Cartagena de Indias

Some recent fotos for everyone. The first four are from Maracaibo in Venezuela, while the rest are from Colombia. Paz y amor mi gente, estamos hablando!

Beard + Aviators = Too cool for school.



Old fishing boat near El Lago de Maracaibo.

Bell tower near the north end of Maracaibo.

This church was also close by.

Coloumbian fisherman setting out in morning near Cartagena.

Snorkling near the Islas del Rosario.

The water was ridiculously clear, tons of great coral and fishies.

Playa Blanca, one of the best beaches around.

Hit up some salsa dancing one night with a crew from Argentina.

El Castillo San Felipe

View from one of the guard towers.

One of the old entrances to the top section of the castle.

Looking north from San Felipe into the old city.

La Iglesia San Pedro Claver in the old section of Cartagena.

This is how the tiered houses look in the city.

Another shot of a house near the Plaza Bolivar.

Shakira, Shakira!

Coasted into Cartagena, Colombia just a few days ago. What a beautiful city, I've seriously fallen in love. It's like a mix of Sevilla and the Caribbean with some African blood thrown in. It is truly an amazing city, I would recommend it to anyone who is serious about travelling. After Cartagena, it will be off to Santa Marta and then likely the coffee producing region of the country for something a little different. Bogota is also in the cards. And that is it kids! Just a quick how's-your-father this time. Pictures to follow, hope everyone is doing well. Paz!

El Mochilero

My transformation to scraggly, bearded travelling hippy is almost complete. I am currently in Maracaibo laying low and taking some downtime before a big push into Colombia. Some of the cities I'll probably end up visiting are Santa Marta, Barrenquilla, and Cartagena. Sadly, my beard is nowhere near the strength of one Juan Riedinger nor Geoffer Duck in his former glory days. It sits somewhere between that of the Walrus and my brother in Spain. Yes, these are the bearded men in my life.

Below is a snapshot of me with my new favourite soccer jersey! My team, El Deportivo Tachira, is one that I watched while in Venezuela in 2ooo, the last time they also won the national championship. Coincidence? I think not. It also took me a real long time to get it. I got the last size S in the whole store, which means this jersey was meant for me. Here's to hoping that it doesn't get stolen, ever.

In a seperate, non-related incident, I had my first real run-in with Venezuelan corruption. I had to pay off some police officers in the state of Portuguesa at 2 in the morning travelling from San Cristobal to Caracas. They insisted that I did not have a visa for travel in the country, which I know is not required. At any rate, they threatened to take me off the bus and throw me in jail or worse - leave me out on the street for everyone else to get me. I gave them all the money I had in my wallet, about 13 dollars Canadian, and then had to show them my empty wallet so they would leave me alone. It's something that I thought might happen being an extranjero, but it was still a little iffy to say the least. Let me say though! Overall, Venezuela is great country with great people, but unfortunately these things do happen.

Tour de Venezuela 2007

A few highlights from the trip. Enjoy!

Starting out in San Cristobal on January 8th.



Checa and I near Lake Maracaibo.

Los medanos, sand dunes, in Coro.

Go big or go home!

Morrocoy National Park

Our driver Alexi in retrospect at Cayo Muerto in Chichirivichi.

Living large in Venezuela.

The crew in Puerto La Cruz.

This was my middle of January, sorry Van.

My view from the restaurant in Mochima National Park.

Outside La Cueva del Guacharo.

El Salto Aponwao (136 metres high)

A road less travelled...

One of three waterfalls we visited this day.

Lookout in the Gran Sabana with a tepuy in the background.

Waterfall near the Orinoco River.

Close-up of a flower in El Parque La Llovizna.

The Jesus Soto Museum in Ciudad Bolivar.

Wide open spaces define the Llanos.

Baby crocadile hunting.

Sun setting over Los Llanos.

Argh, I am a bad blogger.

Man, I suck at blogging but I rule at traveling. Just finished a 25 day tour of Venezuela with a group of Rotary Club exchange students and my brothers from here. The whole experience was AMAZING. I think I know the country better than the average Venezuelan. We chilled on some amazing beaches, hiked in the Gran Sabana, treked through Los Llanos, and basically had some really good times. I will throw up some pics so anyone who still reads this blog can check them out. To all my exchange kiddies, thank you for making that trip unforgettable.

Other than resting a bit after the trip, my next plan of action is to meet a friend in Colombia and move on from there to Panama. Brazil sadly has fallen through to a great deal of grief and lost money. My Carnival in Rio will have to wait for another year. My heart goes out to Tais and Joose who were waiting for me there. ¡Lo siento mucho!