Blogs from Zulian, Venezuela, South America - page 2

So i started writing this entry over a week ago but things have become a bit delayed, possibly because i am fitting back into Latinamerican laidbackness or because i am a bit ill. Sympathy e-mails very much appreciated. Now I would like to cast your minds back to Monday the 16th of July when my nightmareish escape from Venezuela took place. I should have known it would be difficult, any country that asks for your passport number when you buy a pencil sharpner is seriously flawed. It was a hot dusty road from Maracaibo to Maicao (on the Venezuelan/Colombian border) and i wasn´t enjoying the ride much anyway. After 2 hours the police pulled our car over and what began was my worst journey ever (worse even than the four hour bus/train combination between Birmingham and ... read more

Another early start at 7am, and a long drive to witness an unusual phenomenon which is unique to Venezuela; the Catatumbo Lightning. There is a particular area, no more than 20 kilometres square, where lightning occurs continually at night. Strikes occur between 30 and 100 times a minute, apparently enough to read a book by. But curiously, these strikes are not accompanied by thunder. Scientists have studied this phenomenon, but no-one really knows why it occurrs, or why it only occurs here. It is not a guaranteed occurance however. On average it will occur about 300 nights each year. Would we be lucky enough to see it? We undertook our two day expedition with an extremely knowledgable guide called Alan Highton, a reknowned naturalist who has worked on various TV documentaries. The Catatumbo Lightning was one ... read more