Posada Parador de Los Pinos Merida

... to the side. The worst part for me was jumping from rocks into pools below. I don't like heights or jumping from heights into narrow spaces or going head-first, and of course we had to do all of that just to build character or something. We completed the trip by rappelling down a 35m waterfall. Loads of fun. Sometimes it's a nice break to be a tourist rather than a traveller. To be continued- tour into Los Llanos next. Cheers xoxo ps Not many ...

... is crazy - Hotels in Merida are cheap considering the facilities. I had my first hot shower in 6 weeks! - I didn´t get to see the Catatumbo lightning phenomenon because no-one else in Merida wanted to go. Boo... - The authorities for some reason are screwing Merida. They have shut the main tourist attraction ; the cable car up 5Km Pico Bolivar (something about corruption) I will elaborate on is the money. Somehow, Chavez has changed the exchange rate. The ...

... is for everyone to share", she says with a black humor so untypical for this part of the world. So in a way, despite the unreasonable prices, I'm getting more experience worth for my $ than I'd hoped for. I'm thinking of cutting my trip short. *** WORLD CHANGE STARTS WITH EDUCATED CHILDREN! Give a girl the life long gift of education! Support my appeal 100 GIRLS BACK TO SCHOOL! Donate at: www.justgiving.com/100GirlsBackToSchool Hugs & Kisses, Vik

... and equipment away. A few theories are flying around; one being that he found some hallucenagenic plants and went off into cuckoo land, prancing about the mountains in his shorts. Another more realistic theory is that he was so far gone from lack of food and the cold that he went abit mental. The fella is only 23 and now has just one or two toes left and God knows what other illnesses because of it. (sigh) What a doughnut! Jan 7th Cucuta to San Cristobal I was thinking about the ...

... kiwis: that's higher than Mt Cook) and gets up to 4300m, and then finishes with a 90 minute slog along a dirt road. The bit between the high point and the dirt road is delightful. The only thing wrong with the initial climb is that it is really hard work. It wouldn't be at sea level, but this was my first encounter with altitude, and I didn't like it. Although I was climbing this hill in baby steps my heart was battering my rib cage and I could feel my pulse inside my ...

... the sun came up. To warm up I ordered a coffee, asking for the small size. What an understatement, I've had drink samples twice the size. However, it was beautiful coffee, milky and flavourful, and I actually found it satisfying. I had to laugh later though when I saw the most massive lumps of processed ham for sale. Such a contrast. Mérida is a really cool town. Nestled between two mountain ranges, the start of the Andes on one side, it ...

While at Angel Falls, two Danish guys told Sara and I about a phenomenon that occurs nowhere else on earth, the Catatumbo lightning. Almost every night, frequent flashes of lightning light up the Venezuelan sky over Lake Maracaibo. What makes this occurence so unique is the lightning storm isn´t accompanied by rain or thunder. It´s soundless. Scientists have yet to explain it, but the most accepted theory is the lightning occurs ...

... anyway with my time at last running out, I thought that a day was enough to see the museum of contemporary art, which was very good, although a bit small, as some of the exhibits were closed (but saw the Picasso and Chagal I had my eye on). Also saw the dangerous elements of the city, a street cart race, a rally for their glorious comandante cha vez, and the other famous sites that gravitate around the national hero Bolivar... The main comment about ...

... The place was packed and we squeezed around a tiny table. A guy was going round the other tables taking digital photos of people. He explained that he worked for a website that posted the photos on the net free of charge. Since everybody else in the bar seemed to relish the thought of appearing on the net especially the girls who would stand and pose and make him re-take the photo until they were happy, we thought it seemed harmless. Check us out here Click ...

Left the beaches for Merida: Venezuela´s adventure capital, nestled in the Andean Foothills. Got a little lost on the way as a result of tyre burning protests, a lack of road signs (unless you want to go to Caracas - no thanks!) and leaving it up to two men to navigate! The day we arrived in Merida everything was shut as it was May Day! So we visited the ice cream parlour with the largest selection of ice ceram flavours in ...