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Been a week in Venezuela now and we are finally getting used to the crushing, oppressive heat that makes me feel constantly like I ran through a shower fully-dressed. It took us 30 hours to get here from Manaus via a frigid, long-distance, cramped seat, bus. For some bizarre reason, the bus drivers in Brazil like to think of their passengers as meat that needs to be refrigerated and therefore keep the thermostat set at or below freezing. It does not matter how many times you tell them that your nose is about to fall off, they just laugh and turn the air- conditioning up a few notches. The cold buses are great if you have come equipped for your bus journey with socks, many layers, and a blanket, like the rest of the Brazilians. But if you are like me, and know the temperature is about 95 outside, then you do not think you will need to layer up for a bus ride!!!!!!!!!!
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May 8 - Ciudad Bolivar, Venezuela
Lasulo2005-11-25 16:49:07
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Been a week in Venezuela now and we are finally getting used to the crushing, oppressive heat that makes me feel constantly like I ran through a shower fully-dressed. It took us 30 hours to get here from Manaus via a frigid, long-distance, cramped seat, bus. For some bizarre reason, the bus drivers in Brazil like to think of their passengers as meat that needs to be refrigerated and therefore keep the thermostat set at or below freezing. It does not matter how many times you tell them that your nose is about to fall off, they just laugh and turn the air- conditioning up a few notches. The cold buses are great if you have come equipped for your bus journey with socks, many layers, and a blanket, like the rest of the Brazilians. But if you are like me, and know the temperature is about 95 outside, then you do not think you will need to layer up for a bus ride!!!!!!!!!!
We froze, basically, and then stepped into the heat and South American-ness of Venezuela. Yes, South American-ness, I just made up a word. But I did not realize how different Brazil actually is from the rest of the continent, and it is not just the difference in language; it is the difference in attitude and culture. Venezuela is more like Bolivia, Peru and Ecuador and we felt like we stepped back into that part of our trip. I was thrilled to finally be speaking Spanish again but discovered that I was now trying to combine Portuguese and Spanish and have come up with some bizarre mix that no one understands... lovely. The men here are unreal and we cannot walk down the street without a million comments and whistles even if we are dressed in our tatty backpacking clothes. Some just walk by and say what is probably the only English phrase they know, like Thank you, or Good night, or I love you-- pretty funny. Although in Lonely Planet it says that we should not be flattered at all the attention because Venezuelan men would whistle at their grandmother!!
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See photographs from:
Venezuela Gallery
