Gabriel Castillo

My Brazilian visa was ready the morning after dropping off the application.

Equipped with my new visa, I set off from Santa Elena de Uairén for a long hike across the Venezuelan-Brazilian border where I immediately shared a 3hr taxi into Boa Vista, Brazil. By that evening I was on an 11 hour bus ride to Manaus.

This was my first time in a land where I could not speak the language and already I was feeling the uncomfortable stress and even slight fear that comes along with not being able to communicate with the people around you.

Arrival In Manaus

At 6am the following morning a hand was patting me on my shoulder and a voice was telling me something. Slowly, I pulled my eyelids open but hearing was still garbled; the person patting my shoulder was clearly the bus attendant but I could not make out anything that he was saying. I was slouched in a seat on a bus, shoes were off, and my feet were hanging off the side of the bus seat. I had been sleeping and my head must have been hanging over to one side for a while because I could feel the strain in my neck as I lifted my gaze to the attendant standing before me. As I lifted myself up I also realized a small pain in my stomach.

Soon I noticed I was the only one on the bus, and I realized that what the attendant was trying to tell me was that we had arrived and that it was time for me to get off.

Exhausted and half asleep I painfully lifted myself from my seat and made my way outside to where my backpack awaited me. For a while my mind stayed cloudy. Unable to think straight I walked around in circles as the pain in my stomach worsened. I had only had a small meal during my few hours in Brazil and already my stomach was paying for it. Soon, I would learn and use my first Portuguese word: banheiro.

Manaus in a Few Short Hours

I wasn’t in Manaus for too long. I walked 3 hours to get into town and from there, I wandered around the streets eating all the street vendor food I could get my hands on (I still haven’t learned my lesson). I also tried out a Brazilian Churrascaria called Bufalo that had come highly recommended, but turned out being highly disappointing.

After lunch I purchased a 2.5 day, $60R ferry ride along the Amazon River to Santarem along with a $35R hammock that I would be using to sleep and rest on while on the ferry. The ferry would be leaving at 3pm and with the few hours I still had to kill I visited the incredibly beautiful Teatro Amazona.

Last night the plan was to take a bus from Ciudad Bolivar in Venezuela, through the border town of Santa Elena de Uairén and into Boa Vista, Brazil. However, the bus that went across the border was full and so I bused into Santa Elena and stayed; I arrived just outside Santa Elena this morning at the nearby terminal.

Although I hoped to immediately make it across the border I was turned back as I needed to apply for a Brazilian visa first. According to the Brazilian consulate in Santa Elena the application requires two passport pictures in addition to proof of my yellow fever vaccination and $335 BSF.

Luckily, with regard to the yellow fever vaccination, I had already gotten mine at one of Venezuela’s free clinics. So first, I went off to find my passport pictures which I purchased at a local convenience store for $10 BSF.

Next, I tried withdrawing money from a few ATM machines but I couldn’t find any that would work. So, I went into a branch and spoke to a teller who said that in order to withdraw money from within the branch I would need to bring them two photocopies of my passport in addition to two photocopies of my ATM card. As absurd as this sounded and as uncomfortable as it made me feel to have a photocopy of my ATM card floating around in some foreign country, what choice did I have?

I went around town looking for a copy machine, made the copies, returned, got my money, and rushed back to the Brazilian consulate, hoping to have my papers processed and be on my way across the border.

No Go

Upon returning to the consulate I provided proof of my yellow fever vaccination, two passport pictures, and the required $335 BSF. I then filled out two copies of my visa application; one for processing and another for the consulates records. Then, only after eagerly waiting for what I thought to be the processing of my documents, the consul returned to advise me that I would need to return tomorrow and that “hopefully” my visa would be ready.

I am very low on cash and the unequal money exchange at the banks in addition to the many hoops involved in withdrawing funds from international accounts means I’ll have to be extremely thrifty with my spending. The cheapest place I could find for the night is $45 BSF. Hopefully my visa will be ready to go for tomorrow.

I spent the weekend in Canaima, seeing the great Angel Falls.

However, before I go into my experience at the amazing, awe-inspiring, and world renown, natural wonder, known as Angel Falls, I should first admit that until just a week ago I had never even heard of it.  Yeah, so it’s the world’s tallest waterfall at nearly 1km in height.  Yeah, so it happens to be situated amidst a natural landscape that is one of the oldest in the world.  Yeah, so its many “tepuis” or “plateaus” contain unique species of flora and fauna which have been isolated from the rest of the world for hundreds of thousands of years.  Yeah, so the landscape has inspired ancient legends and even modern works of literature such as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous piece, “The Lost World” and even more recently, the majestic, Paradise Falls, in Disney’s “Up”;  yeah, so.

As embarrassed as I was in never having heard of Angel Falls, I have since come to learn that I have not been alone in my ignorance.  In fact, most people who I have talked to have never heard of it!  I don’t know the reason for the apparent evasiveness of this natural wonder but I do know that thus far, Angel Falls is one of the highlights of my trip.

Getting To Angel Falls

There are a few different ways of getting to Angel Falls.  I chose to book a tour package through a travel agency in Ciudad Bolivar.  For $1650 BSF, the package included a flight to Canaima, which is the closest town to the falls, and 2 nights stay in some relatively frugal but decent accommodations.  This also included a guided 2 day hiking and canoeing tour along the unbelievably beautiful Carrao River with excursions to Sapo and Sapito Falls as well as Angel Falls.

(*See my previous post about paying for trips and money conversion in Venezuela)

The Trek

After having our 4 passenger plane delayed from taking off because our pilot was no-where to be found we finally departed on our hour and a half flight from Ciudad Bolivar to Canaima around 11:00 am.

Our tour began that same day.  Upon our arrival we set out for a half day excursion across Canaima Lagoon to Sapo and Sapito Falls.  Later that night we slept in Canaima and left the following morning for Angel Falls.

In order to get to Angel Falls from Canaima we maneuvered our way up the Carrao River’s red tinted waters in a dugout canoe.  The trip was absolutely spectacular, with rocky tepuis rising up from the river basin on all sides, and numerous waterfalls pouring over their cliffs.

From where the Carrao River dropped us off, we hiked an hour before reaching the base of Angel Falls.

Surprisingly, however, the highlight of our arrival was not so much the view as it was swimming at its base; in the water that actually makes the 1km plunge over the fall’s edge without being blown away or evaporated.

The view of the waterfall from it’s base was actually a bit overrated and, I felt, it was better enjoyed from the vantage of the Carrao River where its grandeur can be better appreciated on a clear day.  Up close, it’s nearly impossible to fully grasp the size of the falls.

Back In Ciudad Bolivar

After a long and arduous experience trying to find a flight back from Canaima, I finally, nagged my way onto a flight where 1 of the 4 passengers failed to show.

I am back in Ciuad Bolivar now and tomorrow I make my leave for Boa Vista. Yep, it’s time for Brazil.

If you ask a Venezuelans about a beautiful, non-beach-side place to visit in Venezuelan, they are sure to recommend Merida.

I arrived in Merida on Sunday after a long and miserably, ice cold bus ride from Maracaibo. Apparently, according to the bus driver, the A/C is automatically set at a certain level and there is no way to adjust it. If I would have known then what I know now I would have worn my snow gear.

Merida

Located in the Venezuelan Andes, Merida has much to offer, including many parks, squares, churches, and historical buildings as well as plenty of outdoor activities.

Merida is also home to Heladeria Coromoto, an ice cream parlor with some very hard to find flavors. A friend introduced me one day. She had the shrimp and wine flavored icecream, I had the tuna flavor.

After two nights in Merida and one night in Tabay it was time to move on. Wednesday, I caught the morning bus to Ciudad Bolivar.

Ciudad Bolivar and Looking For US Cash

The bus from Merida to Ciudad Bolivar normally takes between 22 and 24 hours. However, an accident on the narrow road delayed us an additional 6 hours. Locals on the road were saying a truck carrying some kind of chemical crashed and spilled its contents into a small community, injuring over a hundred and killing 8.

By the time I arrived in Ciudad Bolivar, the day after leaving Merida, it was night and I was low on cash. And, as I learned during my trip, it is not good to be out of US dollars when traveling in Venezuela. The reason for this is the double currency rate which exists.

One rate, the official one, at the time of my travel exchanged about 2 Venezuelan Bolivares Fuertes (BSF) for every 1 US dollar. Another rate, known as the black market rate would exchange about 5 BSF for every dollar.

This affects foreign tourists in that the more appropriate, market rate is actually the black market rate and the official rate is artificially established by the government.

This means that although a hotel can be reasonably priced at 100BSF, the exchange from US dollars results in a dramatically overpriced hotel that should cost $20US but in fact actually ends up costing $50US. For me, this was significant when I was booking an excursion to Angel Falls, as the lowest price I could find was $1650. I was definitely willing to pay around $350 but was in no way ready to pay over $800!

Luckily, most tourism agencies in Venezuela are familiar with this problem and have ways of helping tourist access cash at reasonable rates. You just need to ask around and be ready for a bit of an adventure.

It was Friday night when the bus from Santa Marta, Colombia dropped me off at a busy intersection in Maracaibo, Venezuela. I had no idea where I was or where to go next.

My plan all along had been to catch a bus to Coro and spend a few days along Venezuela’s famous Caribbean coast. However, once I arrived in Maracaibo it was late at night and I learned that there were no more buses running. Disoriented and a bit nervous, I felt like a sitting duck with a backpack full of goodies strapped to my back and all I wanted was to find a safe place to stay.

I wandered a bit; I got pointed in a few directions; I caught a bus and I caught a couple taxis. In time, I found a hotel for the night, and although it wasn’t cheap I was relieved to be off the street.

I spent the following day orienting myself in Maracaibo and taking pictures. Also, a few people recommended that I visit Merida as opposed to Coro. In the evening I caught an overnight bus and the following morning I arrived in Merida.

I spent 3 nights in Cartagena’s beautiful and nostalgic old district after our sail boat’s arrival on Saturday. During the day, the sun was typically, unbearably hot and I wondered how colonial people ever found themselves motivated to construct such large and beautiful architecture under such uncompromising heat; a testament to slavery perhaps.

Tuesday morning I took a bus to Santa Marta where I spent the day visiting shops and walking the beach before taking a bus to the smaller, outlying town of Taganga later that night.

In Taganga I registered for a PADI, 2-day, Advanced Open Water Diver course with the Poseidon Dive Center. In their price, they included a place to stay and 5 dives: a drift dive, a navigation dive, a night dive, a deep dive, and an underwater photography dive.

I found myself enjoying my time underwater more and more with each dive and the night dive, although not initially high on my list of things to do, turned out to be my favorite.

The course ended Thursday and Friday I took a bus from Taganga to Santa Marta’s main bus terminal. There I caught the 1pm bus across the Colombian border to Maracaibo, Venezuela.

It’s Saturday night and we’re closing in on Cartagena. Lights glitter on the horizon and the shadows of the Cartagena skyline draw a finish line before us. Our boat, the Lady Fish, gently rocks side to side as we coast our way past the gentle waves of the marina. Our 5 day sailing trip has ended and as we look back, what we see is the glowing red of the setting sun.

It was Monday night when we last slept on land.

It was Tuesday morning at 7am when we crawled out of our mosquito netted beds at our hostel, Wunderbar, and geared up for our trip. We cleaned up and sorted our bags; our large bags to be stored away and one small bag to remain accessible, containing only those items that would be necessary. There were 4 of us: Eric, James, Scotty, and myself.

At 7:30am we were at Puerto Lindo’s marina, standing at the dock; a crumbling ruin of interconnected concrete pillars and beams. Before long we saw our captain, Gwen, peak out from his boat, the Lady Fish, and wave. He dropped down into a dingy and steadily paddled towards the dock. On the boat we would meet his lovely girlfriend, Veronica, who, over the next few days, would introduce us to a delicious medley of fish, pasta, and vegetable dishes. Our trip was soon underway.

Over the next 3 days we would see the many different islands of the San Blas Archipelago. We would even get the opportunity to anchor off the coast of a few of them and visit. We always had the option to use the dingy for paddling ashore, but more often than not we opted for just jumping into the water and swimming it.

The waters of the Caribbean were clear and refreshing, allowing for hours of snorkeling. On our second day we even had a chance to snorkel about a sunken ship. Our third and last day in San Blas we snorkeled completely around an uninhabited island, enjoying the view and hoping to find extra tasty morsels for dinner. There were tons of coral and life everywhere, but we had little luck catching any for food. Nonetheless, Veronica and Gwen whipped up a delicious dinner that night, which we enjoyed ashore on the beach, under the light of the moon and a bonfire.

The last 2 days of the trip were tough. Although the waters were relatively calm and the winds favorable, for us who are used to being on land, being on a small, rocking boat, endlessly for 2 days without so much as seeing land, was draining.

The air was warm and damp and from dawn to dusk the scorching sun volleyed to establish itself as the true master of the open seas.

During rain storms we would stand on deck and cool off. Day and night the cabin stayed muggy. At night, when it wasn’t raining I slept on deck gazing off into the reflection of the full moon; an endless lighted path beaming across the sea.

The sun is now setting on our fifth day at sea, the trip has been wonderful but we’re thrilled to be arriving in Cartagena. We haven’t showered since the night before we set sail. We are salty and we are sticky; our clothes are damp and they crawl about our skin as we shuffle along the deck of the Lady Fish, vying for a view of the shore.

All we can think about is how nice it will be to shower and sleep in a bed. All in all, we had an incredible adventure; our captain and hostess were amazing and my fellow shipmates were a blast. I wouldn’t have changed a thing.

Sooner or later, anyone doing a backpacking trip across Central and South America will encounter a common obstacle. That obstacle is that there is no [recommended] land crossing between Panama and Colombia. Instead, one is left with one of two choices; you can either go by air or you can go by water. I chose to go by water. This option usually requires a sailboat and takes about 3-5 days, depending on how much time you choose to stay in the islands of San Blas.

Getting to Portobelo

After asking around in Panama, I learned that many of the sailboats headed to Colombia leave from a town called Portobello, a small town situated on Panama’s Caribbean coast, just East of Panama’s major port city, Colon (later on, I would learn boats also leave from Puerto Lindo).

Getting to Portobello from Panama City airport involved first taking a $.25 bus ride to the city’s main bus terminal. From there, for $2.50, I took a bus headed to Colon and stopped off where the road forks in the town of Savanita; from Savanita one road takes you to Colon, the other takes you east, along the Caribbean coast to Portobelo and eventually Puerto Lindo.

After getting off the bus in Savanita, I waited about an hour and eventually my bus to Portobello showed up. It took around 45 minutes to get to Portobello from Savanita and it cost $.50.

Portobelo

Not knowing where I was headed, I asked the bus driver to drop me off at Portobello’s marina. Slightly confused, he repeatedly tried to clarify what it was that I meant by “marina” and after repeated futile attempts at trying to explain, he eventually he just waved me on and said he would let me know when we arrive.

A short while later, we passed a sign that read “Portobello” at which point the bus driver looked back at me and called out for me to get off. There was a small bay off to the left side of the road, but no marina in site. I was confused but the bus was on the move and this was no time to argue; I did as the bus driver said and got off.
Directly in front of me was the ruins of an colonial type fort dating back to the mid 1500’s.

There were a bunch of guys hanging out in front of the fort and when they saw me, one called out, “Cartagena?” His name was Lemos and he was the guy who knew all the boats coming into Portobelo and headed to Colombia; I was in the right place.

Lemos turned out to be a valuable resource and a person anyone should talk to when they enter Portobelo in search of a boat to Colombia. You can usually find him in front of the fort ruins and if he happens to not be there you could just ask for him by name, somebody is sure to help you find him.

I stayed a few nights in Portobelo waiting for a sailboat but the only boat that was available was one being sailed by Captain Dennis, who I felt a bit uneasy with. I liked Portobelo however, and I didn’t mind waiting.

I stayed at a decent hotel/hostel. It’s owned by the same owner of the convenience store in the main square, directly in front of the church, a Chinese immigrant they call “Flaco.” At $15/night it was more than what I was hoping to pay, but selection was limited and it came with a full private bath; I figured it wouldn’t hurt to splurge a bit.
Finally, one day I took a short bus ride to Puerto Lindo and came across a second vital resource for boating to Colombia; the Wunderbar.

The owners of the Wunderbar were awesome and they got me in touch with Gwen, captain of the Lady Fish. After 3 nights in Portobelo I finally found my boat. I spent one final night at the Wunderbar in Puerto Lindo. The next morning, at 7am, I and 3 others were setting sail to Cartagena, Colombia on the LadyFish with Captain Gwen and Veronica.

Antonio and I were surprised when we saw how well developed Panama City is. In fact, unlike any other place we had stayed, our hostel, La Jungla was on the seventh floor of a high rise. We even had balcony with a view of the city.

The Canal

On our first day we visited the Panama Canal’s Miraflores Locks. For a small entrance fee we got to watch ships sail in and out of the locks from the 4th floor. Later, we gazed over the locks as we ate a delicious (and extremely pricey) lunch on the 2rd floor buffet. After lunch we visited the museum and watched a few short films on the canal and its history. Before we knew it, Antonio and I had spent over 4 hours at the locks and it was time to move on to our next stop.

The Amador Causeway

We left the Miraflores Locks in the afternoon and caught a taxi to the Amador Causeway where we spent the evening enjoying its beautiful views and modern restaurants and shops. The causeway was originally four small islands and they have since been connected by landfill which was extracted from the Panama Canal during its construction. Today the causeway serves to not only connect the islands by with roads but also to block strong currents from disrupting the entrance to the Panama Canal.

Panama Viejo and Casco Viejo

I had hoped we would spend the early morning of our second day in Panama City aboard the Panama Railroad, which follows alongside the canal from Panama City to Colon. However, the only train left Panama City for Colon at 7am and the only ride back was at 5pm; leaving us no time to do anything else. Since Antonio was flying back home the following day and we had yet to experience much of Panama City, we opted to forgo the railroad trip for a walking tour of Panama Viejo and Casco Viejo.

Antonio Flies Home

It’s now Friday, our third day in Panama City and Antonio’s flight home flight home departed at 7:30 am; our 2 and half month back backing trip through Central America is over.

We woke up this morning at 4:30 am. At 5am our taxi was picking us up and taking us to the airport. During our drive, Panama City looked like a ghost town, the streets were dark and desolate as the morning traffic had yet to begin. When we arrived at the airport it was a short while before I helped Antonio strap his backpack on one final time.

We said our goodbyes and that was it. By the end of the day Antonio would be back in the United States; back to the life he knows and appreciates now more than ever. By the end of the day I would be lying in an empty room in the small town of Portobello, along Panama’s Caribbean coast. I would arrive there after a long series of bus rides that started at the airport and brought me to Portobello in search of a sail boat to Colombia. The Central America Trip was over, on to South America.

Bocas Del Toro

Bocas Del Toro was a blast! But more importantly for us, it was a great place to relax. The weather was wonderful and the waters were perfect. I would just recommend asking around first before going for a swim, as some areas may be a bit polluted by human waste and others may have jelly fish.

Antonio and I were still nursing our injuries from our Boquete adventure and we actually ended up doing very little Bocas. We stayed at a place called Olas in the main town and for 4 days we made it a point to sleep good and to eat good. One restaurant that we both fell in love with was Lemongrass. It serves a combination of local, American, and Southeast Asian foods. We also came up on some decent icecream across from the main plaza.

On our second to last day we took a water taxi tour around the neighboring islands. Many local businesses offer full or half day trips that include visiting up to 3 or 4 different locations where you can watch dolphins, snorkel, and enjoy some beautiful beaches. Prices ranged between $15 and $22, not including lunch.

Heading For Panama City

There are 2 buses that go directly to Panama City, one leaves at 7am from Almirante and the other leaves in the evening, I think around 5pm. Antonio and I did neither (as 7am was way too early nor the late evening bus seamed way too late) and instead opted for first taking one bus from Almirante to David, and then another from David to Panama City. Looking back however, I would have definitely preferred the later evening, direct bus. It would have simplified the 13 hour trip and it would have saved us one night’s accommodations as we could have just slept on the bus.

We are now in Panama City. We are not completely sure what we will do here, but we know we want to see the canal, as well as Casco Viejo, the Amador Causeway, and the ruins in Panama Viejo.