Countries Visited

Svalbard Spain United States of America Antarctica South Georgia Falkland Islands Bolivia Peru Ecuador Colombia Venezuela Guyana Suriname French Guiana Brazil Paraguay Uruguay Argentina Chile Greenland Canada United States of America United States of America Israel Jordan Cyprus Qatar United Arab Emirates Oman Yemen Saudia Arabia Iraq Afghanistan Turkmenistan Iran Syria Singapore China Mongolia Papua New Guinea Brunei Indonesia Malaysia Malaysia Tiawan Philippines Vietnam Cambodia Laos Thailand Myanmar Bangladesh Sri Lanka India Bhutan Nepal Pakistan Afghanistan Turkmenistan Tajikistan Kyrgyzstan Uzbekistan Japan North Korea South Korea Russia Kazakhstan Russia Montenegro Portugal Azerbaijan Armenia Georgia Ukraine Moldova Belarus Romania Bulgaria Macedonia Serbia Bosonia & Herzegovina Turkey Greece Albania Croatia Hungary Slovakia Slovenia Malta Spain Portugal Spain France Italy Italy Austria Switzerland Belgium France Ireland United Kingdom Norway Sweden Finland Estonia Latvia Lithuania Russia Poland Czech Republic Germany Denmark The Netherlands Iceland El Salvador Guatemala Panama Costa Rica Nicaragua Honduras Belize Mexico Trinidad & Tobago Puerto Rico Dominican Republic Haiti Jamaica The Bahamas Cuba Vanuatu Australia Solomon Islands Fiji New Caledonia New Zealand Eritrea Ethiopia Djibouti Somalia Kenya Uganda Tanzania Rwanda Burundi Madagascar Namibia Botswana South Africa Lesotho Swaziland Zimbabwe Mozambique Malawi Zambia Angola Democratic Repbulic of Congo Republic of Congo Gabon Equatorial Guinea Central African Republic Cameroon Nigeria Togo Ghana Burkina Fasso Cote d'Ivoire Liberia Sierra Leone Guinea Guinea Bissau The Gambia Senegal Mali Mauritania Niger Western Sahara Sudan Chad Egypt Libya Tunisia Morocco Algeria
Map Legend: 28%, 75 of 263 Territories

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Thoughts on Venezuela

Venezuela started out a bit rough, with it taking hours to clear customs and then being stopped at multiple police checkpoints. Everyone was always very nice about it, but it was draining. It has improved dramatically since. It is cheap (we are probably averaging $60 per day not counting the Angel Falls trip, which cost $250 per person), it is beautiful, and the people are super nice (even though we often have no idea what they are saying). The food is mediocre, though they have a lot of fried foods of which I am a fan. I just have to be careful to avoid the cheese.

We have met a few other Americans, but only at Angel Falls. Venezuela seems to attract more Europeans, who don't read bad things about Venezuela all the time. Chavez is everywhere, but there is a large percent of the population that is vocally opposed to him and does not seem to be suppressed too much. Gas here costs about 40 cents a gallon, which makes transport cheap, but we've seen long lines at gas stations in rural areas.

We are thinking about coming back into the Western part of Venezuela later in our trip if we have time. A lot of people say that part of the country is really terrific. We'll see. My internet time is almost up, but Tara is about to post some pictures in a separate post.

1 comment:

  1. Hey Andy! I just realized that you have been travelling for the past 2 years and that you actually made it to Venezuela!!! I enjoyed reading your posts on the Amazon, Canaima and la Gran Sabana. From your stories it seems like you guys had a truly genuine experience and I hope my people treated you nicely! Let me know if you stop in London during your world travels... it would be great to catch up!
    Beatriz

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