July 28, 2008

Venezuela

We´ve finally got a day with nowhere to go and nothing to do exceptlie in the unbearable heat on the beach at Puerto Colombia, nearCaracas. Have done a lot since we arrived in Venezuela on Tuesday.Decided not to stay at the expensive hotel we´d booked for our firstnight in Caracas and instead got a nightbus over to Ciudad Bolivarwhich is really a stepping stone for tourists going to the Guayanajungle. Nightbus arrived early Wednesday. Got a tiny local bus tothe square and found a posada (hostel) and would be sleeping inhammocks that night. Dumped our stuff and got to know the city, andJamie and Nick spent the day trying to get cash (Nationwide not asgood as they make out for travellers, NatWest easy). Also found andbartered for a trip to Angel Falls which ended up costing 220 GBP,cheaper than most but not at all cheap. Arrived to leave for Canaimaon Thursday morning but we turned out to be half an hour early. Wefound out later that Hugo Chavez changed the time zone of the countrya while ago (much like BST) so that kids performed better in school.The trouble is that some people go by the new time and some by theold! Chavez has also confused us by lowering the value of thecurrency by a factor of a thousand in January to make the economy seemstronger than it actually is. I quite like the story about himoffering cheap oil for heating to poor New Yorkers a few years ago,mainly I imagine to stick two fingers up to the US. Anyway, left forCanaima (a long drive and short flight over the jungle in a Cessna),the main camp for people going to the falls. It´s pretty lush, moreso than you´d hope with its souvenir shops but it´s also a long wayfrom the falls themselves. Met a couple of English girls there.Walked behind a waterfall which is pretty awesome. Friday was the dayof Angel Falls itself. A four hour boat trip took us to the falls´base camp. This was more basic. I´m glad Angel Falls is so isolatedand hard to get to as otherwise I´m sure its base camp would be likeCanaima. Falls were pretty awesome. Attached a photo, not the bestbut not gonna look through them all now. Saturday we left Canaima(again drive, Cessna) for Ciudad Bolivar. Got a taxi to the busstation. I think I broke the guy´s boot so we had to drive with itopen. Also smashed a bulb in the boot when I slammed it down when wegot to the bus station. He didn´t notice. Bus station was stressful. Michel Thomas has done wonders for my spanish but nowhere near enoughfor that situation. Is coming along nicely though. Used the futuretense for the first time yesterday when I told the woman here we´d becoming back tomorrow. Got to Marakai (just west of Caracas) onanother nightbus. Then yesterday morning got a very cool bus here tothe beach town of Puerto Colombia. Bus was awesome. It was just abit bigger than a minibus, colourfully painted and with better musicfor a party than Manchester´s Sankey´s disco bus. The drive was upand down the mountainous road through a national park so the view waspretty decent too. Was nice yesterday and today to finally chill outand have a bed that wasn´t a bus seat or a hammock and a floor that wecould empty our rucksacks onto. Spent last night looking at (a lotof) stars on the beach. Today on the beach again. Is way too hot andthe sea´s too salty. But I shouldn´t complain! Tomorrow we find ourway back to Caracas and fly to Quito, the capital of Ecuador.

Apologies for the lack of decent writing or paragraphing but I can´treally be bothered. Sorry. Hope it´s an OK read. Will be in touchagain soon.

Hope everyone´s well.

Girish