Post 73: When it rains (here), it pours.

Fellow mud trekkers,

Today was another adventure. We woke up early and joined with a group of fellow travelers here at the guest house to meet with a coffee plantation owner to see how the local export is made. The hike up went astray when we went the wrong direction down a hill through a steep river of mud, dirt, rocks and debris. When we finally reached the bottom, we encountered a rickety steel bridge across a raging river. We ventured up another steep muddy hill until we met Pablo, the plantation owner. A few more miles down the road, through muddy puddles and pouring rain, we finally arrived at his house.

A Swede and a french press

We went upstairs and had a cup of his own coffee, which we later found out was brewed and sweetened with local vanilla, as opposed to sugar. It was a treat. He went on to explain the traditions and how coffee was the national drink of Colombia. As we sipped our cups, tropical birds feasted on a dried stock of corn, left out for them to devour.

Afterwards he took us through the forest around Pedro's house and explained the history of the local fauna. We saw the wax palm, the national tree of Colombia, and random coffee plants which we were able to pick the reddish beans from. We descended back towards his house and he showed us the most basic steps of coffee production, the peeling of the bean, and then the seed. We were served lunch by his wife, a mix of pasta, local cheese, tomatoes and spices, with an aromatic tea made with Tomatillia.

The last part of the tour was the end process of coffee, the roasting. We again stripped the bean of its shell and piled them into a machine which broke them down even more. They were then placed into a machine which spun and roasted the beans slowly over the course of 20 minutes, after which the bean was left to cool. Only then did it smell like the familiar bean we drank at home. When all was done, Pedro ground and served the bean we had picked, peeled and processed.

The walk back was the same soupy mess, with non-stop rain and mud. A shower was well needed, and well deserved after such a long day learning, hiking and exploring. I do not think I will ever look at coffee the same way again.

We head to Bogota in the morning, we had desired to stay in the Coffee region another day but the rain does not seem as though it will be letting down anytime soon, so we have to play it safe to make it to the capital in time for our flight to Quito on December 2nd. I have really enjoyed our time in Colombia and will miss it.

Much more ahead,

Gavin (y June)

a few more photos after the cut below, and be sure to check the last post for updated photos!

Post 72: Salento / Zona Cafeteria Day one

Fellow coffee drinkers,

La Serrana Guesthouse, Salento

It was a fairly smooth bus ride winding through the hills, with the only delay being a military checkpoint.  The soldiers did not bother with any tourists on the bus, but did take a local off the bus and harassed him for no apparent reason.  The young man seemed upset upon getting back on the bus.  I always feel empathy towards those whom are given a hard time where there shouldn't be a problem.  After arriving in the center of the small, quaint town; we trekked on in search of the well reviewed La Serrano eco-farm and geust house.

The house is about 1 mile out of town, down a dirt road lined with cow pastures and tall eucalyptus trees.  The scenery here is gorgeous.  Tall hills, fertile pastures, many trees and flowering shrubs.  The driveway is lined with bushy shrubs, scented like pinecones.  It smells a bit like Christmas.  The guest house is large, and lined with windows overlooking the scenery and a fountain in the entrance.  I look forward to the simple breakfast served in the morning while taking in the view.

Salento, Quindio, Colombia

Back in town, Gavin and I were happy to find a restaurant serving an excellent lunch special at $6,000 pesos(about $3.00).  It consisted of clam chowder broth, an arepa, fruit coleslaw, yuca fries, rice and either grilled steak, chicken, or boneless smoked trout to choose from.  Something cheaper, a little lighter and healthier than what we were used to seeing in the cities.  It was quite a wet day here, as it is the rainy season.  After lunch we strolled the streets, visiting the many shops as this is the main tourist town for visiting the surrounding coffee plantations.  We stopped into a cafe to escape the rain and warm up a bit.  I was happy to find 'chocolate con queso', as I had heard about the hot chocolate with cheese drink to try while in CO.  It was interesting, to say the least.  Salty cheese with bitter hot chocolate, in which you'd have to sweeten yourself.  If the cheese was already melted with the chocolate, I think I could have enjoyed it more.

We're relaxing on this chilly evening in the common area with many other, mostly Aussie tourists.  Tomorrow we plan to awake early and visit a coffee plantation where we will learn of the growing process of the plant, roast and then drink the coffee we roast, and take home what's left.  It's an honor system, the first we've come across in the country.  I look forward to it.

June

Post 71: The journey to Pereira, and my footy fix

F.A.,

11/26/11

Though we loved our time in Medellin, we had to move on. We decided to hit up Pereira so we could use it as a base for seeing the coffee region, and for the chance to see some football (soccer). We departed Medellin around 11 and made it into Pereira, "the Lovely City", about 4pm, giving us a few hours to find a place to rest our heads before the sun set. We looked at a few before settling with Home Sweet Hostel, on the outer reaches of the city. The owner Juan was very welcoming and hospitable. For dinner, we ate at a local fast food place, Sayanara, which ended up being our place of last resort twice the following day. It was a little pricier, but anything is better than street food. We got an early night sleep after eating.

11/27/11

Yesterday was a day I will not forget any time soon. We woke up early hoping to reach this park overlooking the city, but unfortunately we could not find it. We spent the mid day hours roaming the downtown markets of Pereira, a crazy place full of people selling pretty much everything. I picked up a small backpack for my camera and other items. We searched and searched for something decent to eat but as I mentioned earlier, we ended up resorting to Sayanara again (and then again for dinner!). Getting back to our hostel was a bit of a hassle, we were not quite used to the MetroBus system here and ended up going to all ends of the city before finding out way back.

The famous Naked Bolivar

Though the weather was starting to look rough, we ended up heading down to the local stadium to see if we could get some tickets. We asked a few police officers where the ticket offices were, and they directed us up a hill, where many kids were roaming around, stacks of coins in hand, begging people for change. The ticket office was a booth in an enclosed gated area, packed full of young "fanaticos". Us being gringos attracted them instantly of course and we were hounded repeatedly, for god only knows. At one point, a girl in the crowd pointed to us and yelled "money!". I tried my best to ignore them and just get the the booth to purchase tickets. I turned around at one point, only to see a giant horse, officer atop, staring us right in the face. Regardless of my experience in Cartagena, I was happy to see him there. We got whatever ticket we could communicate enough to get and got out of there as quickly as possible. Luckily for us, another officer on horse back followed us the whole way to the stadium, to deter anyone who may want to rob us. Lesson learned...if going to a game in the future, buy tickets early.

The game itself was a treat, and much more intense than any Union game I have been to over the past two years, regardless of the lack of a large crowd. The bulk of people in attendance were in the supporters end, surrounded by police who kept them in check, with force if need be. Their displays for their love of their local team was impressive, and fanatical to say the least. They sang and chanted the whole game, with very little let down.

no different than at home

view from our seats

The story for the local team, Deportivo Pereira, is a sad one this year, as they are at the bottom of the league table and will be relegated to a lower division. This was the last game of the season for them, and the last they will see of Liga Postobon for atleast 2 years. Knowing this, I feel the pain of their fans. Regardless of that, they played quite a game, defeating the 4th ranked Envigado 4 to nothing. Envigado seemed to play a very lackluster game, with only a few attempts on goal, hitting the top bar twice.

Today we head for Salento, a small coffee town an hour or so from here, to possibly see some coffee production and hike the Valle de Cocora.

Ciao for now,
Gavin

more photos after the cut -

Post 70: Thoughts on food, and day 2 in Medellin

F.A.,

This post is a continuation of the previous few days we spent in Medellin, more on Pereira soon.

11/25/11

After meeting with Stephan mid morning, we took the west - southwest metro cable (the San Javier line) to see the views from above.  Sweeping views once again, just this time we did not get off and took it around.  We wanted an escape from the city, considering the previous week hadn't been spent anywhere but in urban areas.  It was time to take in some fresh mountain air, and escape the pungent  fumes of diesel and fried empanadas.  With that, we decided to hike in the Arvi Park Nature Reserve.

We headed to Exito, a nation wide shopping center similar to the Wal-Marts that sell groceries in the states.  On the way, Gavin and I shared deep red mora juice (tart, similar to blackberries) and the white, milky juice of the guanabana fruit, with bits of it's flesh inside.  Both were quite delicious, as most of the many unusual, tropical fruits and juices I've tried in this country have been.  At Exito, we picked up some baguette bread, cheese, peppered turkey, avocado, tomatoes and water to have along our hike. While grilled meats are abundant throughout Colombia, deli meat selection is very limited here.   You typically have a wide selection of overly processed ham to choose from.  Any other meat will cost a significant amount more.  A half pound of turkey in the states: about $4.00.  In Colombia: $7.00 +.  We had exhausted ourselves of ham, so we were glad to finally find something otherwise.

If you're not cooking and/or traveling on a budget, food choices are limited and not vegan friendly. Only twice did we come across an Indian restaurant or a restaurant sign that stated 'Especiales Vegetarianos'.  The common cuisine here are meats, starches, beans and fried foods.  There are panaderias on every corner, as well as empanadas, perros calientes (hot dogs) and hamburguesa's.  Plenty of pizza and pasta, and in some regions even Mexican.  For a salad, it's likely you're going to McDonalds or Sayanara.  In super markets, leafy greens are virtually non-existent, but green beans and peppers are abundant.  I'm not saying these foods are unavailable, but you'll certainly be paying extra for it.

We met Sebastian at a local metro rail station, and he continued with us up the far northeast metro cable line into Arvi Parque.  There we had cup of fruity lulo juice before scouting our route.  Along the trail, we encountered many butterflies, one of which crawled onto Gavin's hand and then nose.  We also saw a tropical bird known as a Barranquero, and many varieties of moss, ferns, orchids, and mushrooms among tall alpine trees.  Stephen had a Swiss Army knife which we used to make our sandwiches.  Along the road back towards the metro cable we tasted a malty white, sweet liqueur known as Amalayas sold by a local man.  All four flavors were delightful.  We picked up a few bottles to bring home and share with others.

Gavin and I said our goodbyes to Stephan and Sebastian.  The remainder of the evening we spent walking to a local park in the nice neighborhood of our guest house, where a live merengue/salsa band played all through the evening.  We ate dinner outside overlooking the park, once again enjoying grilled steak, BBQ'd ribs, chorizo and beers; all for well under $20.  While watching retired people salsa and drink together in the square on this wet Friday evening, we could see the strong sense of community that is here.

June

Post 69: "Here...in Medellin"

Buenos Noches fellow adventurers,

Apologies for the lack of updates, but it has been an eventful past few days in Medillin, Colombia.  Medillin is a massive city of 3 plus million people, stretched across a valley between the Andes mountains, with a long and storied history of violence. 20 years ago it was considered the most dangerous city in the entire world, today it is a model for the developing world.

Our flight arrived Thursday in Medillin at around 11 am.  We shared a cab to the city center with some fellow American travelers whom we were friendly with at our hostel in Cartegena, Chrissy and Earl. Coincidentally, they booked the same flight as us.  After separating upon arrival in Medillin, Gavin and I arranged to meet them for a what would be a Colombian Thanksgiving dinner, our first away from home.  We quickly had to settle our things in our guest house as we had planned the previous day to meet Stephen (friend from Cartegena) to explore the city's cable car system.  Stephen brought along a Colombian friend of his, Sebastien.  Sebastien was quite familiar with Medillin, having lived there his whole life, so it was nice to have someone friendly and relaxed help us get to where we wanted to go.

On our walk to the elevated metro with Stephen and Sebastien, I noticed a street vendor selling a Salpicon variety.  I say variety, because I noticed various different kinds of the fruity drink around the city.  Some are sweetened, some are red, some were yellow...but all cold and delicious!  I could now check it off my list of street foods & juices to try during our time in Colombia.

We took the elevated metro line to the station where you connect to ride the metro cable.  The metro cable was inaugurated in 2004 and completed in 2009, with 3 cable lines taking you uphill to the north to northeast, west to northwest, and northeast to far northeast parts of the city.  It allows for easier commutes for those whom live up the mountain slopes, but also promotes tourism.  We took the cable high up over the barrios and over the peak of the mountain.  The views were absolutely incredible and you could really see just how vast the city is.  As for me, the motion and elevation at times was a bit nauseating.  After passing over some farms, alpine trees and giant ferns of the highland tropical forest, we reached Parque Arvi Nature Reserve.  It is a new project to promote tourism for Medillin (which may very well be a tourist meca in the future), but also a biological nature reserve.  We had no time to explore, but arranged to come again the next day.

On our way down the metro cable, a storm passed over.  We saw severe lightening flash all around us, but we felt safe.  Once we reached the transfer station to finish the ride down, they discontinued service while the storm passed.  Not wanting to wait considering we had dinner plans, we opted to take a local bus from where we were in the barrio to the city center.  The only slightest sense of anxiety I felt was going down the slick, heavily populated, narrow mountain roads.  It was an entertaining ride though, as we had a man with a wonderful voice singing on the bus, who serenaded us before hoping to collect our change at the end of the ride.  Luckily, cabs in Colombia are abundant and quite cheap.  We continued by cab to meet our friends at a restaurant called Mondongos.

Mondongo is a soup made from beef tripe (the cleaned stomach of a cow); a popular dish yet prepared differently in many Latin cultures.  In Colombia, it is often eaten as the soup course of a traditional almuerzo (lunch), and made in a stock with many vegetables and cilantro.  It was quite tasty when we had it with lunch in Cartegena, but the restaurant Mondongos served much more than just that.  We were glad to feast on grilled steak, fried plaintain, potatoes, avocado, arepa patties, bananas, wine and Club Colombia beers with our 4 friends to celebrate and give thanks.  The carne (meats) in Colombia are the best I've ever had, and we haven't even reached Argentina yet!  From the steaks to chicken to chorizo,  it was all very tender and savory.

Afterwords Gavin, Sebastien, Stephan and I explored happening nightlife in the wealthy El Poblado District.  We stepped into a bar and I took a shot of Aguardiente, an anise-flavored drink famous in this region.  We walked the streets, beer in hand, and chatted with some locals around our age, many of whom were friends of Sebastien.  We were definitely in what I would consider the 'hipster' part of town, a subculture of Colombia I had not seen.  We stayed out a bit later and took a cab to another part of town, till Gavin and I decided to call it a night.

We so thoroughly enjoyed our day in this great city, that we had decided to spend an additional day. Since this post is so long, I will post tomorrow evening about our adventures in Medellin yesterday, my thoughts and feelings on Colombia and it's people thus far, and our arrival into the smaller city of Pereira, where we will spend the next few days before heading to Bogota.

June

P.S: Happy belated Thanksgiving to everyone back home!

Post 68: Lazy Days en Cartagena

F.A.,

The last few days have been spent more-so relaxing than doing any sightseeing, and that is fine by us, considering the heat. We accomplished the main sites we determined to see a few days ago and have been trying to save money in Cartagena, which is, from what we have been told, the most expensive place to visit in Colombia.

11/22/11

Tuesday, we did not get out the door until well after 3pm. We discussed where to go after departing Cartagena and opted to get a flight to Medellin for Thanksgiving Day, so we could skip the 12 hour bus ride. We also booked a hostel for that evening so we have a secure place to drop our bags before seeing a little bit of the city.

We roamed and found a few more street foods to try before heading for the Museo de Oro de Zenu, in Plaza de Bolivar. We had expected to take a 5pm English guided tour, but it turned out that everything was displayed side by side in English and Spanish. The museum was a delight, and taught us a lot about the local indigenous population in pre-colonial times. After, we returned to our favorite stand in a square close to our hostel to try their selection of empanadas and fresh juice.

When we returned to the hostel, we met with some new friends (Stefan and Stephie, a pair of German friends) we had made and gathered up even more people (2 French Canadians, 2 Irish ladies, and a really awesome Uruguayan guy, Pablo) before heading to the outer city walls for some late evening drinking. It was a great time, full of great conversation.

Unfortunately, our fun was a little soured by some local police who decided to stop and frisk our group (without probable cause of course!) as we made our way home well past 1 AM. I had felt nothing but security up until that point, and it is sad to think that the only people really hassling us were "local authorities".

11/23/11

Yesterday was pretty much the same, we did not leave the hostel til well into the afternoon. The highlight of the day (and of Cartagena!) was our mid-day sampling of some ceviche from the now-famour La Cevicheria, which has been featured on Anthony Bourdain. What a treat it was. We got a basic combo made up of raw shrimp, octopus and squid, in a soupy mix of citrus and other delectable ingredients. I highly recommend this place to everyone and now regret not getting a more full helping. We had pizza for dinner and ended up going out to see some street musicians with Pablo and Stephie.

We fly out for Medellin this morning, and luckily we have decided to share a cab from the airport to the city, which is oddly 50 miles away, This will save some money and hassle for sure. We plan to meet back up with Stefan while there and possibly ride a few of the cities famous cable cars. Tomorrow...who knows where the road will take us.

Gavin

Post 67: Sun, street food & hidden tunnels

F.A.,

The sun in Cartegena.  I don't think ever in my life have I felt it beat upon me as it did yesterday.  Combined with the humid air, I welcomed the passing clouds and showers.  I've enjoyed bathing in cold water each day during our stay, as warm water is not available.  I can't remember the last time my face and body has produced this much sweat.  Maybe during my dancing days of outdoor rehearsals under the summer shade, or while cutting the grass as a teenager. Yesterday I felt as though I had just finished a hard days labor, when in actuality I was only standing or walking around the city.  Luckily, you can purchase ice cold coconuts with a machete hacked hole in the middle to sip the water inside to help keep you cool, or limonada along with other fresh, cool juices streetside.

On our walk to Castillio de San Felipe de Barajas, we stopped to enjoy some traditional ceviche from a line of red tents lined along a main avenue.  We had the shrimp, which was served with an abundance of diced red onions, freshly squeezed lime juice, garlic, horseradish and a ketchup like tomato sauce; with saltines along side.  It was quite delicious and cheap!  Street food surrounds you here.  Fresh exotic fruits, cheesy arepas, empanadas, plaintain crisps, tamales, bread, donuts, locally made sweets etc!  We are willing to give whatever we find a try.  I very much enjoyed the empanadas, which are fried and filled typically with shredded chicken and potato or pork.  Gavin liked his shredded coconut & burnt sugar cookie, which was too sweet for my taste.  We also tried a a sponge like cake, topped with preserves of some kind.  It didn't suit our tastes, but it's good to try everything once.  Today we plan on having more ceviche, as well as searching for other street foods and drinks we know of but have missed such as churros, which are apparently different than those of Mexico; and salphicon, a blended fruit drink.

The fortress we visited is the worlds largest colonial Spanish fort, built in 1657 to protect against pirates while shipping gold to Spain.  Exploring the walls, we had an aerial view of the city.  It's 4 stories of walls with additional slanted walls built up into them to further protect the outside from cannon fire.  Navigating through the many narrow, small tunnels inside the fort, I could only imagine the gun powder and cannon balls stored in its storage holds.  Some tunnels steeply went down many feet, and we had to be careful with our steps.  Although it was really interesting and a very neat place to visit, being inside the mazes of tunnels made me feel a little claustrophobic, and a bit paranoid.  When  I'd stare down one, I felt as though I was entering a time warp.  Not a good feeling at all for me.  Gavin thoroughly enjoyed our visit, despite the heat.  We were able sip some naturally sweet tamarillo fruit juice (tomato fruit) on our visit there.

We rested afterwards for awhile, then had dinner and more gelato.  Today we bought some groceries at the Exito to make dinner the next 2 days, to save some money.  This is a very beautiful, yet expensive city. We decided against taking some day trips outside the city to various places, as it is very hot outside and most ventures are similar to what we have seen or may see further along our trip.  We'd rather save the money because who knows what excursions we may come across the duration of our trip.  It cools later in the day, so then we will visit The Gold Museum, and pick up some street snacks.

June

More photos after the break:

Post 66: Choroni to Caracas to Bogota to Cartagena + Day uno

F.A.,

11/19/11

It has been a few days since our last post here, for that I apologize. Our return journey to Caracas was another long one. We were both happy to have Gustavo as our driver again, as we very much enjoyed his company on the way to Choroni. The beginning of the drive was peaceful, as we rode through giant bamboo tunnels and the lush rain forest settings of Henry Pittier National Park. June slept in the car most of the way, and I held on for dear life as Gustavo flew around corners and repeatedly switched lanes to make our travel to Caracas quicker. The other side of the road was full of delays and we saw a very fatal looking car accident. Our only delay was getting into Caracas, where Gustavo pointed out all the barrios of the city and explained how houses are frequently washed away by rains.

The airport and customs leaving Venezuela was fairly simple. Our meal of the day was a little touch of home...Burger King, not our first choice, but something familiar. The flight to Bogota was a pleasant one, as it should have been for the price we paid. Upon arrival in Colombia, we went through the usual customs and immigration stuff before searching for our flight to Cartagena, which unfortunately was delayed by an hour.

Due to the delay, we didn't end up in the coastal city until well after midnight, even with the added half hour in time change. I found an ATM and prayed to god that Bank of America wouldnt lock me out again, luckily I was able to pull out all the money I needed for the cab ride and our lodging for the next 5 days at Makako.  We didnt know the exact address to our hostel, but with some luck, we were able to stop somewhere random where I was able to look up the address for the driver on a computer. When we finally arrived to what we thought was our hostel, we freaked out because there was a party going on, at a time when we only desired sleep. Luckily, we were directed down the street to much calmer confines.

11/20/11

Our first day in the beautiful Spanish colonial city of Cartagena was a great one. We spent the morning trying to figure out money and food for the next few days. We shopped at the local 'Exito' store, a massive grocery slash department store, full of modern appliances and food. Coming from the socialist land of Venezuela, it was a bit of a shock to see. The drastic difference between these neighboring nations is evident everywhere, and while Colombia is certainly not rich, the quality of life here seems far ahead of its neighbor.

We spent the rest of the day wandering around the city, and exploring its outer walls. It reminded me of St. Augustine, Florida, another colonial Spanish city close to my heart that was built around the same time, though much smaller and less significant than the mighty Cartagena. We ate lunch at Pizza y Pasta, a traditional meal consisting of Soup, a Banana, Salad, Fried Plantain, Rice, Beans, and a choice of meat for less than $10 USD. It was nice not to eat fried everything, like in Venezuela. We must have gone around the old city 5 times, enchanted by the beautiful architecture, squares and great choice of street food abounding all around us.

In the evening we searched for an ATM, after which we had some pizza and beer while people watching at a local square. We got gellato before calling it a night so I could watch the MLS Cup (Congrats LA!) via a stream on the internet.

Today we are going to the Gold Museum (Museo del Oro) and the giant Catillo de San Felipe de Barajas, and hopefully we will figure out what the rest of the week has in store for us. We are still unsure where to go after we depart Cartagena.

Gavin

P.S.: please check our prior post for some photos. We will try to add more as soon as possible, and even some videos as well. Thank you!

Post 65: Day two in Puerto Colombia

F.A.,

The day was spent at La Playa Grande beach.  I brought along a mango and some cocoa guaripita.  There we rented lounge chairs and took in the cool sea breeze.  Rows of tall palm trees and small coconut trees lined the beach behind us.  The water was a clear aquamarine, with an unforgiving undertow.  My mother was concerned about my safety on the trip, picturing I was going to be kidnapped by a rebel guerrilla army or in a region struck by an earthquake.  I think I have a better chance of being sucked out to sea.

Today was uneventful, but very relaxing.  We wanted to take in the beauty, peace, warm & friendly people, and comfy bedroom before moving on to what lies ahead.  During dinner we met some (surprise!) Americans, from California.  We gave them the remainder of the passion fruit guaripita.  

We are both a little bummed to leaving Choroni, but anticipate what lies ahead.  We've had a very good experience here, and I'm sure we will return in the future.  We've met many very welcoming, sincere, friendly Venezuelans, and the scope of the land is gorgeous.  Gustavo comes to get us in the morning to take us to the airport in Caracas, where we will take a flight to Cartgena, Colombia.

June

Post 64: Arrival to Puerto Colombia

F.A,

We were picked up yesterday at our airport hotel in Puerto Viejo, outside of Caracas.  Gustavo, our cab driver, was very friendly and sociable.  He told us we could listen to Led Zepplin, Deep Purple, Santana, BB King & Eric Clapton for our 3+ hour ride to Choroni/Puerto Columbia. It helped make the journey more enjoyable.  He asked where we were from and when we said "Estados Unidas", he was surprised as he said he's only met one American in his life, "Bill Hammonton".  That seems to be the response from the Venezuelans we have talked to.  We have not met any nor anticipate meeting any Americans for the remainder of our time in VE.  Along the way we saw many 'movimiento al socialismo' propaganda billboards.  It can be a sensitive subject here to speak of, so understandably we have not brought up Chavez or politics in general.  Our cab driver stated to us that he thinks Chavez is a crazy, no good communist; that there has been no progress during his 13 year rule, that things have only gotten worse.  The posado owner showed disdain for him as well, stating he was taking private property from her neighbors.  We sincerely empathized with them.  On a lighter note, Gustavo stopped at a roadside restauraunt where Gavin and I tried our first Arepas.  It is what you'd get if you made grits into a pancake, and pan fried it.  Next, you'd cut it like you would pita bread and fill it. We had the pulled chicken and chorizo.  The pulled chicken was delicious, but we did not enjoy the chorizo.  It's not spicy like the mexican chorizo we're used to, just salty.   The final hour of our drive was made through the tiny, windy mountain roads in the lush rainforests of Henri Pittier National Park.  That part of the drive normally would have put us on edge, but due to previous travels, we have gotten used to scary roads and realize it's just apart of the adventure.

We knew we would love Choroni and PC as soon as we began to drive down the mountain out of the forests into town towards the Caribbean.  Small streets lined with brightly colored, colonial like posados, residences, and restaurants.   Very charming indeed!  Our lovely posado, La Bokaina, is off the main street.  We crossed a gate, proceeded down a path lined with sun ripened mangos that fell from the towering tree, then walked on a bamboo bridge over a rushing stream.  The well maintained grounds at our posada are gorgeous!  Soft grass, tropical flowers and many fruit trees.  I've collected many mangos (my favorite fruit) from the ground that are warm from the sun and sweet on the tongue.  Our Posado owner, Evelynn, is very nice and welcoming. They prepared our room with a bottle of wine, and fresh flowers.  Muy romantico!  The bed, air conditioning, and hot shower is just what we needed after a few days of roughing it.

We spent the rest of the day walking the streets, sitting by the sea and drinking guaraipita.  Guarapita is a drink made of rum and passion fruit juice, or rum and local cocoa.  It's very strong but easy to go down, so it can be a dangerous drink.  We had a suprisingly excellent dinner, as we've had mostly bad tasting or fried foods.  During our walk back to the posada in the evening, we felt very safe. The people are very friendly and warm.  Something we like about VE is that you don't get people hassling you to buy something, with the exception of the taxi drivers at the airport.  That is unlike many other places we've been.

After a much needed good sleep, we awoke and had breakfast in the back garden on the patio.  Fresh fruit, coffee, freshly squeezed passion fruit juice, and egg arepas.  This beautiful posado is a steal at $35 night p/p, with breakfast included.  Today we're going to the Playa Grande, a tropical beach 10 minutes walking distance away, and just taking it easy.  This evening we will be posting pictures.  Stay tuned!

June

Post 63: Salto Angel + the next day

F.A., 

This is a few days late, but our trip to Salto Angel (Angel Falls) is one we will not soon forget. 

11/15/11

We awoke around 7am and repacked all our necessary items into one bag for our excursion to the Falls. We departed around 8 to the other side of the lagoon to meet with a group of fellow travelers our lodge had set us up with. We hopped onto a small jeep crammed full of people. I offered June a seat and stood as we made our way up the hill for the boats. Joking ensued and we eventually made our way to a boat, for the first of what would be several hours of riding down the river to the base camp.

Our group was made up of two German couples, two British guys, an Italian couple and a few ladies from Poland (or Latvia?), all of whom were very friendly and welcoming. Our guide Henry spoke very good English, a major plus to all of us. The boat ride was a very long one, against the current, through beautiful jungle landscape, and mountains which dwarfed us in comparison. About half way through we stopped at a pink sand beach to eat lunch and let our asses recover from the soreness imposed by the hard wooden seats we had been sitting on for hours. An hour or so after we could see Angel Falls in the distance. The last bit of river was full of rocks and massive boulders which we had to assist by hand in navigating around.

We arrived at the base camp around mid-day and dropped our stuff off in the hammock of our choice before leaving for our hike to the falls. I took a spill on some wet rocks in the beginning of our trek but luckily didnt injure myself. The hike was longer than expected but rewarding as we finally got a view of what we had spent so much time and effort to see.

My nerves were on edge at this point because it was a moment I had waited for and planned all year. We swam around for a few moments before I grabbed June close and looked her straight in the eyes and asked her to marry me. I did not bring the ring with me, for fear of it getting lost, but it was the moment that counted most. I got the answer I wanted and couldn't have been more happy if I tried. When we finally left the water, June told the group and everyone congratulated us on our engagement. It was pretty awesome to be able to share to moment with others.

The hike back was a little easier, but I did fall once again on some rocks. Many people we encountered along the way seemed ill-prepared for the trek, and it is hard to imagine how they made it. I am glad we bought the gear we did, it very much came in handy.

Fire roasted chicken for dinner, great conversations, hammacka-sutra, and many laughs were the highlight of our night deep in the jungle with everyone. Sleep was a bit of a choir in itself in the hammock. The temperature dropped drastically overnight and it was a lot colder than I had anticipated clothes wise. When I finally did manage to sleep, I was awoken by the sudden onset of heavy rain. I am still getting used to hammocks.

11/16/11

The next day we took the boat back to Canaima Lagoon. Luckily, it was only about an hour or so this time, as we rode the current the whole way. We eventually arrived back at our lodge and packed up. Unfortunately for us, it poured as we were departing for the airport. I made a feeble attempt to cover myself with a trash bag provided to me by one of our host, who pronounced I was now to be known as "Hombre Plastico", or the Plastic Man! The boat ride across the lagoon in pouring rain was an adventure in itself, and unfortunately all for nothing as we ended up waiting at the airport for another few hours until we finally got a seat on a plane. There was no real rhyhm or reason to who went on which plane, but in the end we got a single engine prop all to ourselves, and the pilot of course. We took off from the short run way and looked over Canaima lagoon one last time before flying for a good hour over vast open land full of tepuys, waterfalls, rivers and lakes. Our landing at Cuidad Bolivar was smoother than I was been expecting. The ride was unlike any I had ever experienced, and unforgettable, much like the places we had seen and people we had met in the proceeding days.

After a few hours on a bus, we arrived in Puerto Ordaz for our flight to Caracas. The bus dropped us off across the highway from the airport and we ended up hijacking a shuttle from a local Best Western. Much to our luck, as it saved us money. Being a gringo does have its advantages.

The flight was delayed (of course), and we did not end up getting into Caracas until around 1 in the morning. There was no shuttle waiting for us and we were hounded by taxi drivers wanted to charge us ridiculous prices for a ride which was a little under a kilometer away. June requested help from a friendly Conviasa baggage handler (Juan San Juan) who called our hotel for us and stood with us while we waiting for our ride. He spoke no English but we managed to explain our situation and make it to the hotel. Without him, we would have been lost.

More soon...

Gavin (y June)