transportation hubs, and outside major stores. I stood in line for grilled chorizo sausage on a stick and a cheese empanada while Michelle walked across the way and bought a fruit salad with bananas, pineapples, and about three other varieties we could neither recognize nor pronounce. Food in hand, we started to mosey back through the heart of El Centro. Similar to the French Quarter in New Orleans, there’s no block here that’s not worth seeing at least once. Sure, they might not all have shops or attractions, but the architecture and ambiance alone is worth the walk. We made a point to occasionally change course — a left here, another left up there, then a right — in ways we knew weren’t the “correct” direction, but we wanted to see as much as possible. One moment we were marveling at a stretch of colonial buildings so bright, they seemed to have been painted their respective reds and blues and yellows just yesterday, and the next we were deep in a quiet residential district where green and pink bougainvillea climbed the houses’ white walls. Magical Reality According to local lore, Gabriel García Márquez penned at least a portion of his Love in the Time of Cholera while sitting at some of the same rickety tables Michelle and I discovered our first evening in town. Who knows. I’m a Márquez fan though, so I tend to believe it, just like I believe in the magical happenings of his novels and short stories. To call Cartagena itself magical is cliché at this point. Still, while I won’t claim to have seen any ghosts or levitating maidens or old men with enormous wings during our week in town, I won’t say any of that would have surprised me either. After sunset on our final night, we headed toward Plaza Fernández de Madrid and the nameless restaurants and bar adjacent to it. Michelle wanted a pizza; I was in the mood for a steak. And we were both thirsty for an Aguila. (If you must know, we visited this specific stretch of sidewalk at least once every day.) But when we arrived, there was a car parked where “our” table should have been. We were heartbroken. Alfredo waved hello, and then recognized the problem. “ Un momento ,” he said, and proceeded to the corner. “Is he really doing what I think he’s doing?” I said to Michelle. A shrill whistle, followed by a rush of Spanish chatter, split the calm evening for a few seconds before a young man came jogging across the street. He nodded to us, and then pulled away in his car. “Yes, he is,” Michelle said, eyebrows raised watching the scene unfold. Alfredo lifted our table out to the street and pulled up two chairs. The hallmark of Márquez’s best writing is that, to his characters, the most extraordinary events that take place in the story are as normal as any other everyday occurrence. After Alfredo put our table down, he looked at us as if nothing out of the ordinary had just happened — and then he poured a round of aguardiente. It might not have been magic per se, but in all my years of traveling, I’ve yet to experience many moments more magical than that one. 54 INTERVAL WORLD Summer 2015 IntervalWorld.com Jupiterimages/Exactostock-1598/Glow Images RESORT DIRECTORY: IntervalWorld.com CLIMATE: Cartagena’s position on the Caribbean coast means consistently warm weather. Daytime temperatures typically range from 82ºF to 86ºF. CURRENCY: Colombian peso DON’T MISS: An evening ride through Old Town in a horse-drawn carriage. TIPPING: At many popular restaurants, 10% is included with the bill. Give a little extra for good service. When it’s not automatically included, leaving the change — or 10% — is very much appreciated. INTERVAL TRAVEL: IntervalWorld.com RENTAL CAR: Unnecessary unless you want to explore beyond the city on your own. Taxis are plentiful. VISITOR INFORMATION: Cartagena Tourism Board 57.5.6550211 cartagenadeindias.travel PROCOLOMBIA colombia.travel fast FACTS Lose Yourself in Cartagena Buy a Getaway at IntervalWorld.com. Getaways start at $799 for a studio. The Getaway price is valid from September 1 through November 30, 2015. Share your favorite places to wander on Many Members. Your Voice. Get to know the locals over a shot of the unofficial national drink, aguardiente (fire water).