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Posted: May 4, 2010
Categories: Colombian Culture, Photo & Video Gallery, Traveling To Colombia / Tourism

Photo gallery: Tierrabomba a fishing community off the coast of Cartagena

Photos and Article By Manuel Rueda, Editorial Director

Tierrabomba is just a 10 minute boat ride from Cartagena´s wealthy Bocagrande district.  It is an arid island inhabited by Afro-Colombian fishermen who have lived there for hundreds of years and make a living from diving into the sea to collect lobsters, oysters and other species.

There is no running water in the island´s main village and its streets are unpaved, so most tourist operators will try to take you to isolated beaches on the island with restaurants that cater to tourists.

But visiting the island´s main village is an interesting experience that gives you a chance to see how fishing communities live throughout most of Colombia.

You can walk down the village’s picturesque streets, visit the local school, play some dominoes with the locals and listen to the beat of champeta music blasting out from the occasional store.

There is no restaurant at the Tierrabomba village, but you can arrange for a local woman to cook you some fresh lobster or fish, for somewhere between 10,000 and 30,000 pesos. Be sure to negotiate prices though, as the locals there will initially try to charge you exhorbitant amounts.

Locals take regular boats to and from Tierrabomba from a beach located next to the Cartagena Hilton, but this service is only available early in the morning.  You can also rent a private boat that will take you there and bring you back for about 20,000 pesos per person.