Bo a tá mini (Welcome)!

Welcome to the Harambee Crafts blog where we’ll explore the history, culture and trends of the Diaspora! I’m still on cloud 9 from a recent girls trip to Cartagena. It was my first time traveling to South America and beyond the tropical weather, amazing food and music, I was excited to learn about Afro-Colombian culture. 

Did you know Colombia has the fourth largest Black population in the western hemisphere, following Brazil, Haiti and the United States? Cartagena was a major slave port and many slaves escaped and formed “free towns” in the mountains outside the city of Cartagena. San Basilio de Palenque is the first free town and has a thriving community of 3,500 residents. 

 Tour group near "Welcome to Palenque" Billboard

Our guide, Alex Rocha (Experience Real Cartagena), provided an excellent tour of the community. We entered the homes of residents and experienced the rich cultural practices of music, dance, and cuisine. Here are a few of the highlights of our visit.

Drum and Dance School performance 

We joined the performers after a quick drum lesson 

Are you planning to travel to Cartagena? Be sure this tour is on your itinerary. If you’ve traveled to Colombia, share some of your favorite memories!

Photos courtesy of Brittney T.