Venice Sway La

My new year's resolution: to actually keep up with this blog on a weekly basis. That's one of like five, but it's a pretty important one so if there are any of you dedicated readers that actually still check this page, you won't be disappointed!

A couple of months ago I was blessed with the opportunity to venture around Venezuela with a dear housemate of mine, Krysta. We decided to 'wing' our trip, which meant that although we had a couple of destinations in mind, we made no hostel reservations and more or less played things by ear as we explored this lush caribean-bordered country. Our approach had its ups and downs; as nice as the flexibility was, we spent lots of time sleeping in the airport and sweating half of our body weight stranded at the beach. Here are a handful of observations from Venezuela, as well some priceless snapshots that show the landscape much better than I can explain in words:

Monies: The official exchange rate from Bolivars to USD is 2 to 1, however the black market rate is 5 to 1, clearly a much better deal. This process is not at all sketchy like we originally thought, you simply go into any local store and ask if they can exchange dollars for you. We learned that the reason the black market exists is because Venezuelans are only allowed to legally obtain $2,000 USD per year and since many travel to the states or send their kids there for school, US currency is in high demand. Every once in awhile Chavez floods the market with dollars to lower their value, but lucky for us the rate was still pretty high during our visit!

Transport: Overnight semi-cama buses were really easy to come by and very affordable as well (about $16 for a 14 hour bus). However, if you ever take one be sure to bring your snowsuit because these buses literally are kept at about 40 degrees Fahrenheit. We huddled for warmth on the first bus, but learned our lesson for the second and splurged on some wool souvenir blankets. Many bus drivers (specifically those en route to and from the beaches) are also inclined to turn their vehicles into night clubs. They're most likely distracting themselves from the pinpoint curves and jagged cliffs around every corner of the 2 hour drive. (see video below)

Other points of information:

• The official time of Venezuela is exactly 35 minutes ahead of eastern standard.. en serio!
  
• There is a Simon Bolivar plaza in pretty much every Venezuelan town
• Venezuelan pizza > (much, much, much) Ecuadorian pizza
• Aji flavored ice cream is in fact just as hot as aji itself
• Krysta and I played phase 10 a total of 8 times, only 2 of which I won
  

Playa Grande: turquoise water, towering peaks, and a whole lotta thongs

After only being able to stand the 90 degree heat, power outages, and intense humidity for less than 24 hours, we decided to venture off to Merida, the 'adventure capital' of the country. We spent of our time in Merida walking around the city, paroozing the markets, hiking through the historical town of jaji, paragliding, canyoning, and resting in our hostel's rooftop hammocks...

The 4-story local market; no your eyes don't deceive you, that is a giant bag of chocolate chips!

Looking like an amphibian in my parapente gear


Me and my guide (who was so professional he answered 2 phone calls during our flight) soaring into the canyon


Beautifully secluded jaji


Merida's Heladeria Coromoto, the Guinness recorder holder for the most ice cream flavors (900), including oh-so-appetizing cold duck, whisky, and tuna, among others. cheers!

We spent our last day of vacation canyoning, by far the coolest thing I have ever done in my life. Krysta, myself and two girls who teach English in Maracaibo, spent 6 hours hiking through the cloud forest, walking in and along the river, sliding down rapids, and rappelling/rock climbing down waterfalls. It was terrifying at times, I swallowed a ton of water almost lost a shoe, and came out with a dozen bruises in strange places, but it was totally worth it.

Me and krysta with our game faces on!

All of us in front of the waterfall called 'the washing machine.' gee, i wonder why?

Even though you can't see my face, i swear this is me!

And to prove that we actually did this/to give you a legitimate idea of what rappelling down a waterfall is like, check out this video!

I hope this detailed account of my South American thanksgiving quenches your thirst for now.. stay tuned for pictures from Miss Amy McGovern's visit from December!

Happy New Year,
Jackie