Hitchhiking In Colombia And Manu Chao

I open my eyes to see palm leaves waving in the wind above me and Fidel. I had met him in Taganga while staying with Eduardo the Professor from Santa Marta. He had been travelling and living on the little earnings that he made selling some of his crafts, which mainly consisted of bracelets and little necklaces. We had set up camp on the beach last night because he had run out of money and had wanted some company. I think today we had planned to leave Palomenu, though things seem to be shifting all the time now. Making plans seems useless as life throws different opportunities in my path which ultimately shape the path I go. Initially we had wanted to go and see Manu Chao in Baranquilla but that had fallen into the water I think, with him having no money and all - the concert might be gratis but staying in B'quilla is still comparatively costly. After having stepped out of the tent onto the sandy beach I feel my belly grumbling and my throat dry, looks like I'll have to head back to the hostel. "Fidel, Fidel - I am going go back to the hostel." I say as I kick him lightly through the wall of the tent. "Por que? (why?)" He says and moves slightly while still cuddling into is big jumper that had served as his blanket for the night. "Yo tengo hambre. (I'm hungry.)" I reply and end up leaving without another word, after seeing him cuddle into his jumper even more.

I buy some oats and milk on the way and after a regenerating meal Simon, who I had met through Diego, a friend of Fidel, walked up to me. "Noah, you have a plan for today?" He says from the makeshift bench built out of concrete blocks and a heavy piece of wood. "No idea, I think maybe Tyrona Park or something like that." I answer back. "Ah ok, well I am going to Baranquilla to see Manu, if you still want to come I am leaving in 20 minutes." He adds and lets his fingers run over the strings of his guitar. "Oh ok, let's do that. I'll just pack my things up quickly." I reply and hurry off to not forget anything in the mess of 20 odd bags that were laying in the storage room. Shortly later we take a bus to Simon's place - beautifully located on a cliff over viewing the stunning sea. We have to wait an hour until we manage to get another bus which brings us to Santa Marta - about halfway from Palomenu to Baranquilla. The sounds of the guitars that Simon and Frederico (another person from the hostel who had joined us) were playing made time go fast and we were done with a lunch in Santa Marta in no time. There we meet another person heading to the concert in B'quilla and together manage to hitch a truck. It had been carrying corn and was now bringing the empty truck back to B'Quilla, the workers that helped unload the corn shared the little bread and water they had with us during little conversations. The sun starts setting as we sit on the hard wooden boards and bump along the picturesque Colombian coastline. Our hair had been visibly formed by the strong winds that never stopped hitting us in the face whenever standing up to catch a glimpse of the beautiful landscapes through the opening of the tarp roof. We get dropped off on some road before B'quilla and I have hardly time to secure my bags to my body when I hear loud shouts coming from the distance. We all look up and see a bus passing, with some people from the hostel waving their hands at us, they slow down the bus and we run towards it to jump in. Loud music and happy faces greets us as we sit down. Everyone here seemed to be smoking their herb, in the bus and on the way to the concert. After getting out of the strong smell of marijuana on the bus I manage to get through the crowds and through security without being checked whatsoever (and I was carrying everything I had with me). I get in and before finding of my friends a man approaches me. "Hello, how are you man?" He says as he walks towards me. "Really really good man, you having a good time?" I reply and look around to see if I can catch a glimpse of anyone I knew. "Yes very good. Anyway - the reason I wanted to talk to you is because I am looking for someone to be part of a TV Show. I am a director of a show called 'greengo' and it is about a young person travelling to different parties and communities of the coast of the Caribbean in Colombia. So you'd have to be outgoing etc." He says and takes out his Iphone to show me some of the videos of their past season. "Aha how long would this be for?" I inquire, quite curious at this point. "3 months, all travelling costs would of course be paid for." He answers - I cannot believe it, this might seriously change my travelling plans for the next few months. "Well just give me your number and I'll give you a call tomorrow. Then we can talk about it a little bit more." He continues and after a quick exchange of details he heads off and I run into some of my friends a few minutes later to enjoy the rest of the show.