Fri 1610 Back at airbnb. Although no specific details on where exactly to meet up yet, that CS group has a new comment about meeting up in plaza de la paz about 7pm for noche de los tambores, so I will probably get a taxi over there (I'm going to end up spending a fortune on taxis, and not completely sure how I'll get back - will I use phone on street (big no-no during carnival according to airbnb host) or will I chance getting a cab on street) later.
Everything mostly smooth today. Breakfast and several coffees by pool til 1130ish. Packed no trouble, I've got a horrible feeling I've lost a 50k note I had stashed in the trousers I washed last night (I took it out to wash them but don't know where I put it and frantic looking round before I checked out failed to find it in room; maybe it is hidden somewhere in my bag and I forgot where I've put it), but apart from that everything seems OK.
EasyTaxi didn't lie about arrival time of cab (tho it *did* have a different registration number, which was mildly disoncerting this time, except for minor confusion over building number and a mildly over-intense concierge type chap on the gate (he keeps calling me "mister" and saying incomprehensible things as I go in/out) everything is fine with the airbnb, room is quite nice and I have a private bathroom (though I need to go across communal hallway to get to it) and there's aircon etc, which I am indulging in now. Host talked to me a bit, I explained about this rather wappy group of people I hope to meet and I think she said she can show me where to go to maybe be able to get some sort of seat for parade tomorrow middayish if nothing happens with my group.
I went out for a brief wander, area seems quiet ish (only security advice host gave me was not to get phone out on street as it's carnival and more foreigners and more presumably-opportunistic snatch-and-run robberies), she had said were several cheap restaurants and I eventually found one (Totumazo) which I risked even though no prices show - service not bad natured but *very* informal-ish, but got a pretty decent chicken breast with the usual trimmings including soup (and an undressed salad; I need to ask for this more directly instead of using a long waffly sentence I think) and a small coffee after (I asked for that and guy seemed a bit dubious if they had any, then someone else said they had) for 9k! I asked if that included the coffee (well, that's what I think I asked) and he said not to worry about it. So I handed over 10k and left it at that, amazing value.
Then got some water (6k for 5l) and six croissanty things (2k the bag) at shop opposite the apartment compex the airbnb is in and came back here. Am just loitering in room, reading a bit, writing this etc, and had three croissanty things (bit lardy). I am hoping some more information on CS meetup will come in but if not I will head over to PdlP 7pmish and see what happens. This carnival business feels very passive (normally I would be saying "I will go here" or "I will do this" , even if it's a struggle against nerves/laziness, but now I'm being very reactive) but it feels like I need to be super cautious given the insane levels of business during carnival (although I'm sure I'm exaggerating the level of this in my head).
Is a junior fiction book "Me dicen Sara Tomate" on shelf here, which it turns out is actually a translation of an English book I haven't read. I have read a few pages of it intermittently.
1737 Need to remind myself I'm not heading out into a fucking war zone.
Sat 2037 Catch up. Jumping ahead, just got back from Soda Loka round corner from airbnb - I had gone out for an unnecessary bit of food (I ate this morning and had three croissant things when I got back this afternoon) and a couple of beers. Service ultra slow, I seemed to have my personal invisibility field switched on by accident. Got some french fries (tiny portion, no salt and waitress had evaporated before I could think to ask) and an Aguila light (no original). After having those thought I might have same again, closest I got to staff attention was when I managed to make eye contact with a waitress serving an adjacent table, I *thought* I asked her for same again but obviously I just mumbled and she couldn't be arsed to ask me what I'd said so ignored me. Someone cleaned my empty dish and beer can away and I sat there for a good while half hoping something would turn up but it didn't. So I went over to cashier window and paid - they did manage to include the voluntary service charge, of course - they didn't offer me a copy of the credit card receipt or anything. Shit service is one thing but I wonder if this is something I'm doing wrong, esp wrt Spanish. On the other hand they probably just don't give a shit, given eg not asking me if I wanted a copy of receipt.
TBH I was feeling a bit cold (laughable, really) sitting outside at SL and worn out and although there's been some modest activity on the CS group this afternoon no one has yet actually made a concrete proposal (and the meetup group I signed up for this morning also has no concrete meetup details) and my feet are hurting a bit after all the standing today and yday so I came back to flat. Host gave me a ciruela (small but tasty fruit although 90% of volume is an inedible stone) to try, and I made my excuses (well, told the truth) about indefinite shity on CS group and feet hurting and after cleaning teeth have come to lie on bed and write this up even though not really in the mood.
So going back to where I left off last night, I had huge wait (though it was all well-communicated; I am out here in a suburb and it's carnival, so expect some delay) to get an EasyTaxi over to PdlP. Happened to bump into host who was driving back in as I went out to get in taxi.
On way over there - oh, maybe they *really* don't rate my Spanish based on the initial "gracias" type exchange as I get in, but one way or another the ET drivers don't seem very chatty for better or worse - I was feeling a bit shitty. The expense and hassle of the fairly lengthy taxi journey, wondering (big underlying theme of the evening) how I'd get home, extreme doubts about meeting this super-wappy CS group, the largely deserted streets not exactly seeming lively. Then when we got to PdlP it was really busy and felt a bit threatening.
Anyway, I got out and didn't feel too bad and at least it *was* lively. I loitered a bit and then noticed people going "inside" the barriers round the plaza and I went in myself - brief security frisking but nothing major. Some people also got their ID checked but I didn't. I don't think I sneaked in without a ticket but who knows. There were probably a thousand people there, probably way more, so obviously just saying "we're going to Plaza de la Paz" is a perfect way to arrange a meetup of total strangers. I did - it felt reasonably "not on the street" inside the barriers, with quite a bit of empty space towards the back - post on group to say I was there but no one ever replied (as seems to be mostly happening with the few comments from other people today).
I found a pretty decent standing spot up against a railing on some ticket-only seating area (just plastic chairs on the flat ground) with apparently an inner fenced off area on the other side which was quite busy; not at all clear if the non-seating inner fenced off area was open to anyone as I didn't really try to get into it (or even find the entrance).
In theory I could have bought a beer from an ambulatory vendor (they weren't remotely offensive) and I had already seen they had portaloos there but I decided not to, mainly out of concern about getting home safely.
The scrolling text around the stage said "Noche de Tambó" , not "tambor" , incidentally.
I had a pretty good view of the actual stage even without looking at the large monitors. The music (cumbia) is not precisely my cup of tea, but while I felt slightly loser-ish being there on my own and mildly conspicuous, those feelings both faded and especially as the music changed a bit with different groups and some of it was less "pure rhythm" and more instrumental I did quite enjoy some of it, especially Carlos Piña and the guys (probably not his regular band) he was performing with. Fair amount of involuntary foot tapping and mild bodily swaying etc. (I didn't dance.)
I tried not to worry about getting home but couldn't help thinking about it. Had initially thought it would end quite early but (I did understand the gist of most of the announcements and some of the song lyrics) towards 11pm IIRC someone said they had 7 more bands to come and when I left about 1ish other people were leaving but it was still going on.
I didn't realise until one of the song lyrics (I think there's an element of improvisation, or at least custom-written-for-the-event, in some of what they do) said about being in front of the cathedral that I looked round (I had been facing the stage) and saw the wall of the cathedral with those pseudo-triangular windows in behind me, which was quite cool. (I had walked over to cathedral from old hotel when I visited, and ended up coming down a side street - it felt quite back alley sketchy, actually - to get into cathedral and thus had no idea PdlP was there.) I had seen the cathedral was next to PdlP on GM when coming over that night, but I still hadn't realised it was right there.
Incidentally lots of people seemed to be sitting on steps outside cathedral way outside the railed off areas and there were food carts etc there. I'm assuming they just preferred to be there (eg able to sit, and still hear perfectly and probably see fairly well), given it was apparently free to get at least part way into the railed off area.
In the end I decided to book an ET on safety grounds, even though it meant waiting 10ish mins while a veritable sea of taxis waited right in front of my eyes. (I felt borderline safe using mobile in railed off area near exit.) The driver then went and parked off on the other side of the square and - insert needle in haystack metaphor here - I went off (no longer really liking to use phone as out on street) to try to find him by reg plate (which is also painted on the doors, it's not necessary to go literally peer at reg plate) in the sea of taxis, which I did eventually (he was actually across the road). Anyway, got home no fuss - though despite being stone cold sober I fumbled with eg numbers when talking to street security guard on apartment complex trying to get let in, oh, and the ET app was showing the ride as still in progress 5 mins after I'd got into the flat so I messaged the driver - maybe this was just one of those things, maybe it was a small scam.
It was about 130 when I got into bedroom and I spent next half hour trying to top up my Movistar credit via their app, as it was due to expire on 23rd (who knows if this meants 0001 or 2359) and I didn't want to get caught short with no mobile data for calling taxis. Three attempts with two cards all failed, so I gave up and went to bed about 2.
Didn't sleep too badly though did wake up a bit in night, and felt a bit hungover in morning. I called credit card company thinking card would have been blocked and they had no record of the txns, so evidently Movistar considered it highly suspicious of me to try to top up online using a phone containing one of their SIMs and the card I'd used for my initial top up.
On advice from host I went out - it was maybe 10/1030 at this point - and after a few false starts (shop I thought I wanted was shut, then asked in Dios y Fe and they pointed me next door) I spoke with a bloke in there who did the top up for me on his computer and took 25k in cash off me. So at least that got sorted. (And yes, my phone buzzed when he did this and I could see the change in the Movistar app pretty sharpish.)
Then went for early lunch at same place as yday, they said 30 mins to wait but I had no choice so said I would wait and don't think it was that long. Parade nominally starts at 12 so was feeling a bit pushed for time. Food 9k, made it 12k with tip.
Going to take bit of break from writing this up. Oh, wrt NdT, in many ways I'm quite glad I was there on my own, I could concentrate on the music (tho I did end up with mind wandering off a lot, but that's not really a bad thing either) etc. In those sort of circumstances having someone to travel home with would be nice to diminish the stress (eg maybe we could even have taken an off-street taxi), but an ad-hoc meet up would never have provided that anyway. Subject to not feeling knackered etc, it *would* be nice to have a drink and socialise in a party-ish atmosphere, but at a live music event I like to be able to concentrate on the music.
Was going to say something else had forgotten but can't think of it now, so let's have that mini break from the write up.
Oh, I think it was about ET (though not specific to their app). Being picked up at a specific location is fine if you're at bar X or restaurant Y, it's not so helpful when your location is a large public square with a major event going on. This is not ET's fault, I'm just making the observation. I did wonder about wandering down street and trying to find a bar or coffee shop and having one drink there then ordering taxi from that place, but it was getting late and my feet were hurting and I wasn't too sure if I could find somewhere suitable.
And that reminds me that what I really wanted to say was that I was also a bit worried about getting enough sleep and getting up in time to try to sort something out for Sat parade. But I did keep telling myself that NdT was something enjoyable and something I was *actually* seeing (bird in the hand) and I shouldn't go clearing off early *just* in order to maybe be up in time for a parade I perhaps wouldn't be able to see anyway. (As it was, when I left 1ish it was because I was feeling a bit tired and I'd kind of had my fill - I'd probably been there since 8ish, CS nominal meetup was 7 but with delay getting taxi don't think I left airbnb til nearly 730 - so probably 4-going-on-5 hours of the experience of interesting but not quite my taste music (not to deny at times I was really enjoying it, eg CP) and I wasn't enjoying myself as much by 1ish, though *part* of this would be the lingering getting home issue.)
If this had been in London I'd probably have been walking home, of course. GM said it was about 4.5km IIRC, grid system might bloat that in walking distance, but technically completely doable. However, that didn't seem the safest option and I was knackered from standing (and this is a multi-day event of course).
Sun 1857 Fell asleep (which I didn't fight) after taking break yday. Currently back at airbnb to shower after today's parade; I intend to go out down calle 88 for some food and maybe a couple of beers shortly so not a full write up now but bashing out a few paragraphs as I am behind.
So yday after popping out for phone top up and food came back to airbnb and host very kindly walked over to Via 40 with me and after some abortive attempts to get me a ticket into the palcos she got me a possibly-semi-dodgy 50k entry into one of the minipalcos (cash, no ticket) - these are covered but not banked. I had taken a litre bottle of water with me and sipped at it very slowly as I didn't want to have to leave for a piss, which might have involved a minor struggle to get out (though I was nearish the back) and although had checked was bit dubious I'd not be let back in. I had a tolerable if not perfect view, standing up intermittently and also sometimes standing on a sandbag type think on floor in front of my patio-style chair. Was a mildly bear pit kind of atmosphere - a woman behind me had a go for having my chair too bar back at one point - but on the whole fairly pleasant. I was a bit in the sun at times as it was more or less overhead and I was right by the solid metal "wall" at left of the stand and thus not entirely under shade, but in a way this was nice as I had no one on my left, and it seems I haven't burned so I must have had enough sunblock on the back of my neck and lower down. It was pretty warm but not absolutely intolerable; the occasional breeze v welcome. Ambulant vendors around, I held off on buying a beer (3k for a 269ml can, not too bad) until 4pmish for not-wanting-to-need-a-piss reasons. By 4pmish the crowd had thinned out a bit and there was a bit more room, though parade went on til 5pmish IIRC.
Walked back to airbnb using street numbers and not GM, didn't take optimal route but not too bad. Not exactly a street party atmosphere at that point but a lot of people in streets and food carts and beer sellers etc as had been along Via 40, maybe they would be there all night or maybe this was only in aftermath of parade.
Came back to airbnb, much needed shower, then popped out to Soda Loka as waffled about above.
So except for general observations re parade which I will save til I've written today's up, I think that completes this write up up to and including Saturday night.
2035 live reportage on HTC. at deserted and expensive bar (7k for a Sol) bar at bottom of calle 88. very noisy private party behind a hard across road. world+dog seem to be entering but after feeling I ought to I spoke to guy on door who told me its a private party. I am not pissed - had an aguila light with fairly good steak at place up 88 nearer airbnb - and while I am not terribly disappointed I feel a little like he wasn't telling me truth somehow.
cs group has a post about meeting in parquet cultural Del caribe 9-10pm. as yet absklutelh no details on how we strangers might meet up in this big area. TBH I am almost certainly not going, it's even further than plaza de la paz was, I am not really tired but I'm not really in the mood to Trog over there on the offchance I do in fact manage to meet up with this cs group, who on past performance are flaky as fuck.
think am only customer here but it's early - not that I plan to be out late. kind of only came out for food as didn't eat before parade today due to ending up in conversation with host and (mostly) her husband. that was good, don't get me wrong. but while a beer or two is vaguely appealing I am not feeling particularly like there's much prospect of me socialising with anyone tonight and I don't feel inclined to duck around eg slogging over to that cs thing.
feel pretty Billy no mates but somehow it's kind of OK. I am feeling more secure here now but all the same the idea of hanging around alone at whatever the duck is happening over at parque Caribe is not massively appealing, especially not with the hassle of easytaxi-ing it back. I just didn't want to sit in airbnb room Al night hence coming for beer or two after eating.
yes yes it's carnival I should be partying but I am not feeling it like that. parades were sort of fun but I don't feel this is entirely my environment. making excuses perhapa.
maybe tomorrow night I will take some kind of chance with kr without the cs group. not that I'm deeply flawed, but also main parade (tho not near airbnb) on Tue is 4pm whereas tomorrow kt is 1pm so I can sleep later tue after a night out.
duck it. if I'm not feeling it not forcing it. In many ways already done better at carnival than expected, seen both parades so far thanks to airbnb host (today was easy and I did it myself but her help was key yesterday) and having had fair amount of chat with hosts I feel I've ticked off some kind of social interaction box too.
I might have [duck I hate this on screen kbd] one more overpriced beer when finished this and by then will be late enough to go to bed.
I mean, I even made an effort to meet up with other solo tourists via cs and meet-up but meetup has no actual events, just 40 people joined but nothing else, and cs is vague and unhelpful (eg "we are going to noche de tambor" and then there's no info on where to meet, no one replied to my message or even belatedly acknledgsd it, TBH far from obvious to me anyone was there from the group). yes this is all just volunteers like me but come on. on plus side ndt was good solo and wouldn't have gone if not for cs but still, from a meeting people pov it was a frost.
was tempted to post on cs suggesting ppl private message me their whatsapp details and I would create a group chat, but I felt the actual organiser might feel I was stealing her group. but I think a private whatsapp chat might work in a way a visible to world plus exposed via search engines with our real names on for all eternity "chat" on cs website doesn't.
maybe I'm doing something wrong but these web meet-up things don't seem to work very well.
at least honour is satisfied by having spoken to gate chap at pricae party opposite - I had felt a bit like chance had dropped a lively nearish accom bar or whatever in my lap and it would be improvident to ignore it, but I did ask and it wasn't like that.
oh forgot to say during sat parade one chap offered me a plastic shot glass of kfa GE (orange, but not to HTC kbd) liquid and 95pc sure was fine as he and frienda drinking same but like a good boy I followed advice and declined it which felt like a shame. another chap spoke to me in prob friendky way but could not understand him (his accent/my poor Spanish/loads of noise) so that went nowhere.
I will need to sort out Accom and or flight soon, only have airbnb up to and including Tue night iirc.
so not feeling terrible but vaguely loserish. but really I've made a fair effort and as I said above I have done better at touristing it up than I expected.
2212 Back at airbnb. Brief pip-pipping with hosts (bloke attempting to repair a microwave on living room floor) but mostly left to own devices.
Was mildly torn about having a third beer at overpriced place (maybe Tragos y Copas, based on memory of GM not any sign saw there) but was yawning a bit and I don't like to come back "pissed" (not that I would have been, but still) to airbnb too early and decided not to. Didn't feel unsafe on walk back anyway. Area has some big electricity pylons by side of road (you can walk right under them) which is quite unusual and sort of cool and also a little bit desolate. May try to take photo of this.
Anyway, to summarise above wafflings, while I feel a bit "left out" of the carnival party, really I have done about all I could in terms of making an effort (as of now still *no* more detail on the CS group about tonight's meet up; maybe there is a WA group I'm not privy to but given a good chunk of the 10 ppl in group are my kind of age and none of them have met me yet I really doubt I'm being excluded deliberately) and I've always been a bit iffy about "special" events like this and NYE; I prefer to have a "normal" night out which turns out to be fun. But anyway.
So today I got up about 9:30ish (an epic sleep really, I woke up and turned light out 11pmish but went back to sleep pretty quickly, though was semi-drowsing from maybe 7am). Parade was at 1 so felt a tiny bit less hurried, had planned to go out to Totumazo for early lunch but as already waffled ended up chatting with airbnb hosts (which was better) so left flat 12ish to head over (solo) to via 40. I had checked on GM first but somehow managed to end up circling back on myself, which I luckily twigged on unexpectedly encountering Totumazo. Second attempt went better and as I think already waffled I got a perfectly good seat in a covered area (I never got as far as the palcos so didn't have to futz around trying to buy tkt from a tout and seeing if it was valid) for 10k. Was deeply tempted by some sausage on stick things being grilled in street but didn't buy one before going into seating and decided to hold off. May risk one tomorrow; I might have got one today after parade but I moderately over-indulged in other snacks (three smallish packs of maize-ish snacks - 1k except for first one where guy told me 1.5k which I "knew" was a foreigner price as had heard 1k from everyone else but decided to just pay it - and then 3k for some churros, which I *really* wanted when I saw ppl selling them out of reach, and which were nice enough but not great and left me feeling mildly sick, even though they weren't as rich-tasting as I'd expected) and wasn't super hungry by the time it might have been practical to buy some grilled sausage thing.
Didn't get any beer today. Although I was told to shift (nicely) a few times, and at points it was busy-ish, the seating today was way less busy (I don't think this was a "minipalco" like yday, it felt more casual) and generally the atmosphere felt a little more relaxed (not that it was *bad* yday, quite vibrant and not really threatening, in some ways maybe I got more of this vibe being in that minipalco than in the expensive seats) and the weather seemed a bit cooler too.
Parade was decent and I couldn't help but appreciate the effort people had obviously gone to, but it did go on from 130ish til 6ish (was getting a bit worried about it getting dark, but am feeling bit more secure and it was fine anyway) and TBH was also a bit boring. Quite a few groups today had some presumably traditional costumes with the women holding a bundle of candles in one hand. Towards end (but it wasn't dark; I was home before dark and I did stay to end of parade) one group had the bundles of candles alight and that was both curiously impressive and a bit scary. (One woman had the flames from the bundle held at arms length streaming directly towards her face; she seemed OK but I bet that was fucking hot and maybe a bit intimidating.)
Parades refreshingly un-PC. Both today and yesterday many people blacked up (torso too, not just face) - some of them were (from blacking smeared away view) clearly not white, but equally clearly not "black" in the way they were made up, and it felt good to see something so un-PC anyway. Also yday was a group of people dressed as "Chinese tourists" (stereotypical conical hats etc) and with some sort of container labelled "coronavirus" - I'm not saying this is "fair" , but to see humour being made of a mildly scary situation felt good. Yday was also one float with a moderately realistic Donald Trump impersonator, but it didn't appear (I may well have missed something) to be tremendously insulting - more of a "hahaha, we've dressed up like Donald Trump" sort of good natured vibe.
I'm sure there's something I will have forgotten to say in this piecemeal write up but I've probably got the bulk of the stuff in. I can always write more in a subsequent entry. I think I might send this off now before I lose it, and while I'm no longer tired I might to bed and watch a bit of YT or something. LTDB! (But fuck that. Waffled extensively. I can only try, and I have tried, and so far any kind of "party" seemingly eludes me in ways which, to be fair to myself, don't hinge on poor social skills or being an old fart. While there's a slim possibility staying in that dorm at that hostel would have been a way to meet people, my experience suggests a) staying in a dorm doesn't really make much difference to meeting people b) hostels in general are hit and miss, and c) I could easily imagine most people at the hostel are already with a group of friends anyway. I think really I *did* come on my own, and it's not trivial to find people to hang around with, and I *have* made an effort and been disappointed but that doesn't really reflect on me. Maybe there would be better websites to try to meet people through, but I have tried two well-known ones and both seem dead in this regard. They may well do better with regular events rather than one-offs like this.)
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