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5 September 2012 / leggypeggy

Legendary breakfasts—in Cartagena

Poor John

Poor John waiting for more breakfast

I have a vague, distant memory of loving Vegemite and thinking I would miss it terribly after my jar was confiscated by US Security.

Then we came to Colombia and breakfasts have been off the chart. We stayed in a great little hostel in Bogota where breakfast was fruit, juice, three kinds of breads and Colombian coffee. Myriam, our hostess in Bogota, lined us up to stay at a special hostel in Cartagena where the breakfasts, she said, are legendary. Aw, come on! What could make breakfast in a hostel legendary. Let me show and tell you!

Fruit bowl

Fruit bowl for two

We got up about 4:30am to catch a flight from Bogota to Cartagena. I don’t ‘do’ early morning very well, but I staggered out of bed, brushed my teeth and hoisted the pack on my back. The taxi we booked turned up on time and we were in the airport enjoying a cup of coffee by 5:30. Lan Chile served a snack, but by the time we arrived at the hostel in Cartagena, the offer to be served breakfast couldn’t be declined.

A huge bowl of fruit appeared immediately, along with juice. Did we want eggs prepared some way—scrambled, poached, fried or did we want ‘mumble-mumble’. Of course the woman didn’t say mumble-mumble, but we couldn’t figure out what she did say and we hesitated to ask, so we ordered it. It turned out to be arepas con heuvo—an egg surrounded by a cornmeal crust and served with sour cream and salsa. It was sensational. In fact, we ordered it again today.

egg with cornmeal

Arepas con heuvo

We also got a basket of bready things including toast, muffins, brownies and two or three kinds of savoury items, as well as butter, jam and plenty of coffee.

And if you want something else—go ahead. Order pancakes, waffles, another arepas con heuvo.

Right now, I’m sitting here at 10 o’clock at night dreaming of tomorrow’s legendary breakfast and being chewed to bits by mosquitoes, so I’m going to bed. Maybe Santa…er breakfast…will get here faster that way.

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