Day 172 Oasis

Tuesday 27 Jan 2009

We dress in layers before we leave cool Bogotá flying to warm Cartagena de Indias on the Caribbean and we shed clothing as soon as we’re in the terminal of the city called “the littlest big city in South America” (1.1 million people). We booked ahead of time a two day stay at Casa Relax in Getsemaní, the outer-walled city adjacent to the inner-walled El Centro, so when we arrive we know a bit about what to expect. But when we step off the sidewalk into the oasis of Casa Relax, it takes our breath away; a shady entryway is inside the door, a pool table on one side and a comfy TV-room/library with lots of books on the other; a communal kitchen and a dining table for ten are at the near end of a 35-foot outdoor swimming pool; two hammocks strung between posts, with doors to four pastel-painted rooms behind them, are to the left of the pool; at the far end of the pool are a round table with four cushy chairs and with two pastel rooms behind them and a stairway to two more above; and finally, to the right of the pool behind the kitchen are a gazebo sitting area with loveseat and chairs and behind the gazebo are three multi-colored parrots sharing a perch in front of three tall palm trees. When we sit beside the pool these birds climb up our arms and sit upon our shoulders and nibble at our ears; they squawk, but also seem to say, “How are you?” and “Oh, oh!” when anyone walks near them.

After we spend the afternoon strolling around the walled El Centro gawking at fabulous bougainvillea-shrouded colonial balconies soaring above cobbled alleyways, the sound of hooves from quaint horse-drawn carriages in our ears, our eyes feasting on bright flowers adorning verdant shrubs and trees at every plaza, savoring cold beers at one of the many outdoor cafes, and dodging the hoards of tourists from a recently arrived cruise ship we head back to our oasis.

Casa Relax is owned by a Frenchman, Michel Jeannot, who I never once see on his feet during our stay; he is always lying in one of the hammocks with a book in his hand and a pipe in his mouth. He had Casa Relax built to his specifications 10 years ago and the covered entryway walls have many pictures of him with a woman and children, but they are nowhere in evidence.

There is a French couple staying at Casa Relax for ten days who have adopted a little boy, a Columbian boy, a black boy who speaks Spanish and the couple speaks French. Watching the young couple interact with the boy in the pool and at the table, trying desperately to connect with him, pulls at my heartstrings because the boy cries a lot. For this couple embarking on a lifetime commitment I suspect Casa Relax is also an oasis, a sanctuary where love might bloom.