Hotel La Pedregosa Merida

... group, Ruth, was dragged along the ground on take off, so she is pretty bruised and cut up from that.. not too nice! After the paragliding we all had a new years eve traditional Venezuelan meal which was lovely, and then we partied the night away in the park opposite the hostel. It was the best new years I think I have ever had! Here in Venezuela, people can just by fire crackers and fireworks from street vendors, so throughout the day and night you can hear huge ...

... would creep in and cool the 24 degree air, it was bliss. Fortunately the last 15km is by road and all downhill, sweeping swiftly down the mountain twisting and turning around hairpin bends that the Italian coast would have been proud of. The views were spectacular. We came down so fast that you could feel the temperature increase as we dropped over 2,000 metres through the scattered clouds into bright sunshine. We arrived in the settlement of San Juan, which has ...

... is characterized for being an almost continued lightning, that takes place in clouds of great vertical development forming electrical arcs between the 2 and the 10 kilometers of height (or more) as the tradewinds penetrate in the surface of the Lake in hours of afternoon (when the evaporation is greater) and they are forced to promote by the mountainous system of Perijá and the mountain range of Venezuelan the $andes. So that the ...

... Beer) flavoured Ice Cream, haha! Here the police are not corrupt like in Caracas and walking around was no issue. Everywhere I went, I found myself constantly gazing up at the mountains, that shadow the city until the sun rises far up enough to shed light over the place. We did food shopping after a while of walking around and bought things for desayuno and dinner. Its so good having a kitchen we can use again! The last month, we have had nothing but ...

... 2,450 Bolivars to the Dollar and on the black market its 4,600 to the Dollar. I only brought $200 with me (was a bit nervous about a strip search durin the bus trip so didn't bring more with me). The Angel Falls trip is roughly $250 but will be nearly an extra $50-$100 because I have to use the official bank exchange (damnit). Jan 10th Merida Woohoo, after 2 more hours of queuing this morning and pestering the staff at the cable car I managed to get a ticket for the 10am ride ...

Before we left Merida, I really wanted to go up the Teleferico, which is the longest and highest cable car in the world. The four stations take you 12.5 km to the summit of Pico Espejo at 4765 metres in the Andes. We were at the bottom by the gate by 7.30am and managed to get the first ride up after eight (I have never seen a routine ticket line move so slowly). We were really lucky with the weather as it was fine and clear. It took about 45 minutes to go all the way ...

... unbelievable!! Thank god Sarah and I havnt that would put a bit of a dampner on the whole trip. I met a guy I bumped into in Salvador Simon. We are all going on a tour to Los Llanos tomorrow, Sarah and I managed to get a really good price (much beter than the others) so we have to keep quiet! Anyway, its sad to leave Merida as we are staying in a really nice place but im looking forward to the safari in Los Llanos!

... the lake in a stilted house, where do you think it goes?¨ ¨Why go through the charade of having a bathroom and toilet then, why not just a hole?¨ (We hear the same splash. Sara shakes her head, feeling deceived). Ingrid again joins us on the deck and in a rare moment of honesty for a tour guide on an inferior tour, tells us the lightning´s better at the village of El Congo. Knowing we blew this one, Sara and I nod our heads in ...

... has blown out! Is weird that we were in very humid temperatures about an hour ago and now in freezing cold. Fortunately we have our Siberian gear with us so are prepared! Have to drink loads of water to avoid altitude sickness (some of the kids are having oxygen administered in the first aid room) having had it in Quito (forgot to mention that before = v bad migraines and sickness) Get back ...

... and I felt it tugging. I made a quick sign of the cross, or at least I would have done if I was a) very religious and b) not gripping white-knuckle *******to my harness straps as instructed, and we were off. "Go!Go!" said somebody stood right behind me. I took about 3 steps, then felt myself being yanked into the air, as my feet dangled uselessly. After a couple of seconds of mild terror, I was able to sit back in my harness, and start breathing again. We flew ...