teelac has left 7 comments

teelac comments on Any ideas on how to get from BAQ to Santa Marta?

ok everyone got back last wknd. my honey arranged for some friend of a friend to meet me at BAQ so that he could arrange for a taxi, which indeed was 120k plus his cut of course :-) i think you have to buy a taxi ticket at the kiosk in BAQ no matter where you are going, because we negotiated the price with the taxista, who just barreled through the checkpoint at the airport exit. cool way to start my trip. got to el rodadero in one piece and had a great time. i felt a lot of eyes on my little sandy colored head which was not too good, but we didn't experience any problems. the beach is lovely, the people were very warm and friendly, and it was bloody expensive using US dollars. why has the dollar fallen so much in the last year? i checked the Peruvian soles rate and it hasn't hardly changed. i returned via some van company that stopped everywhere in el rodadero but it was only 37k including the taxi from the crossroads in Barranquilla to BAQ airport. that could have been dicey as the van driver just hailed some dude taxi driving along and i attracted a lot of attention from some seedy looking characters on the roadside. it was a great but short trip. if i can figure out how to do it more cheaply i will return for longer. my honey has a US visa, so i can't find a way to do it cheaply we'll just meet in miami, definitely cheaper than el rodadero. we could rent a really slick apt. in el rodadero for less than 50k per day which would cut down on costs. thanks again everyone! rick

teelac comments on Machu Pichu

beautiful!! i was there 6 mths ago if anyone needs info pls just ask rick

teelac comments on Peru compared to Bolivia: how expensive?

hi everyone i'm here too. i went for over a month at the end of the year including lots of Lima, cuzco, M-P, two weeks in Huanchaco / Trujillo i'm trying to decide if I like Colombianas more than Peruanas and it's REALLY TOUGH GOING!! they are all so nice. i am looking to get out of here in the coming 3-5 years and set up shop in one country or the other. i'm good with languages and computers, maybe i'll do a business there. i live in USA but i'm canadian too. i have my eye on a girl in Piura, we'll see. maybe i'll go back to Peru at xmas. i have in-depth info on the places listed if anyone wants it. hope this forum cooks up - Peru is a fantastic country! rick

teelac comments on Any ideas on how to get from BAQ to Santa Marta?

ok thanks so much for the quick responses, for a first-timer i think the best thing is just take the taxi. i have been reading a lot about safety concerns but my gut feeling is that if you do the obvious things right Colombia must be a great place and certainly el Rodadero seems cool and safe. i lived in Thailand for a long time, spent a year in Pattaya, which is one the biggest sh*t holes on earth. most foreigners who had problems were looking for it one way or another. THANKS AGAIN! rick

teelac comments on Any ideas on how to get from BAQ to Santa Marta?

ok thanks a lot! i am by no means rich but any idea how much to take a taxi straight from BAQ to El Rodadero? i don't mind paying a lot the first time around, i will be better organized next time and follow you taxi to bus terminal to Bomba to Rodadero as you describe above. i speak understandable conversational Spanish and can joke and negotiate and stuff :-)

teelac comments on Any ideas on how to get from BAQ to Santa Marta?

thanks a lot but i'm a bit confused with all the place names. i will arrive at Cortissoz midday on the 29th. my honey will go straight to santa marta. we want to meet in el Rodadero, looks like the the Hotel Arhuaco will be fine and less than 100 dollars per night. any knowledge about the hotel? thanks, i see now that el Rodadero is closer to BAQ than Santa Marta. i am confused that the shuttle can be 120,000 and a private taxi is only 13,000??? can it really be two hours to drive 40 miles from Cortissoz to el Rodadero? it looks like 90 is a big road. in summary, if i can get a taxi for a reasonable price - say 100-120,000 pesos - then i don't want to waste time with a shuttle stopping and stuff or going to the city center. Thanks again for all your help everyone! Time is short, this has to work smoothly. rick

teelac comments on Any ideas on how to get from BAQ to Santa Marta?

thanks everyone, but i'm a newbie in Colombia and only have 3 days with my sweetie, so i would like the fastest way to get to Sta Marta from BAQ airport. i understand the 120k by shuttle. any idea how long for the shuttle to get to Santa Marta? any idea how much for a taxi? finally, is el rodadero beach south of Sta Marta meaning closer to Barranquilla? looks like it's only about 40 miles or so MANY THANKS Rick