Se vende
It's been an absolute joy to stay in the Getsemani district of Cartagena.
Cobbled streets, brightly painted houses, music pouring out from bars into the street and beautiful graffiti art on almost every wall, this barrio has it all.
It's still mostly residential, but there are a number of hostels and AirBnb's dotted around (we're staying in the latter and our place is lovely).
So why all the 'se vende' (for sale) signs around the place? Why do people want to leave?
Well, the short answer is, they don't.
In the early noughties, or even just 10 years ago, no tourist would be advised to visit Getsemani because it was beset by the problems of poor neighbourhoods all over Colombia - crime, drugs and violence.
But as Colombia moved towards peace, so the people of Getsemani started to rebuild their neighbourhood.
It's mostly the black community who live here, as Getsemani was one of the places Africans established as their own after the abolition of slavery, and houses have been handed down through generations.
The community did an amazing job, they worked together to make their neighbourhood not only safe, but visually stunning.
And so visitors started to trickle in, slowly at first, but now the streets are throbbing day and night with people eager to spend time in this incredible place.
But Getsemani is becoming a victim of the community's success. The Mayor is under pressure from big business interests to move the locals out so they can move in.
As most people in the neighbourhood own their home, the city authorities are putting up taxes to try to force people to move, hence the 'se vende' signs.
During a graffiti art tour, I asked our guide, Jesus, if the people of Getsemani minded all the tourists. He told me no, that they took pride in their district, that they make it beautiful so people will come, but that they want to stay in their homes.
The resistance is happening, the people are organised and they are fighting back and much of the street art in the neighbourhood documents this new struggle.
Personally, I think the city authorities are being incredibly shortsighted. Getsemani is its people, not its aesthetic. Force them out and you'll hollow out the soul from the neighbourhood.
As a tourist, I have to consider my own place in this. We booked an AirBnb in Getsemani based on its location, how much we liked the look of the apartment and not much else.
I'm thankful that we're renting from a local family and not an outsider, but this was luck, not judgement. Not to mention that maybe people are being forced to rent out their spare rooms so they can to afford to stay in their home.
Gentrification is not a new story and it's not limited to Colombia, but I hope the people of Getsemani win their battle and get the ending their years of resilience and hardwork deserve.
Cartagena was built once on the back of stolen black labour, it shouldn't be allowed to happen again.
