results of the local Presidential primary election. Like most foreigners, we had no idea that such a historical event was happening that day.
I overheard a few people who work at the hostel discussing the candidates, so I joined in and began to learn all about the election process, the parties, and who was running. Then I learned that during elections, Colombia turns into a dry state, which mean no alcohol is allowed to be sold in stores, or bars for the next three days. In Cartagena in order to ensure that business abide by the law, most restaurants and bars are closed the entire time the law in in effect.
Colombia law also restricts any gatherings, rallies, or protest during the election window. The one other restriction that certainly caught my attention is the nation-wide restriction on permits allowing firearms to be carried during the election weekend.
All of these restrictions make total sense when you take a look at some recent history of violence in the country during elections.
In 2016 Colombia had an election for regional legislators, which was the first local election in Colombia since the signing of the peace deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. In the three months of campaigning leading up to the election seven candidates were killed, with thousands more requesting protection from the government. So certainly Colombia was in the beginning stages of some major change’s country wide, and the people were uneasy.
Jump to 2018 to me in a hostel in Cartagena, where I sat in the common hangout area sort of digesting all this info with the fellow backpackers. I was never in fear, although a few incidents of protesting were being reported back from people who were still out walking around at night. I knew that this was an important event for the country, and I we needed to respect it.
The weather in Cartagena in the summer time is Hot, with a chance of Hot, and a side of very Humid. Most places don’t have air conditioning so in order to beat the heat it is very common to sit outside and enjoy a cold drink, or beer in most cases. Across the street from the hostel was a local shop or Tienda, where normally people would sit around drinking beer and talking or playing games. So that is exactly what I planned to do. I made a friend in the hostel who was from Israel. We discussed the plan to going outside, thought about the risk, and then we decided to go for it.
The Tienda from across the street
We took a seat outside in front of the Tienda smoking cigarettes, people watching, and doing our best to beat the heat of the Caribbean night. The owner of the shop would laugh at us sweating so bad, and offer us unlimited amount of cold Coca Cola. Locals came by the shop to chat and catch up with the shop owner. Also, lot of families were all outside and kids played freely in the street with a soccer ball. Then to our surprise, some people would sit with us and ask us questions about where we were from, and tell us stories of their lives in Colombia.
More locals would come to sit with us to enjoy a coke. My Israeli friend joined in on some soccer with the kids and things just felt good, and safe. I loved to just listen to group of older men conversate, the Spanish coming from the table was loud and intense. Every so often it would be broken up by laughter, a smile and a quick thumbs up sent our way.
In the end this was not the worst night ever. The ban helped bring me closer to the Colombian people in our neighborhood, learn more about the culture, and gave me a unique opportunity to see the real change happening in the country. Eventually more people from the hostel joined us and the Tienda owner brought out more chairs for us all to sit and hangout.
We were not stuck at all, but given a new perspective of seeing things. The locals provided us a sense of security with their kindness and openess. The wanted to make sure that we knew that everything is ok, and that Colombia is a safe place to visit and travel through.
We are lucky to have the ability to travel around the world, and it’s important to never forget that, especially when visiting somewhere new. Keep an open mind, go with the flow and enjoy the adventure.
Please visit Colombia, it was easily my favorite destination of all my trips!