Casa Barlovento, Los Naranjos
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January 11-14 2016
There is nothing like a few days of pure relaxation in a
good hotel overlooking the Caribbean Coast. Hotel Casa Barlovento, at the far
eastern edge of Tayrona National Park, met these criteria in spades.
An hour taxi ride through a forest from Santa Marta took
us to the hotel, down a long dirt road. We found ourselves at a small hotel
perched on a cliff over the ocean. All the common rooms, dining area, sitting
areas and two infinity pools were on the first floor. Our large room was up one
floor. We had views in all directions from our balcony, mountains behind us and
beaches with surf crashes on the shore to the east and west. The current was too
strong for casual swimming but surfers loved it. Every morning and late
afternoon a few brave souls came to try their luck.
Breakfast and dinner were included and were served at a
communal table. Mealtimes became the time we got to know our fellow guests.
Everyone was very friendly and I got to try out some Spanish and the Spanish
speakers got to practise their English.
We were interested in the tales of a British couple,
Rachel and Paul, from Manchester, recuperating from their four day hike to El
Ciudad Perdito (lost city) archeological site. We had been contemplating going
to see the archeological site but had decided the cautions illustrated in our
Lonely Planet were reason enough to dissuade us from the hike. We were glad we
hadn’t gone. The British couple found the hike was more strenuous than they had
anticipated and the facilities have not kept up with the popularity of the hike.
If you were fortunate to reach each campsite early you got a bed in a dorm,
otherwise there were hammocks to sleep in. There were only three toilets in each
campground to accommodate 150 hikers and the water supply was not adequate.
Their whole group came down with severe intestinal problems due to contaminated
water. They were very happy to allow the hotel staff to baby them back to
health.
What did we do? We swam in the pools and walked the
beaches. Turning west from the hotel brought us to Rio Piedro and the borders of
Tayrona Park. To the east, around a small headland was more than 1 km of beach
with just one not crowded camping ground near the beginning and not much else.
It was very peaceful. We didn’t even bother to make the trek into Tayrona Park
proper. From reports we heard, we had it better where we were.
Don’t bother taking the Malaria pills (Atovaquon/Progua )
we took. We use the Travel Clinic at Riverside Medical Center to advise us on
medications we need for each country. We have taken several varieties of malaria
medications before without any reaction. The maps of Columbia indicated possible
Malaria along the Caribbean coast, but not Cartagena. Therefore we filled a
prescription for the recommended pills and started to take the pills before
leaving Cartagena. Ray complained of a minor upset stomach the last day we were
in Cartagena but didn’t say anything more until the last day we were at Hotel
Casa Barlovento. He woke up feeling awful. When he read the possible side
effects of our Malaria medication, he found his gastro-intestinal symptoms
exactly as listed. He stopped taking the malaria pills and didn’t eat much that
day. The cooks at the hotel kindly made a special soup for him that was just
what he needed for dinner. By the next day he was on the way to recovery and he
hasn’t had a recurrence. I too had a small incident in Cartagena, shortly after
starting the medication that I now think may have been a reaction to the
medication. Not realizing the cause of my Cartagena incident, I continued taking
the Malaria pills without further incident. So, if you have to be sick, Hotel
Casa Barlovento is a great place to recover. Also, try out a malaria medication
before leaving home to see if you have a reaction. It is much better to deal
with illness at home rather than when you are on the road.
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