Domicilios
Octavia, te buscan!
That is something I used to hear a lot at my house in Los Almendros because I lived all the way up on the third floor, because doorbells are not a thing (so people just call out to you when they arrive to your house because your front door is usually open), and because I took full advantage the huge domicilio (delivery) culture in Cartagena.
What do I mean by this? I mean that you can have almost anything delivered to your house in Cartagena, and that's exactly what I did! Lunch? Yes. Comida rápida? Yes. Medicine from the drugstore? Yes. Clothes? Yes. Knee brace? Yes. Ice cream? Yes. Fresh fruits, vegetables, and raw fish? Duh! The list truly just goes on and on and on. Like I mentioned in my Trenzitas blog post, most of the businesses in Cartagena have a WhatsApp where you can message them directly, view their catalog or ask for photos and costs of their products, and additionally have whatever you buy delivered to your house. In fact, there are a handful of businesses like boutiques and restaurants that only offer their products via delivery. This is made possible by the countless motos in Cartagena.
Aside from many working as mototaxis, several moto drivers work for businesses to make quick, efficient, and affordable deliveries. This is another really excellent function of motos, as sometimes it is more affordble to have something delivered rather than paying for trasportation to and from a store AND paying for the product. Like I’ve mentioned before, I was a big fan of the motos and how they increased the accessibility and connectivity of the city.
In the moments like when I injured my knee and couldn’t walk for a little bit, when I was sick and needed medicine, when I was pressed for time and needed something to eat quickly, and in the times when I was just plain old lazy, these deliveries made my life so much easier. It's a little dangerous how easily you can buy things and have them delivered to your house, especially with apps like Nequi, which is kind of like the Venmo or PayPal of Colombia that you can use to make personal payments and payments to businesses, and you barely have to lift a finger in the process.
I would often order almuerzo corriente from restaurante La Roca after moving to Los Almendros and finding that changes in my schedule at the university, the route I would need to take, and the heat often prevented or discouraged me from walking there like I used to when I lived in El Campestre. From the first day I inquired about whether they do domicilios or not, this restaurant sent me their menu every single day on WhatsApp (another thing that's quite common). It was so convenient and quite affordable to get deliveries from them, so they got a ton of orders out of me! To this day I still receive the daily menu from La Roca and a few restaurants.
Rappi, is an app specifically for ordering deliveries and you can get food, groceries, and medication delivered this way. The special thing about Rappi is that it almost exclusively has moto drivers who do the deliveries, making them quicker and more affordable that those done by car (like with the app Didi). I never really ordered a ton of deliveries in the past before living in Colombia, but during my time in Cartagena it was a part of life that felt like a real luxury, and that I enjoyed it to the fullest!
