General: Venezuela

“So, tell me everything you know about Venezuela…” If someone had demanded that of me 6 months ago, I doubt I could have filled a postcard. How much do you know about Venezuela? So perhaps, then, it was a little surprising we chose to visit for three weeks this Christmas? Not at all. Sometimes it’s the enigmatic countries that are the most fun, usually less touristed, more educational, often more of a challenge, but equally ...
...do our homework first. After discovering we could get reasonable flights, we dug out a few guidebooks at the library, and discovered that Venezuela might have a lot to offer. Perhaps I’m quite thick, but for some reason it hadn’t occurred to me that for Venezuela to have a coastline, that coastline would have to be on the Caribbean? Pictures in the books certainly looked every bit as nice as any Caribbean island. But that wasn’t ...

xadoc 29.01.2004 (30.01.2004) · Read full review
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Review of General: Venezuela

I was rather fortunate this summer that my work took me to Venezuela for the entire month of July and therefore I got to experience so much that this wonderful and fascinating country has to offer. It is an excellent country to travel around in especially if you are on a budget and its location means that you can experience a wide variety of climates, from the jungles of the Amazon, the cloud forests in the north, chilled out Merida at the foot of ...
...then on to the beaches in the north to chill out and enjoy the sea and sand. I was fortunate to do all of these things and so much more with the highlight being the work we did with an indigenous Indian village, a six hour dug out ride from civilisation, being accepted into the community and feeling like you have improved their lives in a very small way, as the credit card advert goes “Priceless”. Orientation and Important Stuff For those who do ...

atticusuk 26.08.2009 · Read full review
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Review of General: Venezuela

hope this review helps i am not a writer so excuse any mistakes i would just like to try and give you an idea of what this was like. we travelled november 2004 to this amazing island where we had a fantastic time (made ourselfs) the island of margarita is unbelievable place where the weather hits right up into the high 40s,sometimes abit overpowering but if you are after a deep tan this is the place to be. if you dont know it is a spanish speaking ...
...quite good english. we went 2 weeks all inclusive stayed at the dunes beach resort which is a large complex the rooms are nice but basic have tv and showers,fridge (couldnt understand why no mini bar as was all inclusive) the hotel had probably the best night entertainment group ive seen not the usual tacky shows you get this was really well put together,could not fault it apart from if you like the usual tacky show:). the hotel was great like ...

yena123 16.04.2005 · Read full review
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Review of General: Venezuela

I just read an excellent review by xadoc, and everything you pretty much need to know is there. I just have a few extra bits to fill in which I think would be helpful. The city has an excellent tube system, called the Metro, which is cheap and convenient. It is extremely handy for getting around and best of all, you can't get too lost as you are bound to find a station before long and you can get back to your hotel/get to your destination without ...
...is well known for leather goods, Nike, Reebok, Adidas stuff, clothes and GOLD. Fantastic quality 14 and 18 karat gold from the "joyerias" or jewellery shops. The gold is usually priced for you there and then as it is calculated based on the rate of exchange so of course it varies. Lovely quality gold, no 9K rubbish which is ridiculous as anything under 10K is not supposed to be classed as gold. You can get excellent stuff, beautiful designs. The ...

Lisette 04.03.2005 · Read full review
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Review of General: Venezuela

Venezuela has to be the most amazingly diverse country i have ever been to, and worry not, it is not the only place i have been. It ranges from the Andes in the West to the Gran Sabana and then onto the dense Jungle in the east. It has the world's tallest waterfall: Angel Falls, (discovered by Jimmy Angel), beautiful Carribean Coast, unique tribal communities and bustling oil rich cities. As i did with my trip lets start where most people do -Caracas. ...
...extreme wealth due to the oil, but the first thing that hit me was the incredible prices. I mean a 3 course meal for £2.50 and people were ripping you off if they were selling fags for 90p. This meant that a daily budget was tiny and in fact hotel rooms in other towns were less than £4.00 a night, so a budget of less than £15 is fine. From Caracas the options are endless. If you decide to trek in the Andes, Merida is a good starting point, a bustling ...

alimason 27.08.2007 · Read full review
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Review of General: Venezuela

What a wonderful country. We flew into Puerto Ordaz. Spent a couple of days on and around the River Orinoco, a word of warning Take Waterproof outerwear, you need it in this area. My goodness does it rain when it wants to. The storms are spectacular. From here we dorove through the rainforest stopping at all manner of places on the way then onto the Gran Sabana. What a contrast wide open spaces, and roads that are so streight the Romans must have ...
...were not allowed out at all due to the prospectors being armed and very hostile to strangers. ( we felt as though we had stepped back in time into an old American movie)We visited a gold mine and learned a lot about the gold we wear, when we left we felt guitly to wear gold. Thenwe were lucky to visit an illegal diamond strip mine. This is horrendous. The conditions of living are very primative, the only way in or out is by donkey,or 4 wheel drive ...

denise.parry 17.10.2001 · Read full review
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Review of General: Venezuela

Venezuela offers many, many tasty dishes: Central to Venezuelan cuisine is maize. This is either ground when fresh and green to make the basis for "cachapas" or ground when ripe to make flour for "arepas" or "empanadas". Cachapas are large, slightly sweet pancakes which are then fried and served with cheese (sometimes with cheese and ham or with fish). Empanadas are vaguely like spring rolls, fried with a wide range of fillings. Arepas are baked ...
...(esp. cheese, tuna, beans). Arepas are eaten for breakfast, dinner and tea - sort of equivalent to the sandwich. And almost all cafés and street stalls sell arepas and empanadas to eat "on the go". The great thing about Venezuela is the fruits on offer. A lot of them are unheard of in Europe and others such as avocados, mangos etc. which cost a small fortune here are tuppence ha'penny over there as well as being twice the size!! The fruit drinks ...

bayleaf 12.08.2000 · Read full review
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Review of General: Venezuela

I remember it like yesterday, the day I got off the plane and smelled the new culture in the air. Venezuela was more then my expectations, the people were very friendly and helpful, before my arrival I had feared of street gangs but I did not see any at all. The staffs at the hotel were very helpful and directed me to best places to visit. Instantly I fall in love with this country, the food tasted wild and exotic, the women were extremely beautiful ...

Al 04.07.2000 · Read full review
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Review of General: Venezuela

Just to add a little about the specialist gold shops in Caracas..if you are spending about £150 or more on an item then you should be able to negotiate a hefty discount...at least 10%. like anywhere it helps to have the cash counted out for a quick sale. ...

dayredeemer 02.05.2007
Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful
Review of General: Venezuela