2 Best Sights in The Caribbean Coast, Colombia

Make this one of your first stops on any visit to get the best possible grasp of the city's geography and its role as a fortified protector of a crucial headland, as well as a more modern context for the historic center that is now surrounded by a sprawling city. Because of its strategic location, the white-walled 17th-century monastery here intermittently served as a fortress during the colonial era. It now houses a museum and a chapel dedicated to the Virgen de la Candelaria, Cartagena's patron saint, with a stunning gilded altar and religious relics up to 500 years old. Taxis charge around 10,000 pesos one way to bring you here (plus the wait and return trip, expect to pay between 40,000 and 50,000 pesos) and the sight can be included on one of Cartagena's popular chiva (horsedrawn carriage) tours. Under no circumstances should you walk between the city center and the hill; occasional muggings of tourists have been reported along the route. For spectacular views of Cartagena, ascend the hill around sunset.

Cartagena survived only because of its walls, and its murallas remain today the city's most distinctive feature, part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site that draws visitors to the historic and well-preserved city center full of plazas, shops, and diversions. Repeated sacking by pirates and foreign invaders convinced the Spaniards of the need to enclose the region's most important port. Construction began in 1600 and finished in 1796. The Puerta del Reloj is the principal gate to the innermost sector of the walled city. Its four-sided clock tower was a relatively late addition (1888), and has become the symbol of the city. Walking along the thick walls (you can enter at many points, and there are overpriced bars in some parts) is one of Cartagena's time-honored pastimes, especially late in the afternoon when you can watch the setting sun redden the Caribbean. (Depending on time of year, the sun sets here between 5:30 and 6:30 pm.)