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Published: March 13th 2007
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Lagoon Camp
Our camp overlooking the lagoon, with our washing line. 3 years in the making and my travelling has final begun!!!
After very little sleep on Thursday night we got the plane to Caracas via Madrid. The flight to Madrid was not really eventful but on the next leg we met some quite interesting, and very drunk, Venezuelans. Most said we were mad going, 4 teens who couldn't speak Spanish, pretty much making out we were going to die as soon as we left the airport... Lucky for us Dan had a man in Caracas who sorted out a cab for us and we arrived safely at our Hotel in quite a nice part of town. On the trip from the airport however we did get a glimpse of the poverty in Caracas. Huge shanty towns fill the hillsides surrounding Caracas, with building balancing on top of one another and on the side of a cliff.
One our first night we were treated to a meal at Dans mate, Carlos, restaurant. It was very trendy and felt like i was still in the EU. The food was very unusual but incredible and it was really nice to feel safe after everything we had heard on the plane.
On
Shanty Town
One of the many shanty towns that filled the hillsides surrounding Caracas. our first day looking around we tried to stick to the safe areas but as the day went on we ventured further afield. This was mainly due to the fact that everybody we spoke to and asked for help from were really nice and would go out of their way to show where we should go. We visited a couple of large shopping malls, the Venezuelans love their shopping, and even managed to try out the local transport, the buses being much better and much more interesting than Londons. Our second day was also spent in Caracas wondering around, however this time we ventured a little further to the park. It was very interesting and busy and even had a zoo with quite a few animals. In the afternoon we went to the shops to buy some supplies to take the next day with us to Los Roques.
We took and early morning flight to Los Roques and saw the sunrise from the plane. the plane was quite small and was my first propeller flight. The landing was very exciting as it looked as if we were going to land on the sea as the island was so small
Tennis in the Lagoon
Max and Dan playing some tennis in the lagoon, and getting very burnt! and the runway went right into the water. Once on Grand Roque, the main island, we went and got our camping permit so we could camp on any of the islands in the recreational zone. Once that was done we headed to the island of Craque, famous for its snorkeling. There we spent most of the day in the sun, snorkeling with the multi coloured fish and beautiful coral and searching for a place to camp. After a lot of walking we found an incredibly beautiful lagoon hidden away behind the tree line and very unaccessible. We set up camp on a little beach surround by trees, perfect for protecting our already burning backs. The rest of the afternoon was spent relaxing in the lagoon which only waist deep so was perfect for playing beach tennis. At about 5 the island emptied as most people didn't spend the night there. This meant we had the freedom of all the beaches with only a few locals to disturb the tranquility. The locals were very scary however, they were like the people from the hills have eyes! Also their garden which we had to walk through to get to camp was filled
Local Fishermen
Some of the local fishermen catching some dinner. with old rusted tools and other such worrying machinery.
The next day we woke in terrible pain from lying on our burning backs and spent the morning slowly and carefully packing up, so as not to irritate them. We headed back to Grande Roque on the same boat we arrived in. The driver was really cool and loved his glam-rock so we listened to some classics such as "Another One Bites the Dust", "Wanna be in my Gang" and "Californication". Matthew loved the boat rides and thinks he has found his calling in life! The rest of the day on Grand Roque was spent hiding under a tree from the sun and in the internet cafe.
At five we got a boat to take us to another island to spend the night, Madrizqui. This island was a lot closer to Grand Roque and often quite busy but as in was a week day and the evening there was no one there. We set up camp right on the beach this time and quickly gathered some fire wood before the sun went down. The evening was spent eating pasta and debating politics. Once the sun went down and the
Grand Roque Town
One of the small streets in the main town of Grand Roque moon hadn't fully risen, the sky was so incredibly clear we could see the Milkyway! For our final evening on the islands we went for a quick moonlight dip in the sea before bed, the perfect way to finish the day and our stay on Los Roques.
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Emie
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Benj..!
Hey Benjie! It's good to be able to read about your adventures. I never knew you were such an amazing photographer! I expect to see some of your global work at the Photographers Gallery at some point! All the best and take good care of yourself, Emie xx