Toto, I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore…
But we’re finally over the cobblestone!
Cartagena was the last port I did not have a HAL excursion booked for. I had rather boldly announced the night before that I wasn’t even going ashore, and I stuck to that plan right up until I looked out the windows in the breakfast room. It was a beautiful day, and there was a lovely city waiting for me right outside the door.
The tour organizer had made a list of all the yarn shops in the ports we were visiting – oh, FYI, I found out that I missed some wonderful yarn shops in Lisbon, that must be why my VISA is still working – anyway, the yarn shop listed for Cartagena was a combination yarn shop / lingerie store. And it was within walking distance of the cruise ship terminal, sort of.
That was a strange enough combination that I figured I needed to see it, so I grabbed my shoes and made my exit. There was a Roman ruin site and a public park that were sort of on my way, so I made the most of my shoe rubber.
The Roman ruin was the house of Good Fortune. It was uncovered during construction and preserved in place, being incorporated into the building that was built over it. You basically got a chance to walk through the floor plan, view whatever mosaic tile they were able to save, and watch a CGI video of the rooms in use. It was interesting, in a “And here is another configured pile of old rock” kind of way.
The public park was a delight…
The final treat from Cartagena?
This street musician was playing Ed Sheeran songs on her harp. And she did it well!
Next port of call: Valencia.
PS – The yarn shop / lingerie store was neither as as fun as the “yarn” implied nor as racy as the “lingerie” implied. My VISA remains intact another day.