Jueves (Thursday), we got up early as we were doing an open Jeep tour around the island. What a wicked way to see the whole place! It's about 100kms wide, so we set off from the far NE corner where el Agua is, and started heading into the middle where the capital L'Asuncion is. We stopped at a little doll house first, with some awesome art and a whole upstairs of natural and cultivated pearls. Margarita is called The Pearl of the Caribbean, so they are well known for them. There were all colours there, white, black, pink, all different depending on where they'd grown - the depth, near coral, etc. All extremely beautiful, and extremely well priced too! ;)
We then got to an old fort set up on a hilltop over looking the capital city. Gorgeous views of the mountains inland and the ocean on the other. Another stop at an important religious site called the Valley of the Virgin with a nice white church before taking off on the highway to get to the middle where the two main islands of Margarita meet.
Here there us a Parc Nacional, and we hopped out of the Jeep and into a little 8 man boat to go check it out. It's a series of waterways winding in and out of these crazy Mangrove forests that dig their multiple roots right into the water. When we find a computer well have to post some of the videos I took going through some of the tunnels - super cool! We saw lots of birds and got to hold a red starfish! We were on the water half an hour, then back in the Jeep to head to the far SW part of the island - and to the beach!
I think I should take a second to mention the traffic and roads here. There are NO traffic rules, and driving on the highway is definitely nerve wracking! Theres also barely any signage, so you just need to know where youre going. Sometimes there's 1 lane, sometimes there's 4 depending how many people are beside eachother at any given moment trying to pass. Scary at high speeds for sure.
Were cruising on this highway when suddenly our guide turns off onto a 4x4 road in the middle of nowhere. We drop down the embankment and see a large shallow inlet infront of us, full of flamingoes!! Real life, super pink flamingoes!! There must have been over 300 of them just chilling there standing on one leg. Definitely never thought I'd see these guys in the wild in my lifetime, but there's another one to check off the life list!
After ripping along the highway in the beating sun for another 20mins, we arrived at Playa Punta Arenas, which is on the Caribbean side of the island. We had the best food we've had so far - can't go wrong with the fresh catch of the day! Cervesas all around, and then 30mins of free time to swim and hang out. We met the first other english speaking people there too, a family from Reno in the US. We told them we were from Calgary, the old guy said we must be rich, we laughed and said no way, then he cracked a lame Canada joke and that was that. Off to the next beach!
This one was accessible via 4x4 only, and man was it ever gorgeous! Untouched, incredibly soft sand, surrounded by red rock walls of the bay and a picture perfect blue sky. Ahhhh. To get in and out of there was an adventure in itself, bouncing around in the back of the open top Jeep as our guide tried to take us on the most wild ride possible. Super fun :)
Back on the highway, with a stop at a roadside cantina where they serve authentic Margarita coco locos with real coconut. Delicious! The last leg was then a long haul back to the main part of the island, but still on the opposite side of el Agua to Juan Gregio, where the infamous sunsets are over the quiant bay that faces west. We chilled here for an hour watching the gorgeous evening colours.
To wrap it up we had a scary, harrowing, super fast commute back in the dark through the mountains. Our guide had a date to get to :S we all cheered a sigh of relief when we got dropped back off at Hesperia, happy, exhausted, a little sunburnt, and stoked that we can now say we've seen the best parts of the whole island.
I should also mention we bought this tour on the beach, from a dude named Leonardo Da Vinci, whom we haggled with on the price. Ah, Venezuela :)
Saturday 30 June 2012
The Week of Luxury
Our week of luxury as Hesperia Playa el Agua is coming to an end, and although we are somewhat sad and apprehensive about moving on, it's been one fantastic week that we will never forget!
Lunes (aka Monday aka el Diablo) was spent doing absolutely nothing, except lying poolside, reading books and drinking cervesas/tequila. Best Monday weve had in a long time - hell, let's go with ever!! Sorry to everyone else who endured the usual (McLovin especially!!)
The next few days were somewhat uneventful, as we both unfortunately took our turns having some tummy issues. This was brought upon ourselves, deciding to try out the "bottled water" in the dining room. Note to self and everyone else - as per the advice we were given by everyone before coming here, bottled water only!! Feet water, as we've come to call it, just won't do.
We still managed to enjoy the sick days, again reading books and relaxing back and forth between pool and beach. We heard cervesas help kill off bugs too so still enjoyed plenty of those.
On Miercoles (Wednesday) we hit up a little travel agency right off the beach and got ourselves some more bolivars. Money is such a funny thing here with the two different exchange rates (official and black market). I think it's a major tourist deterrent, for as soon as people hear "black market" they're scared away. I don't blame them, but in reality, for us Canadians, what this really means is bring as much US cash with you as you'll need for your entire stay in Venezuela. It's super easy to change your greenbacks on the street at a rate of at least 8:1, and as long as you're not doing it right in the airport, no fear of policia either. We ended up in the travel agency as we didn't bring enough cash to get us through our last week, so had to do a cash advance on a credit card. They use a bank in Italy, so you pay in Euros, get charged in CDN on your card, and then they hand you bolivars an hour later. Complicated!!
Thursday was the Jeep tour - see other post regarding that one.
Friday we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves as it was our last day here. Pool, playa, cervesas and (even for me) tequila!! The show that night was awesome, best one yet too.
There have been a couple downsides to the week which I won't dwell on, but just in case anyone was thinking of coming here, request a room on an upper floor! Ours was at the back of tr compound on the planta (ground) level, and never got a blip of sunshine. As a result, NOTHING dried in the room, it was always damp, smelled of mold, and the floor, sheets, pillows ad blankets always felt wet. Then, as we packed up today, Colins backpack wa even covered in mold from being in the closet all week! Overall still a great experience, but potential travelers, beware!
Partially due to all our clothes being wet and dirty, and that we want to celebrate Canada Day in style, AND we love the island, were going to stay the weekend at Posada Nathalie once more until Monday. Well then take a ferry back to the mainland and head to Jakera Lodge - a backpackers haven where we plan to do an overnight kayak tour and swim with dolphins!
We probably won't have wifi again until we get to Jakera, but have had a great time at Hesperia, and want to say a huge GRACIAS once again to my amazing mom and dad for the hook up. You guys rock! Xo
And with that, a big Felice Cumpleanos Canada to everyone at home!! Xoxo
Lunes (aka Monday aka el Diablo) was spent doing absolutely nothing, except lying poolside, reading books and drinking cervesas/tequila. Best Monday weve had in a long time - hell, let's go with ever!! Sorry to everyone else who endured the usual (McLovin especially!!)
The next few days were somewhat uneventful, as we both unfortunately took our turns having some tummy issues. This was brought upon ourselves, deciding to try out the "bottled water" in the dining room. Note to self and everyone else - as per the advice we were given by everyone before coming here, bottled water only!! Feet water, as we've come to call it, just won't do.
We still managed to enjoy the sick days, again reading books and relaxing back and forth between pool and beach. We heard cervesas help kill off bugs too so still enjoyed plenty of those.
On Miercoles (Wednesday) we hit up a little travel agency right off the beach and got ourselves some more bolivars. Money is such a funny thing here with the two different exchange rates (official and black market). I think it's a major tourist deterrent, for as soon as people hear "black market" they're scared away. I don't blame them, but in reality, for us Canadians, what this really means is bring as much US cash with you as you'll need for your entire stay in Venezuela. It's super easy to change your greenbacks on the street at a rate of at least 8:1, and as long as you're not doing it right in the airport, no fear of policia either. We ended up in the travel agency as we didn't bring enough cash to get us through our last week, so had to do a cash advance on a credit card. They use a bank in Italy, so you pay in Euros, get charged in CDN on your card, and then they hand you bolivars an hour later. Complicated!!
Thursday was the Jeep tour - see other post regarding that one.
Friday we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves as it was our last day here. Pool, playa, cervesas and (even for me) tequila!! The show that night was awesome, best one yet too.
There have been a couple downsides to the week which I won't dwell on, but just in case anyone was thinking of coming here, request a room on an upper floor! Ours was at the back of tr compound on the planta (ground) level, and never got a blip of sunshine. As a result, NOTHING dried in the room, it was always damp, smelled of mold, and the floor, sheets, pillows ad blankets always felt wet. Then, as we packed up today, Colins backpack wa even covered in mold from being in the closet all week! Overall still a great experience, but potential travelers, beware!
Partially due to all our clothes being wet and dirty, and that we want to celebrate Canada Day in style, AND we love the island, were going to stay the weekend at Posada Nathalie once more until Monday. Well then take a ferry back to the mainland and head to Jakera Lodge - a backpackers haven where we plan to do an overnight kayak tour and swim with dolphins!
We probably won't have wifi again until we get to Jakera, but have had a great time at Hesperia, and want to say a huge GRACIAS once again to my amazing mom and dad for the hook up. You guys rock! Xo
And with that, a big Felice Cumpleanos Canada to everyone at home!! Xoxo
Monday 25 June 2012
Hesperia Playa el Agua Beach Hotel
We made it to our paradise! Oh what a paradise it is! Pool bars within sight of our room! Coco locos and bahama mamas to drink! Mmmm! The resort is across the street from the beach but has a bar near the beach to get drinks and swim in the carribean! Although we were a bit shocked by the amount of attention we received from the local vendors selling goods! Every two seconds we had a different person trying to massage our shoulders or sell us jewelry! After about 15 minutes of this bombardment a older lady showed us how to act to make them go away! We have decided to make the pools are relax zone and the carribean for quick swims!
The food has been above average and we are enjoying our three square meals each day! A little bit of uneasy stomachs but trying to make the right choices to keep our bellies full and happy!
We have been going to watch the shows that go on after dinner! The first night was a venezuelan themed show! It had dancers and great music to fit our light hearted moods! Last night was more of a couples competition where the guys had to do push- ups with their ladies on their backs! Whew glad I didn't get picked! ( have enough trouble doing one myself) haha! It was really funny and we laughed the night away! Interested to see what happens tonight! No volunteering this time!
So to wrap up my first blog on this thing! We are having an amazing time! We keep listening intently around for someone that's speaks english so we might find some friends! None yet have been spotted. So if you can imagine us sitting in beach chairs by the pool bar reading books and enjoying each others company! That's where we are! Fantastico!
The food has been above average and we are enjoying our three square meals each day! A little bit of uneasy stomachs but trying to make the right choices to keep our bellies full and happy!
We have been going to watch the shows that go on after dinner! The first night was a venezuelan themed show! It had dancers and great music to fit our light hearted moods! Last night was more of a couples competition where the guys had to do push- ups with their ladies on their backs! Whew glad I didn't get picked! ( have enough trouble doing one myself) haha! It was really funny and we laughed the night away! Interested to see what happens tonight! No volunteering this time!
So to wrap up my first blog on this thing! We are having an amazing time! We keep listening intently around for someone that's speaks english so we might find some friends! None yet have been spotted. So if you can imagine us sitting in beach chairs by the pool bar reading books and enjoying each others company! That's where we are! Fantastico!
Sunday 24 June 2012
Mi gusto Venezuela!
Our flight out of Toronto was delayed by an hour, so we got into Caracas Monday night around 1030 local time. Things went perfectly according to plan, where a young man with a sign for La Parada was waiting for us and several others right at the airport. By 11pm we were checked into Habitacion 9 and high 5-ing that we'd made it. Even funnier, the first thing we saw when we got to our room - a picture of Pablo Picassos' Guernica, the same one that hangs in our living room!
Thanks to some late night partiers who decided to shower, blast tunes and sing their hearts out at 2am, we only got a couple hours sleep before we were up at 6am to catch our ride back to the airport. We had a quick breakfast at the airport of cafe con leche and some empanadas that were so salty they were inedible. We changed our US cash to Bolivares at the black market rate of 8:1, and after getting a bit of a run around trying to find the right gate, we were on a flight to Isla de Margarita.
From what Colin tells me (I passed out right away due to severe lack of sleep) from the air the Isla looked like the Caribbean paradise we'd imagined and hoped for. We landed at the airport, hopped into a taxi that was a suped up tiny Nissan, and headed into the capital of the Isla, Porlamar. It took a while to find, but we got dropped off at the hostel we'd read about in Lonely Planet called Jinama. We were sweating buckets and tired, so were stoked to be greeted by a super nice lady at the desk who gave us a 4 bed room to ourselves and offered to lock up our valuables for us. We got settled and headed out into the super busy streets to find some eats for our very hungry tummies.
Again Lonely Planet came thru with a great restaurant suggestion and we refueled with rice, beans, plantains, fish and veggies, and of course cervesas. We then went in search of our first Caribbean swim and were disappointed. Porlamar is a vibrant and happening city, but the beaches and water were pretty filthy, and the surrounding neighbourhoods pretty uninviting. We were exhausted, so headed back to our Jinama haven for a nap, then another venture to the plaza to collect sandwich stuff and rum for dinner. The rest of the night was uneventful, and we slept for 12 hours straight!
The next morning we packed up the backpacks and set out for Pampatar about 10kms up the coast. We had a bit of trouble finding an affordable posada to stay at first, but we managed to communicate what we were after and got a cute little colourful habitacion 2mins from the beach. Then, finally, my first Caribbean swim was had! This beach and town is more of a local retreat than a tourist one, so it was neat to see native Venezuelans hanging out with friends and family, kids playing soccer, and all the colorful fishing boats tied up right on the beach. We had dinner at a restaurant right on the playa (seafood feast for me, of course!) and then again collected some breakfast supplies and rum supply for that evening. Just like, Porlamar, this wasn't a big tourist spot, so once the sun went down we stuck to the gated walls of our posada. Colin also started to come down with a cold that evening, which combined with the arctic air blowing from the AC didn't make for the most restful night, but we survived.
The next morning we decided to head right up the coast to Playa el Agua - the place to see and be seen on the Isla. Were so glad we did, as we ended up finding Posada Nathalie, a little guest house run by a sweetheart of a Dutch woman named Nathalie. As it's down season, we had the entire posada to ourselves, including the pool, awesome outdoor kitchen, and the resident dog, Socha. Playa el Agua itself is only a 5 min walk away, so we spent the day going back and forth between pool and beach - paradise found! There aren't a whole lot of stores in the area, and being down season they all closed early, so dinner that night was pasta, canned tuna and ketchup. I didn't even stoop to that level as a poor starving student! We were happy with our arrangement though, and spent a quiet night playing yahtzee (and of course drinking more rum), so poor sick Colin could get some much needs rest. We spent another day here doing much the same thing - with guard dog Socha in tow wherever we went - waiting to check in to Hesperia Beach Hotel on the Saturday.
Thanks to some late night partiers who decided to shower, blast tunes and sing their hearts out at 2am, we only got a couple hours sleep before we were up at 6am to catch our ride back to the airport. We had a quick breakfast at the airport of cafe con leche and some empanadas that were so salty they were inedible. We changed our US cash to Bolivares at the black market rate of 8:1, and after getting a bit of a run around trying to find the right gate, we were on a flight to Isla de Margarita.
From what Colin tells me (I passed out right away due to severe lack of sleep) from the air the Isla looked like the Caribbean paradise we'd imagined and hoped for. We landed at the airport, hopped into a taxi that was a suped up tiny Nissan, and headed into the capital of the Isla, Porlamar. It took a while to find, but we got dropped off at the hostel we'd read about in Lonely Planet called Jinama. We were sweating buckets and tired, so were stoked to be greeted by a super nice lady at the desk who gave us a 4 bed room to ourselves and offered to lock up our valuables for us. We got settled and headed out into the super busy streets to find some eats for our very hungry tummies.
Again Lonely Planet came thru with a great restaurant suggestion and we refueled with rice, beans, plantains, fish and veggies, and of course cervesas. We then went in search of our first Caribbean swim and were disappointed. Porlamar is a vibrant and happening city, but the beaches and water were pretty filthy, and the surrounding neighbourhoods pretty uninviting. We were exhausted, so headed back to our Jinama haven for a nap, then another venture to the plaza to collect sandwich stuff and rum for dinner. The rest of the night was uneventful, and we slept for 12 hours straight!
The next morning we packed up the backpacks and set out for Pampatar about 10kms up the coast. We had a bit of trouble finding an affordable posada to stay at first, but we managed to communicate what we were after and got a cute little colourful habitacion 2mins from the beach. Then, finally, my first Caribbean swim was had! This beach and town is more of a local retreat than a tourist one, so it was neat to see native Venezuelans hanging out with friends and family, kids playing soccer, and all the colorful fishing boats tied up right on the beach. We had dinner at a restaurant right on the playa (seafood feast for me, of course!) and then again collected some breakfast supplies and rum supply for that evening. Just like, Porlamar, this wasn't a big tourist spot, so once the sun went down we stuck to the gated walls of our posada. Colin also started to come down with a cold that evening, which combined with the arctic air blowing from the AC didn't make for the most restful night, but we survived.
The next morning we decided to head right up the coast to Playa el Agua - the place to see and be seen on the Isla. Were so glad we did, as we ended up finding Posada Nathalie, a little guest house run by a sweetheart of a Dutch woman named Nathalie. As it's down season, we had the entire posada to ourselves, including the pool, awesome outdoor kitchen, and the resident dog, Socha. Playa el Agua itself is only a 5 min walk away, so we spent the day going back and forth between pool and beach - paradise found! There aren't a whole lot of stores in the area, and being down season they all closed early, so dinner that night was pasta, canned tuna and ketchup. I didn't even stoop to that level as a poor starving student! We were happy with our arrangement though, and spent a quiet night playing yahtzee (and of course drinking more rum), so poor sick Colin could get some much needs rest. We spent another day here doing much the same thing - with guard dog Socha in tow wherever we went - waiting to check in to Hesperia Beach Hotel on the Saturday.
Monday 18 June 2012
Waiting in Toronto
After a surprisingly turbulent flight (damn you great lakes!) we made it to Pearson International in Toronto. Whew!! Having a bite to eat, along with some calming comforts, and then off to Caracas. Sending a big thank you out to all those who helped us get to this point - departure day has miraculously, finally arrived!
Friday 15 June 2012
The Countdown
Well, here we go, the first attempt at a blog - we'll see how long we keep this up during the trip!!
Colin and I leave in exactly 3 sleeps to go backpacking to South America for the next 3 months. We fly Calgary-Toronto-Caracas, Venezuela. We've got return tickets booked for mid-September out of Buenos Aires, Argentina, but have definitely done our research to ensure we can extend if need be. Something tells me we might not be ready to come home then... :)
We've got the first couple weeks sorted out to help get our feet wet. With the help of Jakera Lodge (an awesome outdoor adventure company/Lodge that we'll be checking out), we've got our first night hotel booked just outside of Caracas with airport pickup. We then fly out again early the next morning straight to Isla de Margarita (with a name like Margarita I don't think I need to explain this Caribbean Island more than that!). The Island is a duty free port and is only a stone's throw away from Aruba and Trinidad & Tobego. I heard today the water temperature there is 26C!! Slightly warmer than the Tofino ocean waters we last experienced!
My parents have been more than generous and dontated us a week of their Time Share, so when we arrive there we're staying in what I like to call the most "pimp daddy hotel" I've ever been to. It's called the Hesperia Playa El Agua Beach Hotel. I'd post some pictures from the website, but will wait to post some taken with our own camera and seen with our own eyes :) We're very excited to sit on a white sand beach, sip some rums, ride scooters around the island and try out some surfing! A very relaxing and luxurious way to start off the big adventure, anyway - probably very different than the rest of the journey will be!!
Colin and I leave in exactly 3 sleeps to go backpacking to South America for the next 3 months. We fly Calgary-Toronto-Caracas, Venezuela. We've got return tickets booked for mid-September out of Buenos Aires, Argentina, but have definitely done our research to ensure we can extend if need be. Something tells me we might not be ready to come home then... :)
We've got the first couple weeks sorted out to help get our feet wet. With the help of Jakera Lodge (an awesome outdoor adventure company/Lodge that we'll be checking out), we've got our first night hotel booked just outside of Caracas with airport pickup. We then fly out again early the next morning straight to Isla de Margarita (with a name like Margarita I don't think I need to explain this Caribbean Island more than that!). The Island is a duty free port and is only a stone's throw away from Aruba and Trinidad & Tobego. I heard today the water temperature there is 26C!! Slightly warmer than the Tofino ocean waters we last experienced!
My parents have been more than generous and dontated us a week of their Time Share, so when we arrive there we're staying in what I like to call the most "pimp daddy hotel" I've ever been to. It's called the Hesperia Playa El Agua Beach Hotel. I'd post some pictures from the website, but will wait to post some taken with our own camera and seen with our own eyes :) We're very excited to sit on a white sand beach, sip some rums, ride scooters around the island and try out some surfing! A very relaxing and luxurious way to start off the big adventure, anyway - probably very different than the rest of the journey will be!!
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