Providencia

Having parted ways with the girls, our next destination was the Colombian Caribbean island of Providencia (for my birthday, or so I thought...).  Providencia is actually closer to Nicaragua than it is to Colombia and in order to get there, we had to return to Cartagena and get a flight which first stopped in Bogota and then the more touristy island of San Andres before finally arriving in Providencia on board a sixteen seater propeller plane. It was a bit of a trek but was certainly worth it.

The airport in Providencia was certainly the smallest we've ever been in, so we quickly made our way through and jumped in a taxi to our hotel. As we drove along the coast, the driver said to us 'welcome to paradise', it may sound a tad cheesy but it certainly was. We were mesmerised by the colour of the water and the beauty of the island until we started hearing crunching under the tyres. It turned out that we had arrived during the crab migration season, in which large black crabs migrate from the sea to the mountains to lay their eggs. There were so many of them crossing the road, that despite our cab driver's best efforts, some didn't quite make it.

Our hotel was in a spectacular location - right on the water's edge, we had sea views from our room and a hammock on our balcony. Before even unpacking and settling in, we couldn't resist taking a quick dip in the amazingly clear sea to cool off from the 30 degree heat.

We decided to embrace the local mentality and had a very lazy first day - a long lie in, some sunbathing and the occasional swim - before treating ourselves to a bottle of wine whilst watching possibly the most spectacular sunset we have seen. We then went for a leisurely dinner at a local restaurant before returning to the waterfront to listen to the crabs scuttling about and for some more wine. Taken rather by surprise (pleasantly!), the wine was accompanied by a proposal to which I said 'absolutely yes!'.

[NB: The proposal was originally intended to have occurred during sunset but a couple and their children inconveniently decided to loiter close by for the entire duration of the sunset.]

We spent the next few days smiling like crazy people and feeling like we were on cloud nine. Having spent the better part of a week's budget ringing friends and family to share our good news, we spent most of the rest of our time on Providencia snorkeling, swimming and motorbiking around the island. A special mention must also go to a fantastic evening celebrating our engagement at Roland's Roots Bar - a gem of a bar located on a secluded beach to the south of the island with bonfires for light and old boats for tables and chairs. On arrival, we were met by Roland himself and presented with two coconuts filled with the most delicious but incredibly potent cocktail. A brilliant night topped off by a ride home from a local man and his wife in a golf cart.

We will have to head back to Providencia some time in the future too!