28 July
We finally left Cartagena, albeit at 12:30 pm. Norm had scheduled a police escort out of town, which was laughable because apparently local drivers pay about as much attention to a police motorcycle as they do traffic lanes and signals. Needless to say after several near mishaps we finally found roadways with few motorcycles and taxi cabs. Sandra said that motorcycles and taxi cabs are like mosquitos in Cartagena, as soon as you swat one away, more appear to further aggravate you.
The countryside that we crossed was some of the prettiest we've seen this trip. It is still in the hot lower lands of Colombia, but the rolling hills and variety of greens in the vegetation made for a lovely 5.5 hour drive, despite just having an average speed of advance of 35 mph (includes refueling, rest stops, etc).
Norm had told us that we were spending the night in a hotel parking lot. What he failed to tell us was that it was a truck stop and "hotel" was a strectch. This is the scenic view from the windshield of our RV. Yet again, a cheap place to spend the night with the barking dog thrown in for good measure.
We finally left Cartagena, albeit at 12:30 pm. Norm had scheduled a police escort out of town, which was laughable because apparently local drivers pay about as much attention to a police motorcycle as they do traffic lanes and signals. Needless to say after several near mishaps we finally found roadways with few motorcycles and taxi cabs. Sandra said that motorcycles and taxi cabs are like mosquitos in Cartagena, as soon as you swat one away, more appear to further aggravate you.
The countryside that we crossed was some of the prettiest we've seen this trip. It is still in the hot lower lands of Colombia, but the rolling hills and variety of greens in the vegetation made for a lovely 5.5 hour drive, despite just having an average speed of advance of 35 mph (includes refueling, rest stops, etc).
Norm had told us that we were spending the night in a hotel parking lot. What he failed to tell us was that it was a truck stop and "hotel" was a strectch. This is the scenic view from the windshield of our RV. Yet again, a cheap place to spend the night with the barking dog thrown in for good measure.
OMG! I am reading more of your post and reliving our trip down to every hot and angry detail. Our friend Norm is busy trying to fill more trips, so Brad has posted a warning again on the RVNet Open Roads Forum. He has received a request to speak with someone who was planning on using Norm. Your blog is also a great resource for them.
ReplyDeleteI was on the trip with Roger and Trinora. It was everything they said and more. I dumped him in Chile and shipped my truck home. It was either that or end up in a South American prison for murder. Please pass the word.
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