The land around Tanganga instantly reminded Kathleen and I of Baja, Mexico. Acacia and cacti over rocky dry slopes next to the ocean. We both commented that Tanganga looked and felt like Bahia de Los Angeles on the Sea of Cortez side of the Baja Peninsula. The only difference was Tanganga was tucked into a pocket of foothills that came right down to the water.
By check-out time we packed up and moved to the room we had reserved for the next several nights. We were beginning to get the itch to move on, and thought we might not need several nights’ accommodations. Our new room was Room #1 and was right next to the hostel’s courtyard and reception. Kathleen and I were suspicious of this location.As we headed out for a mid-afternoon walk, we met up with a couple from New Zealand. Karen and Craig were on holiday for the next 5 or 6 months and had just come down from Panama by hitching a ride on a sailboat. They were in Tanganga to recertify their diving certificates. Both were information technology professionals currently living in London. Craig lost his job, Karen needed a break from hers, so they decided to chuck the working world and go on holiday for a while. One of those 5 to 6 month ‘whiles’.
Over the years Kathleen and I have bumped into a lot of people who are on this quite-my-job-went-on-holiday. Probably 90% of them are from elsewhere other than the U.S. A rare find is someone from the U.S. that just quits their job and goes on extended vacation. Kathleen and I were often puzzled with how people from other countries could accomplish extended vacations until we came upon a hypothesis that could lead to a logical answer. Socialized medicine. A commonality found in these people was their being unconcerned about amassing a retirement war-chest of savings that would be mostly eaten up by healthcare costs in their latter years. Put another way, they were simply unconcerned about finding work after their extended holiday because, to them, working was just to pay for the immediate expenses. House payments, car ownership, rent, groceries, going to a pub, or a short trip for some skiing, diving, or bird watching. That’s why they work. Their sunset years were of no worry. Kathleen and I were perplexed by this until we began to ask about retirement and the ever-pending costs associated with becoming older and subsequently requiring some hospital care. Still, no worries. Moreover, having some form of health insurance meant you got to see a doctor sooner. Not just to gain access to a hospital. Makes you wanna say, hummmm?
We lunched with Karen and Craig at a sandwich shop down the street from Casa Felipe’s. Being guys, Craig and I had bar-b-qued beef sandwiches slathered in bar-b-que sauce. Being health conscious, Karen and Kathleen had vegetarian or nearly vegetarian sandwiches. We parted ways after enjoying great company. They to a dive shop, Kathleen and I to a trail that lead along the coast among the wilds. 
The trail wandered over to another cove just north of Tanganga. Here was where the sunbathing and swimmin’ in the ocean groupies were found in great abundance. Kathleen and I would have spent time here snorkeling the waters. In fact, we saw a number of people doing just that. Groups and individuals, legs chugging along, face-down exploring the world beneath the sea.
We continued along the coves and bluffs until the sun set low on the horizon before turning back. When we walked along sunbather beach, a guy began saying “hey bird people’’. We turned to see Trip sitting in a beach chair. We had met Trip-from-Seattle back at Colombian Highlands Hostel, Villa de Leyva, Colombia. We chatted for a bit and began walking back to Tanganga. As we walked, the three of us concluded that we should visit Parque National Tayrona tomorrow. Trip wanted to visit the park, and Kathleen and I were happy he did because he had a mastery of the Spanish language. That settled, we parted ways in Tanganga to rise early and head to the park the next day.
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