Posada Parador de Los Pinos Merida

... that in the next blog because you are probably nodding off by now... But wait! The day after we returned from Los Llanos, I went canyoning while Pierre-Paul enjoyed the effects of a bad burger from the previous night (unfortunately, he ate half of mine as well, so I was ok). I could get hooked on canyoning! You rappel, hike, jump, swim and climb down a river canyon wearing a wetsuit and helmet. This was my first time rappelling, and I did okay ...

... Gentlemen). At times we were treated like second rate citizens; being ignored; people jumping the line in front of us; scowls; and impatience. This I guess was as close to racism as Ive ever come. I still enjoyed the experience and was glad I went but sometimes the treatment was just not necessary. Synopsis - Near the border everyone was driving around in big 70s/80s US chevys that had seen better days - After crossing the border, we were stopped 9 times in 90 mins ...

... for all people I met in Merida are just lovely, and beautiful in their curvy ways. Still, I am just fascinated by the site. That's the word. Fascinated. There are two types of cars in Merida - huge old American classic that are literally falling apart or huge brand new American SUV. With price of oil almost for free, something tells me that Venezuela will be the last country in the world to go green. Have you noticed how many new ...

... due to all the time that has passed. Senseless and too exhausted to argue. The owner has a german account and would exchange my money with the black market rate if I transferred to his account, my only problem is that I have my flight in 2days from Cucuta and would take at least 5 days from my English account. Luckily (again) I have a friend in Germany who I could contact, she agreed to transfer the money and with German efficiency the money was in his account the next ...

... was a sports teacher. Equipped with helmets and wetsuits, we hiked down into the canyon for about 20mins until we reached the start of the river..which at that point was welcomingly cool. We then started to walk through the river itself...over the rocks and rapids...sliding and toboganning down the larger rocks...until we got to the first waterfall of 7m. With the rappelling gear secured, I started my descent down the fall...The worst part was the ...

... of a mystery but thought to be linked the shallow lakes in the region sending warm air upwards as the surrounding air cools. In hot days the lakes can warm to 40 degrees. This lightning can be pulsing away at 40 flashes a minute or more on a good night, although it was not that frequent for us. An additional spectacle was the ghostly forms of fishing bats cruising around our little house and emitting the occasional audible shriek. Then everything goes ...

... relaxing - we are the only ones booked on the rafting so no problem cancelling it. We book to do an evening Paraglyding off some nearby mountains for the following evening. After changing hostels and sleeping in a room with carpet on the walls and a choice of either cold or freezing cold water in the shower we head out late afternoon for the paraglyding. Merida is meant to be one of the best places in the world for it, due to almost guarenteed ...

... On this trip, we´re accompanied by six other tourists, two of which can´t get it through their head that the lightning they´re hoping to see doesn´t actually touch the ground. These Scots are also having a hard time figuring out why Sara and I are doing the tour for a second time. I begin to wonder the same until Cesar tells us a little history on the village. Apparently, Christopher Columbus sailed by it on his way to ...

... they probably had never been near an engine). I was bought back to reality with a jolt when I realized that first I would have to learn how to drive and then get a license plus whilst having a vehicle is fine when you're driving up the coast of Brazil I doubt it would be that practical when we plan to travel up the Amazon. Unless it was amphibious (how cool would that be?). Trying to focus and listen to the rest of her story was admittedly a little hard after that, as I couldn't shake ...

... the hour whizzed by without any further incidents Hurrah! First impressions of the luxurious double decker bus with ultra reclining seats, leg rests and on board toilet, were "wow this is cool" . . . and trust us it really was! For 13 hours the air conditioning was on full power which meant it was about 10 degrees for the whole journey despite numerous requests to turn it down (not from us obviously because we are far too English to complain). All I could do was ...