Cartagena Reports

[Diggler08]

Hi!

I´m going to CTG in oct and im wounder if any one has been there in october? How´s the chica sceen then? Is there a low season with chics? Is there any super hot chics there or what? Like pornstar style? I been in a club in chile that had like mtv hot chics. And the wheater is it a rainy in Oct?

THX

[Nyc Expat]

I met her on the street my first day in CTG.

The camera loves her. My photos were posted approx. 5-6 years ago.

Yeah, is she still working?

[Black Page]

Dear fellow mongers.

Does anybody have recent news of Alejandra, the girl depicted in these photos?
http://www.InternationalSexGuide.nl/forum/showthread.php?p=760467
http://www.InternationalSexGuide.nl/forum/showthread.php?p=760465

Time ago, I asked already to the Forum if anybody knew her
http://www.InternationalSexGuide.nl/forum/showthread.php?p=785426

I met her again the last time I went to CTG (last Sept), but we only had a lunch together :) I met her the first time when she was just 18 and new to the scene, now she is a bit too much pro for my taste. :p

I will be back to CTG in a few months again. I wonder if she is still making money this easy way, or she finally left the scene. She is one of the most stunning girls I have ever saw, by the way.

[Aba Corrado]

Does anyone have any info regarding owning a boat, say a 30 foot power boat, in Cartagena. Specifically anchoring at one of the marinas, and boat security, as well as costs and other downsides.

Thanks fellas, stay classy ISG.

[Fla Fun]

I will call 611 and talk with AT&T and see what my options are, I might just end up getting a prepaid phone if that will be easiest.

I would recommend just buying a cheap used cell phone, they sell them all over in the centro. Buy a SIM card and buy some prepaid minutes. The prepaid cards call be purchased for 10k (about $5 or 20k about $10). The SIM card was a few dollars and the was about 40k (about $20) for the phone Nokia.It's a great way to keep in touch with friends.

If you have an unlocked cell phone (either freq. GSM 850, 2 carriers or GSM 1900 1 carrier) Just take out your SIM card and leave it at home and buy a new SIM card there and prepaid minutes.

[Common Sense]

Hey Fellas,

I'm planning a trip to Colombia and can't decided on Medellin or Cartagena. It will all boil down to which area provides the most opportunities for eco-tourism in and around the city, such as hiking, rafting, and zip-lines. The tour books provide scant info on this subject.

Can any of you guys provide any detailed info on this?

Thanks

[Hioctane]

Try to spend a few hours in front an ATM overseas, look what foreign people does and compile a statistics. (Assuming you will be not arrested because of "suspicious behaviour")

You'll find that most foreigners use the VISA/MC credit card to withdraw (cash advance).

I have possible explanations for that:

1) most people believes that the debit card cannot work abroad;
2) most people did not understand the difference;
3) many debit cards are not enabled to work abroad.
I believe all the above may apply, depending on the case.

I tell you more. Me too, for years, I had to bring cash or using the credit card at ATMs, because my standard card, issued by my bank, was a "double function". That is, you have one single card and, when you put in the the reader, you select debit/credit.

That was presented as the most convenient thing by my bank employee. I naively agreed with him. The problem was that that double-function card, abroad, works only as CREDIT :mad: and this was presented as "normal" by my bank employee.

This is obviously not "normal" but very convenient for the bank.
When I realized the issue, I returned the card and I asked TWO separate cards: a credit VISA card and a Maestro debit card.

However, the Maestro debit card works everywhere in the world (or at least where MC is accepted), other debit cards do not.

All my debit cards have a Visa/Mastercard logo. That just means that it's accepted anywhere they accept Visa/MC. All the cards look the same except you see "debit" on it. Maybe you think they are using credit when they are really using debit. Yes. You should strictly get a debit to avoid all confusion. The extra charge for cash advance by credit is never worth it. Look for alternatives and save some money for the chicas!

[Oh Ya Papi]

Started an everbank check acct. W atm card. No fee international, 1% fee from visa and the local bank fee.

About.com has an article rating this as great for travelers as they tested them from europe. No min. Bal either.

Let me know if you guys have a everbank!

GL

That is true. But your best option is ALWAYS debit cards. It's crazy to do a cash advance from a credit card at home. Why would you want to do it overseas?

For debit cards:

If you are in the States, Paypal charges 1% + $1 per transaction. I recently found out that Capital One charges 0% + $1. 50 per transaction. If anyone has any experience with Capital One, please let me know. I am going to try using them on my next trip.

[O Velho]

I opened two Capone savings accounts over the internet obtaining two debit cards. I travelled to Medellin and was able to withdraw 700, 000 COP a day from each account, but only at a Citibank ATM machine. Bancolombia refused my debit card. Citibank charged me nothing and Capone charged me nothing. The exchange rate I got was good. Capone will allow you to open as many accounts as you want.

[Black Page]

That is true. But your best option is ALWAYS debit cards. It's crazy to do a cash advance from a credit card at home. Why would you want to do it overseas?

Try to spend a few hours in front an ATM overseas, look what foreign people does and compile a statistics. (Assuming you will be not arrested because of "suspicious behaviour")
You'll find that most foreigners use the VISA/MC credit card to withdraw (cash advance).

I have possible explanations for that:
1) most people believes that the debit card cannot work abroad;
2) most people did not understand the difference;
3) many debit cards are not enabled to work abroad.
I believe all the above may apply, depending on the case.

I tell you more. Me too, for years, I had to bring cash or using the credit card at ATMs, because my standard card, issued by my bank, was a "double function". That is, you have one single card and, when you put in the the reader, you select debit/credit.

That was presented as the most convenient thing by my bank employee. I naively agreed with him. The problem was that that double-function card, abroad, works only as CREDIT :mad: and this was presented as "normal" by my bank employee.

This is obviously not "normal" but very convenient for the bank.
When I realized the issue, I returned the card and I asked TWO separate cards: a credit VISA card and a Maestro debit card.

However, the Maestro debit card works everywhere in the world (or at least where MC is accepted), other debit cards do not.

[Hioctane]

Dear all,

I read several comments like this and I want to add my piece of information about using ATMs in Colombia and in other places of the world. I think this will be useful to many.

As I also duly reported in my reports on ISG, I've experience of using my MAESTRO card (just in the last 2 years) in Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, El Salvador, Panama, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Ghana and Uganda, not to mention USA and Europe. Sorry for listing, but it is just to make my claims below more trustworthy.

Don't USE CREDIT CARDS IN ATMs (if you can)

That is true. But your best option is ALWAYS debit cards. It's crazy to do a cash advance from a credit card at home. Why would you want to do it overseas?

For debit cards:

If you are in the States, Paypal charges 1% + $1 per transaction. I recently found out that Capital One charges 0% + $1. 50 per transaction. If anyone has any experience with Capital One, please let me know. I am going to try using them on my next trip.

[Black Page]

J

Yes, you will want to use the ATM's. The vig charged by the money change houses on exchanging dollars will be steeper than what your bank charges you for a foreign transaction on your ATM card. Some bank ATM machines in Colombia do add a surcharge of 2 to 5 mil pesos. For example, the Servibanco machine in La Perla Casino now charges a transaction fee (started charging sometime last Summer/Fall). I know that the Santander Banco machines don't charge, so I mostly use them now, but it's not the one in La Perla Casino and sometimes you just go ahead and incur the transaction charge out of convenience/necessity.
(...)
Your own home bank will probably charge you the highest transaction fee, depending upon what bank you use in the States. For example, my main bank charges a 3% foreign transaction fee on all ATM withdraws and for transactions at restuarants, etc. Because I travel to Colombia frequently, I opened up accounts at a different bank online that charges 1% (I did have accounts with a bank that had a 0% fee, but alas they were closed down by the FDIC).

Dear all,

I read several comments like this and I want to add my piece of information about using ATMs in Colombia and in other places of the world. I think this will be useful to many.
As I also duly reported in my reports on ISG, I've experience of using my MAESTRO card (just in the last 2 years) in Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, El Salvador, Panama, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Ghana and Uganda, not to mention USA and Europe. Sorry for listing, but it is just to make my claims below more trustworthy.

DONT USE CREDIT CARDS IN ATMs (if you can)

1) If you use the *credit* function of your credit card (e. G., VISA, MASTERCARD circuits), you will be charged:
- about +1% above the international exchange rate (the one you read on Yahoo Finance, so to speak)
- +4% as credit fee from your bank/VISA/MC

2) I know an US guy who also withdraws money from ATMs using his *revolving* credit card. This is crazy, because he also pays the high fee (10%? 15%?) for paying his debt later.

ASK YOUR BANK TO ISSUE YOU A MAESTRO CARD INSTEAD

1) WHAT is it?

Maestro is the debit card of Mastercard. If you have the Maestro logo on the card, you can take money from ATMs wherever in the world, at the OFFICIAL exchange rate (plus maybe 0. 5%), paying 2-3$ fee, from your bank account without the need of loading the card before.
By far, the most convenient and cheap way to get cash and to change currency abroad in any place. Forget Exchange Offices and hidden envelopes with 2000$ cash brought from home.
By the way, this is is not a debit card you have to load in advance. With this, you take money straight from your bank account.

2) WHERE to use it?

You can use it in ALL ATMs exhibiting the Maestro logo, that is all those exhibiting the MasterCard logo. This means almost all ATMs in all those countries above. I had some problems only in Bangladesh (only maybe 25% of ATMs in Dhaka) and Ghana (only 2-3 ATMs in Accra centrally located).
If you are in a place which is really off-track, use the "MasterCard Global ATM Locator"
http://www.Mastercard.com/us/persona...ons/index.html

3) What are its FEES?

Maybe +0. 5% or less than +1% above the international exchange rate (the one you read on Yahoo Finance, so to speak) plus FIXED fee from your bank (2euro for my bank). No other hidden fees.

4) I know what someone is wondering now. Yes, I checked my bank statement. I did not find any hidden fee for all my MAESTRO ATM withdrawals in Colombia or other places. Only the fees I listed above.

Enjoy

(It seems that Jackson, upon posting my message, edited it to remove all uppercases and add many line breaks here and there. Since I used upper cases and line breaks purposely, to make headings more visible and improve readability, I edited my message to restore everything like it was. Please Jackson...)

[John York]

This is a post from May 2008 at www.Twoplustwo.com posting here for any guys looking to understand the poker options, I'll check this out while I am in town.

So I'm in Cartagena Colombia for the weekend on a business trip (no it has nothing to do with any import/export!). The only game I can find is at the "Casino La Perla".

A couple of differences$:

1. There is no dealer button. Instead there are big and small blind buttons. The first player to act on every street is the first player after the big blind (UTG). So essentially the big blind is the button.

2. I think the rake is terrible it's 3% of every pot. No time charges. This really sucks as I've already seen a couple of times where two players split the pot and the house takes 3%.

3. After the final action, all remaining cards are dealt out so everyone can see what they would have had.

4. There is a dealer and a shuffler. The dealer hands the deck to the shuffler who shuffles that deck so it's ready for the next hand.

5. The dealers are pretty horrible handling the cards. Almost every mucked hand is picked up to pass back to the shuffler who is on the dealers right flashing the cards to the 8 and 9 seats. This is one of the reasons I'm taking a break I want to come back and get in one of those seats.

6. There are no breaks allowed. If you are not there when it is your blind the dealer takes the blind from your stack and the deals you a hand, also to any other players not sitting. When it's your turn to act, dealer mucks your hand.

7. There is a pretty hefty jackpot. 300k (US) for a royal, 18k for any 4 of a kind, 30k for 4 aces, and 80kish for a straight flush. (is that big for 10-20?)

The game goes from 9pm to 6am. There is only one table. It's 10-20 no limit (or close enough with the exchange rates) with a 500 buy in.

There are 7 players, and generally 4 or 5 limp into every pot. A preflop raise of more than 50 or so generally folds all the way around or maybe gets one caller.

[Vitrea]

Thanks guys,

I was more concerned with getting a chicas phone number and being able to send and receive calls to her. I will call 611 and talk with AT&T and see what my options are, I might just end up getting a prepaid phone if that will be easiest.

John York and Manizales,

Unlike the other apps, i phone's Line 2 app (new) allows you to receive calls using wi-fi. I have not used Google voice but sounds like you need to be by a computer /wi-fi for that also. Line 2 uses the contact list from your address book and if you put the phone on "airplane mode" you don't have to worry about AT&T.

[Tank Not Mt]

We will be there from Wednesday for a few days with a group of friends. If you can message me; I will give you my local number. Happy to meet with you and share some of my experiences there.

Hi Tank,

I paid for a membership here. I'll PM you as soon as my membership is active and it allows for PM's. When are you going to be out there? I'll be meeting up with a buddy on Thursday and we're staying in El Laguito.

Cheers,

John