I couldn´t find my neighbors wireless so I had to walk down stairs to the cyper cafe, the first one was closed and I found a Movinet. When I went to buy milk and coffee this morning I found out that they didn´t have any. So I walked down the street further to the next grocery store and found the last carton of milk. It looks like there are shortages again. The women at the grocery told me that they are also out of harina pan (corn flour used to make arepas) The populace doesn´t seem very happy. The socialistic president seems to be making some missteps. His term finishes in 2012, but who knows he might decide to change the constitution again and give himself another term. The electricity and water seem to also have interuptions.
I won´t ever use the name of the president in this blog, just to prevent a possible knock on the door by men wearing red beres and carrying "pistolas" (pistols). I will call him el Padrino (The Godfather) When he decided not to renew the license for TV network Radio Caracas Television in 2007, it has been said that it was because the network was supporting the coup that temporarily removed him from power five years ago. Since then free speech has been a question mark in this country.
Sobre todo, (above all) this country is beautiful and friendly. I would urge anyone that has the chance to come and visit. The flora is so diverse and I see new plants that I had never seen the last 5 times I have been here. I haven´t seen much fauna but I know that the diverse animal life here is spectacular.
Well our only plans today are maybe to explore the Christmas shopping venues and go to church at 6pm tonight. My father-in-law has taken on a border, a women and her ten year old daughter. It has been great for Michael because she loves to play with him and she has kept him busy enough today so that my wife can do the laundry and I could escape to the cyper cafe to continue writing about this exciting journey in beautiful Venezuela!! Dios te bendiga (God bless you)
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Saturday, December 19, 2009
First 48 hours in Venezuela
This blog was created to document my Christmas vacation in Venezuela for educational purposes. I am an Assistant principal at the greatest Charter school in Arizona, StarShine Academy.
My first day was exhausting, the flight started out a mess because I was changing my son's poopy diaper in the airport bathroom right before takeoff making us the last to board the plane. The gate personnel informed us that there was no more overhead baggage room left so we had to check in our carry ons. We had my son's sippy cups and diapers in the bags. Then our seats were separated, fortunatly some kind travelers moved seats so that my wife and son were seated together. While in route my two year old son did not want to be seatbelted in and was screaming part of the time while a lovely man with a New York accent said to him, "stop crying!!"
Then we arrived in Newark and had a five hour layover. Newark is like a mall, stores selling suits, jewlery, and the like. The restaurants were great, we ate at the Garden city Diner and had delicious sandwiches. My son loved the moving escalator and kept pointing at the car on the top of the restaurant saying car, car. He never once looked perplexed that there was a car 15 feet above our heads.
When we finally arrived in Caracas it was 5:15 in the morning and we were beat. When we walked out of the airport it must have been 90 degrees with a 100% humidity because I had to shed my Christmas sweater ASAP. Luckily my mother and brother-in-law had a room already for us because we said are holas to each other and retired to catch up on some sleep.
When I woke up at about 11 am I realized that we were right on the ocean. I could see the waves crashing on the dilapidated shore from the room. Right away I said "Donde esta la playa?" (Where is the beach?)
After packing up our gear we left and started our slow drive stuck in a "cola" (traffic jam) to the beach front restaurant. I actually was glad to go very slow, I wasn't in a hurry and I could look at everything around me. The streets were interesting, seeing a garbage man hanging on to the garbage truck with one hand and drinking a beer in the other was a treat.
We made it to our destination and parked 25 feet from the huge rocks and crashing waves. The minute I stepped out of the car the most delightful smell of salt water penetrated my olfactory glands. WOW!! We ate wonderful seabass, redsnapper, arepas with local cheese, an avocado salad (avocados are the size of mangos out here !!) and batidas, (fruit drinks) Take an exotic fruit and throw it in a blender with some ice and you got a delicious refreshing beverage!!
My first day was exhausting, the flight started out a mess because I was changing my son's poopy diaper in the airport bathroom right before takeoff making us the last to board the plane. The gate personnel informed us that there was no more overhead baggage room left so we had to check in our carry ons. We had my son's sippy cups and diapers in the bags. Then our seats were separated, fortunatly some kind travelers moved seats so that my wife and son were seated together. While in route my two year old son did not want to be seatbelted in and was screaming part of the time while a lovely man with a New York accent said to him, "stop crying!!"
Then we arrived in Newark and had a five hour layover. Newark is like a mall, stores selling suits, jewlery, and the like. The restaurants were great, we ate at the Garden city Diner and had delicious sandwiches. My son loved the moving escalator and kept pointing at the car on the top of the restaurant saying car, car. He never once looked perplexed that there was a car 15 feet above our heads.
When we finally arrived in Caracas it was 5:15 in the morning and we were beat. When we walked out of the airport it must have been 90 degrees with a 100% humidity because I had to shed my Christmas sweater ASAP. Luckily my mother and brother-in-law had a room already for us because we said are holas to each other and retired to catch up on some sleep.
When I woke up at about 11 am I realized that we were right on the ocean. I could see the waves crashing on the dilapidated shore from the room. Right away I said "Donde esta la playa?" (Where is the beach?)
After packing up our gear we left and started our slow drive stuck in a "cola" (traffic jam) to the beach front restaurant. I actually was glad to go very slow, I wasn't in a hurry and I could look at everything around me. The streets were interesting, seeing a garbage man hanging on to the garbage truck with one hand and drinking a beer in the other was a treat.
We made it to our destination and parked 25 feet from the huge rocks and crashing waves. The minute I stepped out of the car the most delightful smell of salt water penetrated my olfactory glands. WOW!! We ate wonderful seabass, redsnapper, arepas with local cheese, an avocado salad (avocados are the size of mangos out here !!) and batidas, (fruit drinks) Take an exotic fruit and throw it in a blender with some ice and you got a delicious refreshing beverage!!
After lunch we moseyed through more "colas" (see definition above if you have forgotten, please write these down in your Venezuelan phrase book for future use.) As we were driving I kept seeing motorcyles zigzag between the cars. Many of them had numbers on their shirts and I asked my Mother-in-law what this meant and she told me they are the mototaxi. Very few had cascos (helmets) how crazy!! I took another nap in the car and woke up in my father-in-laws town, San Antonio De Los Altos. It's about an hour up in the mountains above Caracas. He lives in a high rise apartment building that is connected to a winding street that either goes up the mountain or down. The weather here is almost like Phoenix's. It is cool at night and the temperature climbs very rapidly until midday when you can walk around in a t-shirt and shorts. (If you want to look like a Venezuelan don't wear shorts, wear stylish jeans) I rarely see people in jeans and it could be scorching, but you got to be in style!
The value of the dollar is still a little fuzzy. Since the devaluation of the Bolivars last year, (they just cut off two zeros at the end and reprinted cool looking money) the dollar is not doing so well. I'm not so sure it is just that. So if you go to a bank the exchange rate is 1 dollar to 2.15 bolivares but everyone says the black market is paying up to 5! The trick is to know someone to do the exchange. I wouldn't walk around with a wad of 50s trying to exchange them. The crime has gotten worse according to my father and brother-in-law. I was told to always keep an eye out and don't wear any watches or jewelery.
Today, Saturday, I helped my father-in-law replace some faucets and then went and bought some vegetables from the Chinese grocery down stairs. It is hilarious listening to Chinese people speaking Spanish. Well I guess I shouldn't knock their Spanish, my Spanish, which I thought was great since I use it everyday with our parents and staff, is still not doing so hot here. I got caught by my wife asking some people. tiene la hora? which I thought I was saying do you have the time but it was a literal translation. I was trying to be cool, I should have reverted to my old high school Spanish, Que hora es? (What time is it?)
I am finally writing here in the apartment, I asked a neighbor to use his wireless. I found out through trial and error that there is only one place in the apartment that I can get a signal, in the corner of the kitchen closest to the window. Right now a cool breeze is coming through the window and I am listening to the neighbors entertaining some guests, music wafting through the air, dogs barking, and horns honking. Every body drives crazy here and they are always honking their horns. The baby is asleep and my wife is watching the one channel we can get on the tv until the satellite is fixed. Normally I can watch a lot of US channels. Wireless is down. Also visit¨: www.starshineacademy.org or email me at sdiana@starshineacademy.org
The value of the dollar is still a little fuzzy. Since the devaluation of the Bolivars last year, (they just cut off two zeros at the end and reprinted cool looking money) the dollar is not doing so well. I'm not so sure it is just that. So if you go to a bank the exchange rate is 1 dollar to 2.15 bolivares but everyone says the black market is paying up to 5! The trick is to know someone to do the exchange. I wouldn't walk around with a wad of 50s trying to exchange them. The crime has gotten worse according to my father and brother-in-law. I was told to always keep an eye out and don't wear any watches or jewelery.
Today, Saturday, I helped my father-in-law replace some faucets and then went and bought some vegetables from the Chinese grocery down stairs. It is hilarious listening to Chinese people speaking Spanish. Well I guess I shouldn't knock their Spanish, my Spanish, which I thought was great since I use it everyday with our parents and staff, is still not doing so hot here. I got caught by my wife asking some people. tiene la hora? which I thought I was saying do you have the time but it was a literal translation. I was trying to be cool, I should have reverted to my old high school Spanish, Que hora es? (What time is it?)
I am finally writing here in the apartment, I asked a neighbor to use his wireless. I found out through trial and error that there is only one place in the apartment that I can get a signal, in the corner of the kitchen closest to the window. Right now a cool breeze is coming through the window and I am listening to the neighbors entertaining some guests, music wafting through the air, dogs barking, and horns honking. Every body drives crazy here and they are always honking their horns. The baby is asleep and my wife is watching the one channel we can get on the tv until the satellite is fixed. Normally I can watch a lot of US channels. Wireless is down. Also visit¨: www.starshineacademy.org or email me at sdiana@starshineacademy.org
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