My wife Adri and I just got back from a week in Cartagena* on Colombia's Caribbean coast where we celebrated our sixth wedding anniversary. We got married at the Iglesia de San Pedro Claver in the old Spanish colonial walled city six years ago. Sounds romantic to come back to our wedding site for our anniversary, right? But truth be told, I was there for another reason: the food. In particular, the seafood.uh," and it's also a good distance away from the nearest jungle.
In Cartagena, ceviche is all over the place. You'll find shops that specialize in it in the old colonial city. You'll find them in the new downtown. You'll find it on the roof of fancy hotels. You'll find it in beachside shacks. Heck, you'll even find it directly on the water. Jump on one of the charter boats that shuttles you out to thefor a day on the beach or snorkeling and odds are that you'll make a brief pit stop next to a two-man canoe selling lobster ceviche.
It's sort of like a walking shrimp cocktail. It's the kind of dish that you could initially scoff at as being cheap or non-classy , but it's genuinely delectable. There's something about the way lime juice brightens up store-bought condiments into something completely different.
My first time in Cartagena we had foolishly forgotten to take out cash before boarding the boat in the morning, which meant that we had to scrounge for change in order to come up with about half of what the man was asking. After some finagling and begging he agree to sell us a half portion for half price. We've never made that mistake since. Picking at that lobster with my fingers coated in salty seawater is one of my fondest food memories.
But there's nothing stopping me from making amazing Colombian-style ceviche at home with whatever fresh seafood is available to me. Come to think of it, there's nothing stopping you either!