Port Oasis Ecco Park

San Felipe castle

Fortified city, inquisition palace, San Peter Claver church

Naval museum

Cartagena de Indias, has a rich history deriving from having been the main port of the continent during the Spanish colonial period.

We started the tour with a stop at San Felipe Castle, the most 'impressive structure ever built by the Spanish military engineering in South America. Its construction had started in 1536, on the hill of St. Lazarus from where was possible to control any attempted invasion of the city, both by land and by sea.

We strolled through the narrow streets and the squares of the fortified city (la ciudad amurallada), declared World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1984. Its varied architecture is mix of colonial styles, Italian and Republicans. Aamong its main buildings there is the inquisition palace, ancient seat of the Court one of the most elegant buildings and features of the colonial city. It now houses a museum, where you can see the old cells and torture chambers.

We visited the St. Peter Claver Church, erected in 1580 in honor of the missionary Peter Claver, patron of Catholic missions among the peoples of Black Africa and African Americans, called an apostle of the slaves because he dedicated his life to evangelization and the defense of the African slaves arrived in Cartagena. During the colonial era, the city was, along with the Mexican Veracruz, the only authorized to the African slave trade.

The next stop was the Naval Museum, founded in 1992 on the occasion of the five hundredth anniversary of the discovery of America, in a former Jesuit college. Inside the museum we deepened the naval history of Colombia and historical military enterprises of Cartagena and immersed ourselves in the culture of the country thanks to a delightful show with traditional folk songs and dances, while sipping a cool drink.