Angel Falls and the eventful trip to Margarita Island

Angel Falls is amazing.  Now we were told in advance that during the dry season the falls would not be gushing with water rather likely a stream of water would be seen.  No matter, coming to Venezuela, does mean a trip to the falls as this is the highlight in every travel book/blog.  We did what is known as a flyover of the falls which really consisted of our 6 seater jet pulling as close as possible to the falls so we could get some great pics.  The falls are over 900 meters high (ruby wants me to be exact, 984 meters).  The surrounding area is full of table top mountains that are full of trees and brush.  Just amazing and words cannot describe the sights we witnessed flying around the falls.  We finally landed about 2.5 hours later back in Cuidad Bolivar and we had about 4 hours to kill before we hopped on another bus to Porto Del Cruz where we would grab a ferry to Margarita Island. 

To kill those 4 hours we sat in a small and very hot tourist agency and connected to the internet to catch up on 3 days of being away from everything.  I also needed to catch up on all the emails I had missed during my 3 day disappearance, a total of 327 emails had come through in those 72 hours.  A bit out of control but nothing I wouldn’t expect given that I work at Sears (we’ll save that for another day).

We made the decision to leave our hot yoga studio (the travel agency) and got a great recommendation to go to a small Italian pizza/pasta shop.  We ate some lasagna and pizza – I had mine with piquante sauce – I asked for the sauce in Spanish too!  As well as the combien (the bill).

Following dinner we boarded our bus which was not that busy and made our way to Puerto Del Cruz.  After a 4.5 hour journey we were told it was our stop and that we needed to get off to get our ferry tickets.  This is very the adventure/terror began.  Our luggage is on the bus, we are off the bus and we can’t speak any spanish to save our asses.  We were very lucky to have a couple that were on our bus that helped us along the way but even with their help I still felt very lost. 

At the ferry station here were the issues:

1)      No one spoke english

2)      The ferry was going to leave at 2am and was going take 5 hours to get there

3)      The clock reads 11pm; what the hell am I going to do in a ferry station for 3 hours

4)      I still don’t know if our luggage is going to make it seeing that it’s still on the bus and we are off the bus

5)      The power goes out and people cheer “viva chavez” – there were no chavistas in the crowd

6)      There were many lines, tickets and somehow we missed getting the green ticket.

So the 6 above mentioned issues all presented their own unique problem.  First, thanks to the couple that were looking out for us they guided me in the paperwork and in the process as best as they could given they couldn’t speak english (issue #1).

I stood in a line and was told that I was going to be taking the 2am ferry – no one could confirm if our bus was on the 2am ferry too. (issue #4)

That line changed in mid-stream and I got moved to another line (no real issue but just a nuisance)

The bathroom was closed in the ferry station (issue #3 – I thought I could at least burn 15 mins taking care of business)

While I am in the “new” line the power goes off leading to nobody getting served and me almost ready to give up (issue #5); thankfully the power came back but it took the ticket seller another 20 minutes because her systems needed to reboot(perhaps also because she was too busy listening to her iPod and singing along). BOOOOOO!

Finally, when it was all said and done, I had 2 ferry tickets in hand and had walked over to our friendly couple to compare tickets to ensure that if worst came to worst they were in the shitter with us too.  They were exactly the same

While all the events of the day are unfolding, I was chatting with our hosts (Luis & Herman) in Margarita to ensure we got picked up at the ferry dock the next day.

All said and done we went outside to see that there was a large cargo ferry which not only carried passengers but cars, buses and other cargo.  Oh boy, this was going to be very slow.  The line to board the ferry was very long and Ruby and I were somewhere in the middle feeling tired and just aching to get to the island for that R&R.  People were all over the place and time was moving ever so slowly.  When finally there were signs of movement a euphoric feeling would come over me but that euphoria would last seconds as the movements in the line were more jostling than anything else.  Finally around 2am the ferry opened its doors to all its passengers and cargo and we were allowed to board.  Just prior boarding we were asked for our green slips (which we didn’t have – issue #6) so that meant another bone of frustration.  Lucky these green tickets were available for sale right in line so we were saved from running back to the ticket office and wasting more time there.  As it worked out, we boarded and made a b-line for the upstairs of the ferry for our seats. We got 2 good seats in the air conditioned space.  It didn’t seem like everyone on the ferry got a seat because people were going back and forth looking for their prime real estate.  The seats were horrible, ripped, and old.  Not a comfortable seat by any means but for the next 4 hours this was going to be our last bump on the road to Margarita.  Going to try to sleep a bit before getting up and trying to find my luggage.

The trip to Canima (the jungle)

We did it – we survived the jungle.  We reached Culidad Bolivar at 6am and were greeted by our travel agent Ruben.  Ruben gave us a brief of the next couple of days which included one night in a room and the next night sleeping outside in hammocks.  Hmm – not what we expected but what can you do.

The only way to get to Caniama is by plane – not some commercial flight but by a small prop plane (ie. A Cessna) that seats no more than 6 people, including the pilot.  The trip took about 2 hours and while flying we saw some amazing landscapes, mountains and lakes.  From our vantage point, there were no real inhabitants to be found.  The highlight of the plane ride had to be our pilot texting while flying the plane. We were in safe hands if he had the confidence to do that!

Upon reaching Caniama, our ears ringing and a bit nauseas, we were greeted by our guide Miguel.  Miguel is actually a Peruvian but had settled in Venezuela for work purposes (and also b/c he found a local girlfriend). Our camp was extremely rustic but the people were really nice and the food was quite edible.  The bathrooms were horrendous though with only a small stream of water in the showers and the bathrooms had their fair share of wear and tear (I am being very kind).  Given we had taken the overnight bus and a cramped plane ride over, it was important to at least feel some sense of being fresh no matter how bad the conditions.

After cleaning up and having a full belly we started our trek for the day.  The trek first started with us getting on a boat and doing a tour of all of the falls in the area.  There were 3-4 big waterfalls near our camp and before you ask, they were not as magnificent as Niagara Falls.  Nonetheless, they were very cool and our boat went right up to the falls so we got some great pictures.  Venezuela has 2 seasons, dry and rainy and we are travelling during the dry season.  As such, the water is a bit shallower and the falls a bit weaker.  This also gave us the opportunity to do some exploration around the falls where we could walk behind the falls as well as get to a point where we are actually on top of the falls.  Pretty cool stuff.  The walk behind the falls was great – very tropical and very refreshing given the heat.  We also got to a point where we reached a lagoon where one could go swimming and/or cliff diving.  I decided to do both.  After Miguel showed us how to cliff dive and another tourist took the plunge I decided it was my turn.  From at least 20 meters high, I took the plunge without a thought of danger or worry – just the sheer rush of feeling free and empowered.  I hit the water, feet first, going about 10 meters into the water, while holding my breath.  Coming to the top and finally getting the air was just amazing.  What an experience and something I will always remember.  Following the cliff diving, we did some swimming in the lagoon and even got a chance to sit underneath some waterfalls and feel the power and rush of the water, against a beautiful backdrop in a temperature that was so comfortable.  The conditions were perfect.

Following our cliff diving we did some more trekking where we got to the top of the waterfalls and had an amazing view of the surrounding area.  Soon night was going to fall so we made our way back to camp to get our rooms and have dinner.

Rubes and I lucked out as we learned that there were 4 rooms but they tried to ensure that couples got their own rooms.  Everyone thought that Rubes and I were married so we kinda played along to take advantage of the simple fact we got our own room and even more important our own bathroom; and in this case the bathroom was a lot more functional than the ones we experienced in the afternoon, even though we still had no hot water.

The next day our day started very early as we were going to do hiking, swimming, and boating and ultimately some camping.  We took a boat around Caniama (14 of us in total which included one very strange Japanese dude).  We went all over the place with the boat and our luggage seeing different sites and sounds, stopping for a swim here and there.  We swam, walked, had lunch, hopped back into a boat, swam again, got back into the boat, checked out an indigenous village and then again swam in the well of happiness, back in a boat, trekked, sat on a beach, swam and then trekked to our campsite.  Amazing day, with amazing water and even with the walking, and heat, those swims made everything amazing again. Water is such a powerful thing – and it’s something we take for granted I think. 

The highlight of this day ended up being close to the end where we had to cross the river by foot with our cameras and daypacks in hand.  Imagine the challenge of crossing a river with all of these belongings, your slippers and the rocks are covered in moss making it very slippery.  Even though the hike across was no more than 15-20 meters that was likely the most challenging part of our day.

We finally made camp where we saw the hammocks we were going to sleep in.  Not the best hammocks but hey, at that point it was a bed and it was one night.  Nature was our bathroom and if we felt like showering then all you had to do was swim in the lake.  Ruby decided to check out the shower (some reconnaissance mission) and she came back a bit shocked given at the bed of the river she stepped on a long black snake, which promptly whipped her with its tail across her leg.  She vowed not to take a shower or brush her teeth in the river as who know what other animals lurked in the area.  I decided to do the same.....

Our dinner was actually quite good....chicken cooked over a fire with some fresh juice (we were told fresh juice but we all knew this was tang/kool-aid mix with water.  Dinner was in the dark because with our luck the rain had come just after we had arrived and it came with some force.  Winds blew out the candles and some areas of our site were not covered so obviously those areas became quite wet.  It rained and rained with no end in sight.  After dinner, we ended up having a great conversation with Miguel who was our guide.  He was constantly trying to improve his English with Ruby and I there and the good thing was that he was learning and applying.  We spent hours talking about Peru, Chavez, politics, constitutions, poetry (sex and pessimism being central), the kama sutra, the art of love (falling in and falling out) to name a couple of topics.  Let’s say that by the time we were halfway through our conversations the rest of our group had decided to hit the hammocks and call it a night.  We had great laughs with Miguel and at the end we decided it would be great to be facebook friends. 

Miguel had the tour guide life.  Swimming at every opportunity he got, hanging with locals and tourists alike, and more importantly, lived a quite simple life.  His passion was music and when he got bored he would play music off his mobile and keep himself entertained. 

After a cold night in the hammock, with no mosquito net, and all the bites to prove it, we got up and got ready for breakfast.  No shower, no brushing of our teeth.  Just some food, juice and the inner voice of please let me find a shower when we get back to our base camp.  Covered in fluff because of our blankets and smelling like mosquito spray, we packed up our stuff after breakfast and made the trek back.  It took 2.5 hours to get back and for the most part this was a quiet trip home.  Time was spent in a boat, walking and again back in the boat.  A reflective trip back as we were all tired, hungry and of course feeling very dirty. 

Upon arriving back at base camp, we all used the very crappy bathrooms to freshen up before lunch.   Now even thought these bathrooms weren’t great, they satisfied the need to just feel a little clean and better about the next part of our journey.  I end this note just before finally sitting down for lunch.  Up next is our fly over to Angel Falls and our journey to Margarita Island.  The last days of our trip are coming up and some serious R&R are on the agenda.  

Start of the Jungle trek

I am writing this on an overnight bus on the way to Cuidad Bolivar.  Day 3 in Venezuela (Monday) turned out to be a good day.  Other than the toilet overflowing in the bathroom and having  to clean up some of the mess (emma will appreciate this more than anyone else i know) the day was interesting and fun.  We started off our day meeting Nelson who helped us get tickets for our overnight bus and our flight back to Caracas from Margarita Island.
After wondering through a bus station (and practicing my very atrocious spanish) and a couple of travel agencies we came out feeling good.  The only bad thing is that our flight from Margarita Island is at 7am on Sunday landing us back in Caracas at 8am.  Although, both Rubes and I were disappointed, Nelson, offered the both us an opportunity to join him at his house which has a pool and is connected to a bay which means we'll still have another day of beach life.  We'll have a better idea if that plan comes to fruition later in the week as Nelson has to work out things on his end.
So after taking care of business, Nelson, Ruby and I went  out for Arepas.  Arepas are a traditional venezuelan meal and one that isn't too costly either.  Between the 3 of us we spent 100 bolivars and based on our special rate of 6 to 1 (i'll get to this in a  future post) the cost works out to less than 17 dollars for 3 people - on average 6 bucks a pop and it includes fresh juice.  We all add the chicken/avacado mixutre stuffed in corn bread.  To be honest, it was like eating a chicken salad sandwich at timmys but it had avacodo.
The food here isn't anything special.  What I like is the little coffees they serve - the coffees come in shot glasses and are sipped to be enjoyed.
After lunch, Nelson, dropped us back to the hotel so we could do our walking tour of Caracas.  Much like Lima, Caracas was kinda boring.  The buildings were not easily identifable and they looked the same.  We started by checking out Simon Bolivar square and to our loss everything that we wanted to see was closed for some strange reason.  The real adventure I guess was riding the subway in Caracas which costs 50 cents (in bolivars) one way.  The subways are rammed to the nth degree and once boarded you felt like you are in a hot yoga studio.  Ruby's comment to me was and I quote "thank gods its not India othewise, can you imagine the smell" .  Added to this is the simple fact that everyone warns you to be very careful of your belongings while riding the subway as the pick pocketers are  out to get you.  No pickpocketer got us so one point for the good guys.
After doing our Simon Bolivar tour we ended up in Altamira square where Ruby and I sat around and chatted.  Ruby decided to tell me that the subway ride for her wasn't the most pleasant as she got groped by some strangers.  I didnt get groped so I didn't have anything to share with her on my subway experience.  Then Ruby told me that b/c I am a guy, I am lucky when it comes to travi elling.  That I agree with....as a guy we seem to be less bothered.  I remember my friend Fiona recounting her stories of India to me and me being in utter shock and dismay at the country my parent's once called home.   Anyhow, Rubes, then went all to tell me that people are afraid of me b/c of my beard.  Really!!  I didn't realize that so I am on a mission to create some sort of social experiment to see if there is truth to this.  Need to think through this b/c I can't really test this in a simple way.  I will get to the bottom of this.  If the beard is something people are afraid of then I need to figure out how to take advantage of this situation.

After our trip was complete Rubes and I went to the local shopping centre where she did some retail therapy (i can have this affect on women) and I bought some insect repellent and some local chocolate (not the fruit and nut kind, Lal).
Post our shopping we ended up eating street meat - I had a pepito mixto which consisted of lots of ketchup, mayo, shredded chicken/beef, cheese and fried onions.  Rubes had a jumbo hot dog which was really 4 small weiners thrown into a hot dog bun.  We both couldn't finish our respective meals.
We are now on a bus travelling to our next stop.  We are going to be seeing Angel Falls, some tabletop moutain and do some river rides in the Amazon. There may be pirhanas so it may get interesting if our boat tips:)
As I type this, we are watching a WWE movie called the Marine - it sucks ass but what's amazing is that the WWE is producing movies....if the model of business is diversification, here is a classic example of that.
I am off to get some zzzzzsss.  Likely won't have internet for a couple of days so will post an update when I get a chance.  Lots of love to my family and friends back home.....pray that we don't meet the piranahas.
Asta Loego.

Vacation Journal - Venezuela - Part I

I have no idea how many parts/chapters will be in this story.  My boss always said, stories are the way to capture ideas and thoughts in a basic format - these thoughts/ideas could then be translated into requirements.  In this case, I have adopted the idea of creating a story book around my trip.  There are no requirements to be built but rather these stories will shape my life today and in the future.  What comes out of these stories will be the requirements of how I hope to live my life and shape my life in the years ahead.

So, I write my first chapter on the country of Venezuela.  I have come to Venezuela with my close friend, Ruby.  Her and I weren't always friends, in fact, we met a very long time ago, but were more like acquaintances.  As time conspires with us, I ended up moving into King West in March of 2008 (maybe another blog post will go into my life downtown but not today).  As such, Ruby and I became much better friends and shared a passion for the arts, the music but more importantly the company.  We have done a couple of trips together (Quebec City and Bermuda) and now we are doing Venezuela.

So lets begin....as always, I hope to take a trip on an airplane that isn't memorable - one with no real bumps, easy service and a gentle landing.  In this case, this trip had easy service and a gentle landing.....however, the bumps on this trip were quite frightening at the time but as time works with us has become more of an enjoyable memory.  Lets say that for the first time ever, I felt the need to pray for my safety and for god to afford me the opportunity to pursue the many other things I want to do in life.  With that being said, we landed safely in Caracas --> like they say, it doesn't make a real difference how you get there  - just that you get there.

So, what do I think about Caracas.  Its a big city, its a small city and given all the hype its a dangerous city.  Now, when Ruby and I selected Venezuela we didn't do this with much thought or rigour....it was more of a whim, a chance to see something that was close, cheap and that would maximize time (she's on her march break)......Usually, I like to start with the food - lets say southern US as everything is deep fried.  Can't be healthy but let me tell you that people here just don't care.  Women will wear clothes that suit there body or don't - they don't care - women are beautiful but there beauty is also in their own confidence.  I digress, I have a habit of doing this.
The food is deep fried, salty and nothing special.  I feel like I am in the US with all the Burger Kings, McDonalds and other fast food gringo joints around.  Oh well, Venezuela isn't going to be winning any foodie contests.
Our first day in Caracas was a tour of the local shopping mall and exploring the Telefrico which is a cable car ride taking you from Caracas to the top of a very luscious mountain where you could see an old hotel and enjoy the sights, sounds and foods of this happening tourist hot-spot. Not a crazy day - we ate sushi for lunch (tasted very rubbery) and for dinner we had deep friend chicken and fish.
Today didn't start of as great as it should have.  We planned to do a walking tour of Caracas starting at 11am and by the time we got to the subway station we realized we needed our trusty Lonely Planet.  To our amazement and chagrin, we didn't have this book - we misplaced it either at dinner or lost it at dinner.  I want to say someone took it because it makes me feel less responsible.
So our day was spent searching bookstore after bookstore for a guide book on Venezuela given this was Day 2 of a 9 day trip.  More importantly, this is the first time I have ever lost a Lonely Planet (this is usually my bible).  What was cool, was Rubes and I didn't freak out or panic.  We kinda took it like a prize boxer - we can take a couple of good punches but we'll never hit the mat or throw in the towel. I will digress for just one moment and then link the digression back to our lost bible.
Yesterday, Rubes and I talked about the advent of the ebook; in fact would people use this and could the books we read today really provide the same experience as if you were reading it on an ebook reader (ie. the Kindle).  So, having lost our Lonely Planet and having my netbook, I was able to discover that I could buy the Venezuela book in specific chapters in digital format and read them off my netbook.  Lets say having these specific chapter on Caracas, Angel Falls and Margarita Islands brought a welcome sense of comfort back to me (not sure how rubes felt).  This took a little bit of that edge off and provided us with another great little adventure that we could live to tell.
As we were planning our trip to Caracas, I was reading blogs by other travellers and came across a site for a local individual who runs his own hostel.    His name is Nelson and he is the operator of Nelson's Place and Nelson's Room.  Nelson, had promised to give me a hand in arranging our travels in Venezuela and has been a great resource.  We met Nelson and his girlfriend Sarah today where we briefed Nelson on what we were hoping to do.  I always believe when travelling you learn about yourself, the people you travel with but also the people you meet along the journey.  In this case, Nelson and Sarah were very gracious hosts.  We ended up going out for dinner tonight and then planned on having breakfast tomorrow before we do our walking tour of Caracas (the trip we were supposed to take today).  Tomorrow brings our departure from Caracas and our hope to see Angel Falls and see some of the Amazon to resting and relaxing on Margaritta island before we make our trip home......an interesting day with many ups and downs but like most days in life, it leaves you wondering what the next day holds and for that my eyes open every morning with the hope that another  remarkable day is around the corner.

Back to blogging

So sometime ago, I gave up on blogging. I found other things to keep me busy but every so often I relished the thought of putting my thoughts to paper. Many times those thoughts turned into nothing but just thoughts. That time has changed - today marks the day I am going to make an honest effort to talk about things that mean things to me personally and professionally

On a professional level I now work in the e-commerce industry - been doing it for 3 years but really hard core for the last 1 1/2 years. This time has been a blast and I have found my passion again. My thirst for knowledge in this industry is just aching to be quenched. I am amazed at the 1) power of the community, 2) the ability to find anything you want to know and share this with your friends, your followers, or just with yourself and 3) the economic engine the internet can be and continues to be.

On a personal level, I have decided to travel again and one of the things that is important to me is to document my travels. Since, 2007 I haven't done a lot of travel but with each trip, I felt like there was no record of the things I saw, learned or experienced. For me, pictures are only one aspect of travelling and although it serves an important purpose the element of writing is even more important. For that reason, blogs are going to be the way I do this (it melds by personal desire and my professional calling)

Lastly, I have decided to get back into writing b/c it also stimulates thought, ideas and discussion. I have led an amazing life and at the age of 33 I have much still to learn and experience. But what I want more than anything is to have a dialogue with others on the things I have done or seen and to look forward to what is still to come. Where will my next trip me? Why the hype behind mobile applications? Is Obama a great president? and why does everyone hate Chavez?

So, this is my comeback - as Jay-Z once retired so to did Tanbir S. Grover....but with all things in life, no one really retires - we take a break, we rekindle our passion and we come back better, stronger and more willing to take the necessary risks to continue to be successful.