Tim Version: * Landed in Caracas, changed some money on the black market. * Made my way to "Backpackers Hotel", an ex sex motel, and met 3 people - none in Venezuela more than 4 days, all had been robbed in Caracas. Decided to stick to my plan of hastily leaving Caracas. The version using lots of caution and taxis in this place...: Finally I got a plane with personal TVs, lots of good movies, games to play and all that stuff =) To bad it was only a 3 1/2 hour flight!! Where was this kinda plane on my way [View Full Entry]

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Sunday 1st March After Saturday's last minute's rush pack when I squeezed too much into my tightly packed rucksack and double checked that I wasn't forgetting anything - the 'just in case' items - I headed to Heeathrow at 3.30 am with Jennie still in her dressing gown. Got there in plenty of time as no traffic on the roads and after check-in browsed through Duty Free where I had to bin my straw hat which had already disintegrated in my rucksack. 'Had the usual problems going through security with my replacement hip - they even offered my a separate room [View Full Entry]

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Leaving Caracas, hoping a pic of the group gets to you.... [View Full Entry]

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Yay! It worked. Now to try two more. [View Full Entry]

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OK, this one is of the kindergarten I talked about. Off to Panama now. [View Full Entry]

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Hi all, I can´t find your messages on the blog anymore (except for Barbaras). Richie, do you know what´s wrong? The photos I posted are: 1 Heading out of Caracas on the bus to Barlavento. 2 Me at the airport in Costa Rica 3 Me at the airport in Costa Rica again (sorry) 4 No idea Off to upload some decent ones....´(so far not impressed with blogging, or me blogging!) [View Full Entry]

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Hello think I´ve got the photo thing partly sorted. To do it properly takes a technical genius! I will send now (or soon if this fails) and comment later, just don't want to lose them. Was guessing photo's as I uploaded, so have a motley bunch, haven't yet managed to find the barrios. Hopeless and embarrassing. [View Full Entry]

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HI all, Now that I´ve succeeded in sending some photos no matter how awful or disorganised, I can at least see how it´s done and a better job will be made of it on Wednesday when I am out at the airport, heading for Cuba. Ignore the photo labels, don't know how to delete or change them. Maybe an instruction on this would be helpful, Richard? This is Sunday and we are all having a rest. Tomorrow and Tuesday will be busy again. I have sneaked off from my comrades to a known entity: the shopping mall, where everything can be [View Full Entry]

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Hi, Just to answer Barb's question: Most people we speak to are pro-Chavez, but then we tend to speak to socialist groups and govt people, the visits have been organised that way. I wondered about one or two the school teachers, got a sense they they wouldnt have said'otherwise, as we were there with govt representatives. We were told that there was strong opposition from many in the middle classes, yet, they said, those groups also benefited hugely from the changes. Wages have gone up in most areas of work. I can certainly see how working classes and unemployed have benefited. [View Full Entry]

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Hi all, It´s great reading your blogs so I could at least get the photo thing right! I´ve left the camera behind today so don´t even have the chip to upload photos, so please be patient, good pics coming sometime before I leave this place. First, Sarah and Al, sorry to hear Jed is poorly again. At least we know what the problem is this time. Richie, I would ask the techo here about how to upload pics, but I think that might require Spanish 102! Could you perhaps write an explanation here, please? IN the meantime, to try and give [View Full Entry]

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