Colombia (Lonely Planet, 5th Edition) - Jens Porup [126]
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Getting There & Away
Mompox is well off the main routes, but can be reached somewhat adventurously from different directions by road and river. Whichever way you come, however, the journey is time consuming. As Mompox lies between two unbridged rivers, any trip involves a ferry or boat crossing.
Most travelers come to Mompox from Cartagena. Unitransco has a direct bus daily, leaving Cartagena at 7:30am (COP$35,000, eight hours), but service is sporadic. A faster way is to take a bus to Magangué (COP$28,000, four hours); there are six departures per day with Brasilia. When it arrives in Mangangué, continue walking down the road and around to the right at the river and buy a ticket for a chalupa (boat) to Bodega (COP$6000, 20 minutes); there are frequent departures until about 3pm. The ticket booth is located across from El Punto del Sabor (locals will guide you for a tip – COP$1000 is sufficient). Once in Bodega, hop in a colectivo (shared taxi or minivan) to Mompox (COP$7000, 45 minutes). There may also be direct chalupas from Magangué to Mompox.
In Mompox, Unitransco/Expreso Brasilia ( 685 5973) buses to Cartagena or Barranquilla (COP$35,000) depart at 6am from near Iglesia de Santa Bárbara (but don’t count on it in low season) and there is at list one direct colectivo per day direct to Barranquilla driven by Ivan Vanegas ( 311 417 0150). He even provides pillows and breakfast! Inquire at Casa Amarilla (opposite). Colectivos to Bodega and El Banco park on Calle 18 just off the Plaza de Bolívar.
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Getting Around
The best way to see Mompox is on foot or by bike. Inquire at Casa Amarilla (opposite) for bike rentals.
NORTHEAST OF CARTAGENA
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The departments of Atlántico and Magdalena sit northeast of Cartagena, where the highest coastal mountain range in the world, the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, begins to rise from the sea just after Barranquilla. The increasingly more charming Santa Marta, the coast’s other colonial city, and the beautiful coastal and mountainous attractions around it (namely Parque Nacional Natural Tayrona and Ciudad Perdida) are some of Colombia’s most visited attractions.
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BARRANQUILLA
5 / pop 1.1 million / elev 10m
‘Mira en Barranquilla se baila asi!’ Oh yes, if Barranquilla was only as sexy as Latin pop princess Shakira made it sound on her worldwide smash, ‘Hips Don’t Lie.’ But it isn’t. A maze of concrete blocks and dusty streets, Barranquilla is an industrial port that ranks as Colombia’s fourth biggest city. There are few tourist attractions and little reason to visit, unless you happen to be around during Barranquilla’s explosive four-day Carnaval, one of the most loco (crazy) festivals in Colombia. At any other time of the year, you’ll likely only visit the bus station on your way to much more agreeable Santa Marta or the tranquil village of Taganga, both just a few more kilometers north and far more appealing to tourists.
That said, this city is legendary for its nightlife, a scene gringos report enjoying even more in that they don’t have to share it with quite so many fellow travelers.
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History
The town was founded in 1629, but did not gain importance until the middle of the 19th century. Despite its potential as a port on the country’s main fluvial artery, navigation problems at the mouth of the Río Magdalena hindered development. Most of the merchandise moving up and down the Magdalena passed through Cartagena, using Canal del Dique, which joins the river about 100km upstream from its mouth.
Only at the end of the 19th century did progress really begin. The opening of Puerto Colombia, Barranquilla’s port built on the coastline 15km west of the town, boosted the development of the city, both as a fluvial and sea port.
By the early