Cartagena de Indias, beautiful city on the Caribbean coast, well known world-wide for its clear water beaches, the stone walled old city, and that Magical Realism described by Gabriel Garcia Márquez in his Nobel Prize winning book, One Hundred Years of Solitude. If I were to talk about Cartagena to a foreigner I would say all this, because truly this is what Cartagena is all about, but this is not all there is to say. Cartagena, as I know it, is a city of many contrasts that, depending where you stand, can be experienced in many different ways. People from these areas, are diverse and so different in their behavior and customs that if you get the chance to meet them all, you would feel like you visited two or three different cities. The first Cartagena to mention is that one most foreigners know, that one that is ostentatious, pretentious, and expensive, that city that shows the best it has to attract more people than it can receive to benefit those who control it. The people in these areas have a "sweeter" costeño accent, although outgoing and merry like the rest, these Cartageneros have delicate gestures and are no darker than the sand who covers Playa Blanca. Living in high apartment buildings or old Colonial houses, these Cartageneros have the chance to enjoy the …show more content…
We are all very different and our neighborhoods are as well, but that ability to stand against adversity, our friendliness no matter the stratum, and that skill to enjoy life against all odds is what really compose that Magical Realism foreigners love so much about our city. Getting to know Cartageneros and their stories would really complement a traveler’s experience and leave not only with the memories of a beautiful place but also plenty of life