Todd Cutick
2 Reviews
Malka ran a fabulous Peasch program!
Every year for the previous three years, our family has gone away for Pesach, first to Costa Rica, then To Panama, and last year, to the Afikomen program in Puerto Vallarta. We enjoyed all of them tremendously, and each one brought an entirely new experience for the week of Pesach. This year, my family and I spent this Pesach (2025) in Malka’s outstanding Pesach program in Santa Marta Columbia. It was an awesome experience for all of us…we had a wonderful time. The food was amazing and a bottomless pit of choices, from salads, meats, sides, sushi, and desserts. As a foodie myself, I can tell you the recipes and preparation were excellent, and, after a few bumps for the first seder, the service was top notch. (Malka’s first caterer canceled seven days before Pesach, and she scrambled to find a Venezuelan caterer with just days to go to get everything together, and they did an amazing job!). Not only was Malka able to pull it all together after a near catastrophe, the new caterer clearly moved mountains to prepare an entire eight days of Pesach meals in less than a week! This is not only a huge credit to Malka’s leadership, but her ability to find the right people to get the job done. Her leadership was also on display with her content and highly visible presence during the entire program, always on top of everything, speaking to everyone, and handling and resolving issues as they cropped up with aplomb. The hotel she picked was very good…just the right amount of space for the program, without feeling crowded, yet intimate enough for people to interact easily and make new friends. The hotel staff did great work, from taking care of rooms, keeping the hotel in excellent shape, even with what seemed like a gazillion kids running around, and waiting tables during our meals. Services were well done and efficient…not too fast and not too slow and very well done. Both Asheknazi and Sephardi minyanim were available. There were two Ashkenazi minyanim at 0700/0730 and 0900/0930, depending on the day and people’s schedules. Because we were so close to the equator, the days and nights are evenly split, and everything starts early…krias shema was, I believe, before 0830 everyday, and ma’ariv around 1810 in the evening. It’s an adjustment for all us coming from the US. One benefit to this is the sederim start relatively early, so you’re benching at a faily reasonable hour, not around midnight like we do in the states. Every night during chol ha’moed was an outdoor theme night, with a ton of delicious grilled meats and fish, along with entertainment, attentive wait staff, and music. During the day, there were various options for outdoes activities, including a tour of Santa Marta along with a detailed history of the region and Simon Bolivar, an introduction to one of the indigenous tribes in the region, a coffee plantation tour, zip lining, and the city aquarium.. We also had our own time to explore, and with twin 13-1/2 year old twin girls, it was absolutely necessary we explore the local mall and shopping! 😉 Ubers are readily available and very inexpensive compared to the US. Unlike what we read about in the press, the city is safe, clean and well kept…it clearly is a tourist destination as it’s right on the Carribean. There are numerous hotels, and a lot of development for residential properties (I checked out what’s available, and it’s more expensive that you would expect for a beachside condo). The areas between cities are, unfortunately, desperately poor, but I’ve seen similar in parts of the Deep South in the US. Driving takes a lot of courage….between the huge number of scooters and motorcycles weaving in and out of the traffic patterns, the trucks, and generally aggressive driving, renting a car is not for the weak! ;-). Fortunately, that was something we didn’t have to worry about, but even as a passenger, you have to steel yourself for the organized chaos on the roads. We informed Malka we want to attend her program next year in Cartagena, about 145 miles southwest of Santa Marta, also on the Carribean coast. I HIGHLY recommend looking into Malka’s outstanding program for Pesach 2026…you won’t regret it!
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