Maybe that title should read, “Our Year in Travel and Other Stuff.”
As travel years go, 2024 was interesting. While we definitely got in our share of journeying, especially in the first part of the year, we were distracted by a few other things:
We bought an apartment! In last year’s edition of this post, we mentioned that we’d decided to stay put in Colombia after long considering a move to Spain or Portugal. In April, we made that decision official by purchasing an apartment in a brand new development overlooking our town of El Retiro, an Andean pueblo about an hour’s drive out of Medellín. Buying real estate in Colombia is . . . interesting. Very different from any other real estate purchases we’ve made in the past. But the process overall was smooth, and we could not be happier with our beautiful home and spectacular view!
We (well, John) had our first major experience with Colombian healthcare. By “major,” I mean a surgical procedure and a two-night hospitalization. John has long dealt with atrial fibrillation (a type of heart arrythmia) and had two catheter ablations in the U.S. to correct it, the last one in 2015 just before we moved to Panama. After 9 years, he had a new a-fib episode and needed another ablation. It’s a minimally invasive procedure involving a catheter through the femoral artery, and he finally had it done last Friday. John is doing very well, and the experience was pretty great overall (and cost a whopping COP 4,500, about $1!) I’ll write a lot more about it when we update our post about Colombian healthcare, coming soon.
Both of our Colombian visas were up for renewal this year. Once visa applications are submitted, applicants are not allowed to travel outside the country until approval. The process is always a little fraught: Will one or both of us be denied? Will we get the maximum allowed time? How long will it take, and will it affect future travel that we’ve already booked? The good news: We submitted our applications in September, and received approval in only two weeks! We’re both good to go, John with Colombia resident status for the next five years and I with an “M” (for migrant) visa for another three. I’ll explain the difference, and the process, in more detail in a future post.
OUR 2024 YEAR IN TRAVEL
February: Road Trip to Colombia’s Coffee Zone
We do love a good road trip! In February, we hopped in the car and headed to the Eje Cafetera (Coffee Zone), Colombia’s prime coffee-growing region. We spent two weeks exploring this beautiful region and found some fantastic hidden spots.
Related posts:
Colombia’s Coffee Zone: Road Trip 2024
Salamina: Colombia’s City of Light
Santa Rosa de Cabal: Colombia’s Hot Springs Paradise
March/April: South Atlantic Voyage and the Canary Islands
In March, we embarked on one of our longest and most ambitious trips to date: a 34-day repositioning voyage that took us to some of the most remote places in the South Atlantic – including South Georgia Island and Tristan da Cunha – before ending up in Sal, Cape Verde, off Africa’s west coast. It might sound cliché, but this was truly the trip of a lifetime – ranking right up there with the Galapagos Islands and the Inca Trail. It was such a packed itinerary that we’re STILL not done blogging about it; stay tuned for posts about St. Helena Island and Cape Verde.
Related posts:
A South Atlantic Voyage to Remember
The Falkland Islands: A Bit of England in the South Atlantic
South Georgia Island: An Atlantic Outpost
Tristan da Cunha: The World’s Most Remote Island Community
After disembarking the ship, we made a stopover in Gran Canaria in the Canary Islands chain before flying home through Madrid. Gran Canaria is an enchanting place, much more mountainous than we expected and filled with beautiful little Spanish towns. We’re hoping to explore more of the Canary Islands one of these days.
May: Alaska
We’ve always been fascinated by Alaska, and we finally got the chance to travel there in May. We had an enjoyable couple of weeks exploring Anchorage, Denali National Park, and Seward.
Related post:
Alaska: The Last Frontier
July: Barbados, Lesser Antilles and Cali, Colombia
Our first trip to Barbados didn’t quite turn out as planned, thanks to an uninvited guest named Hurricane Beryl. Barbados was originally just a stopover on the way to our first Caribbean house-sit, which was meant to be on the island of Bequia in the St. Vincent and the Grenadines chain. That plan fell apart when Bequia was damaged in the hurricane, and we ended up spending extra time on Barbados and then flying home.
Related post:
Barbados: When Nature Has Other Plans
Later in July, we made our first visit to Cali, Colombia’s third largest city and ground zero for Colombian salsa culture. We also got to do one of our favorite things: explore some of the smaller colonial pueblos near Cali. One of these days, I’ll get around to doing a post about our Cali trip!
September: Santa Marta, Colombia
While our visas were in process, we made a beach getaway to Santa Marta on Colombia’s Caribbean coast. Santa Marta is one of the oldest cities in South America and is the place where Simon Bolivar, “El Libertador” and South America’s most important hero, died in 1830. Santa Marta is more off the beaten tourist path than Cartagena, but every bit as historic and vibrant.
Related post:
Santa Marta, Colombia: The “Other Cartagena”
November: A Big Birthday in Austin, Texas
For our final trip of 2024, we journeyed to Austin to celebrate the 90th birthday of my mom and my role model, Mary Lea Baker. It was a special and memorable time filled with parties, friends, and family, capped off by Thanksgiving with more family in Houston.
A Very Colombia Christmas
We usually take a trip over the holidays (we had originally planned a trip to Chile over Christmas and New Year’s), but with John’s surgery we found ourselves here at home in El Retiro. It’s been lovely and peaceful, filled with fun times with our Colombian friends. Here are some of our favorite Colombian Christmas traditions.
Los Alumbrados
Colombian towns are world-renowned for their dazzling displays of Christmas lights – alumbrados in Spanish. El Retiro settled on two themes for its alumbrados this year: the wildlife of Colombia, and the agricultural heritage of our province of Antioquia.
Las Velitas and the Desfile de Mitos y Leyendas
December 7 is one of the biggest days on the Colombian holiday calendar, marking the official beginning of Navidad. It’s the eve of the Immaculate Conception, and it’s known as the Dia de las Velitas (Day of Little Candles). Families and friends gather in parks and in front of their houses and businesses to light candles, share food and drink, and enjoy each other’s company. It’s always heartwarming to see El Retiro aglow with countless candles and lanterns in windows and on door stoops. It reminds me of the southwestern custom of luminarias that I grew up with in West Texas.
Las Novenas
The focal point of Colombia’s Christmas season is the Novenas de Aguinaldos, gatherings of family and friends designed to spiritually prepare Catholics for the upcoming birth of the Christ Child. With each night taking a different theme, the Novenas take place every evening from December 16 through Nochebuena (Christmas Eve). The specific liturgy of prayers and meditations dates back almost three centuries, when an Ecuadorian friar introduced it to South America. This year, we were honored to be invited by our good friend Beatriz to her family’s Novena on Dec. 16, and we had a lovely time. I even got to read a small portion of the Novena (in Spanish) and didn’t mess it up too badly!
Another 2024 development: Our blog seems to be taking off!
It’s hard to believe, but we started Latitude Adjustment way back in 2015, just before we moved from Long Beach, California to Panama. We never intended to set the travel blog world on fire and amass tens of thousands of followers; rather, we just wanted to document our travels and keep our friends and family updated on our whereabouts. That’s still essentially true today – but for some reason, we DOUBLED our readership in 2024. Maybe it’s because we’re posting more often, with more detailed information for travelers about each of our destinations, which has gotten us picked up by more of the search algorithms. I’m not an SEO expert (and really don’t care that much, to be honest), but it’s interesting to see that we’re getting noticed.
Another note: We have left X (the evil social media platform formerly known as Twitter) and created a new account for the blog on BlueSky. Follow us there: @latitudejp.bsky.social.
If you’re a subscriber to our blog or even just a regular reader, THANK YOU! We appreciate your support.
***
So what’s in store for 2025? On 3 January we’re finally making that delayed trip to Santiago and Valparaiso, Chile. We’re planning major trips to Italy, Greece, and Iceland, and in the fall we’re looking at a trip up the New England coast to Canada’s maritime provinces. And that’s just a starter!
With the world in such turmoil, we always like to reflect on everything we’re grateful for: Our beautiful home, our wonderful friends all over the world, our safety and security, our ability to travel anywhere we’d like. And you, our readers. We appreciate you more than you know!
With Deepest Gratitude, We Wish You and Yours a Fantastic 2025!
24 Comments
We’re very happy for you two, you’ve found your bliss. Great news on John’s procedure as well, and we can vouch for the fantastic Colombian healthcare (not sick-care) system. Keep sending the gorgeous pix!
Thanks so much, By and Mariah! I know you can speak personally about the quality of cardiac healthcare here, and now we can as well. Hope you both had a lovely Christmas!
A wonderful 2024 you had, filled with plenty of travel within Colombia and also to far-flung places like the Canary Islands and Alaska. Hurricanes and health scares aside, you two got through the year, and I’m excited to see what 2025 has in store for you. Safe travels!
Thanks Rebecca – same to you and yours! Happiest of holidays.
Wow, Susan! That’s quite the summary for 2024. You two have been adventuring a lot. I’m glad John is recovering nicely and that you’ll be able to visit Santiago and Valparaiso in January. I’m curious about your thoughts of Santiago… And, so nice to see the photo of the rockhopper penguins. They are so darn cute and, by now, I’ve witnessed them in the wild as well. 🙂
Happy travels and good health in 2025!!
Thanks, Liesbet! Glad you got to see the Rockhoppers. We’ll give you a full report on our Chile escapades. Leaving next Friday! Happy New Year and Happy Travels to you, Mark, and Maya. 🙂
WOW! What a big year you have had. May 2025 be equally exciting…without the health/hospital stuff! Mel
Thanks, Mel – onward and upward! Same back to you – all the best of the New Year to you and your family. 🙂
This is a lovely wrap up post, really enjoyed getting this overview. You guys have been quite busy. Congratulations on the success of your blog, you deserve it. I am really glad John’s procedure went well and all is good with your Colombian visas.
Our very best wishes to you both in 2025.
Thanks so much, Gilda! Same back to you both and your families – All the best to you in the New Year!
You’ve had a great year, I’m not sure you can ever top the cruise though. Congrats on the new home, I’m assuming there’s a spare room. 😊 Hope you love the Maritimes as much as we do. Happy 2025, Maggie
It’s going to be hard to top the cruise, for sure! And absolutely, there’s a spare room with your name on it 🙂 We are so looking forward to the Maritimes and we appreciate all the great info you’ve sent. Happy New Year back to you!
You’ve had an adventure filled year!! What amazing travels, and I’ve really loved following along. I’m so glad John’s operation went well, and that he is recovering well over the festive season. And congrats on your blog growth, that’s absolutely amazing 🙂
Thanks so much, Hannah! Happiest of New Years and a bountiful 2025 to you and your family. 🙂
Congrats on buying the apartment in your favorite area and John’s successful surgery as both are big milestones. Enjoy following your posts this year and also the recap reel. Wishing you both great health and exciting travels in 2025 – try and include Newfoundland on your Canadian itinerary. You’ll be so glad you did!
Thanks so much, Annie! And same back to you and your family for 2025. Absolutely, Newfoundland is on the itinerary for next year – we can’t wait to see it and the other Maritimes. All the best! 🙂
✫ `•.⚡️ ӇƛƤƤƳ★ ♫`¸.•* ¸｡☆
☆｡¸ `•.¸ `• ƝЄƜ *´.•´`¸ ✫
☆｡¸ .•´ ƳЄƛƦ! °° * .•*´
♫ ♥*.*`.•´ * °¸.•⭐️ ¸｡☆
☆｡¸¸*•. ⭐️ ✫ °` •`°`¸.•*
♥********♥
\ 2025 /
\ ° ° /
\ ° /
\ ° /
\ღ/
| |
| |
| |
ღ🔶ღ
Thanks, Cindy – Happy New Year back to you! 🙂
Happy New Year guys….!
Heyyy! Happy New Year back to you, oh hungry ones 🙂 Wishing you all the best and marvelous new travel adventures in 2025. Cheers!
So happy to see all the travels you did in 2024, and so excited for your upcoming trips in 2025! I’m glad the procedures went well for John, and how crazily cheap it was! Happy New Year to both of you! Here’s to more memorable travels around the globe!
Thanks so much, Bama! Same back to you and your family as we launch into 2025! 🙂
Sounds like a great year of adventures and successes 🙂 Wishing you all the best in the new year ahead!
This was a fun read/recap as I followed your travels through social media (definitely not X, I’ve never ever liked Twitter/X). You have the best travel itineraries. So glad the new digs are comfy cozy. Curious, will you seek citizenship in Colombia or stick with residencies? So glad John is feeling better, this aging thing can really suck! Take care friends until we cross paths again. Safe travels ~ Patti