Nat is tripping over reptiles while leading our recce tour, Venezuela Encompassed.
It's not often in life you step out of your bedroom and trip over a large iguana. Unless, that is, you live in Los Llanos...
The last few days have been an incredible insight into the diversity of Venezuela, where we've travelled from the hot steamy shores of Lake Maracaibo, through the wildlife festooned wetlands, and up into the Andes. The journey has taken us through cloud forests and over mountain passes, where we've stopped to admire jaw dropping scenery and colonial towns along the way. Plus local brews with magical qualities...!
Merida was a delight; a buzzing city, brimming with culture where the population seems as diverse as the landscape - not surprising as it's home to the second largest university in the country, and one in six of its inhabitants is a student. This explains why it's a hub for the arts, political awareness and 'alternative' fashion. I've been feeling decidedly underdressed in my travelling clothes as Venezuelan beauties seem to be a dime a dozen, and I am not surprised to learn they have produced more Miss Worlds than any other nation. They also have one of the highest quotas of cosmetic surgery anywhere in the world, and if you can't afford to go under the knife, you can simply buy figure-enhancing underwear (think Spanx knickers with built in scaffolding and bum lifting straps). That's my Christmas gifts taken care of....!
One thing that was surprising, however, was the complete lack of westerners in Merida. In fact, since we set foot in Caracas over a week ago, we haven't seen a SINGLE other foreign tourist, with the exception of the Lufthansa airline staff who were staying in the joining hotel. Last week Lufthansa announced they are withdrawing this route, so even they will be gone soon. When I ask Albaro our local guide about the lack of visitors he shrugs and tells me "we used to have tourists here but not now. Maybe we see some at Angel Falls".
Well... There's certainly none here in Los Llanos (the grasslands) where we appear to be the only guests on the 54,000 hectare cattle ranch. There are however over 300 species of bird, more capybara than you can shake a stick at, giant anteater, anacondas, caiman, howler monkeys and a plethora of exotic bug life. And of course the hundreds of iguana, most of whom appear to have congregated outside my door for a bit of a party...
