December 18-19, 2007
Days 811-812
My bus pulled into Ciudad Bolivar at dawn, and right away I knew I was back on the tourist circuit. Two guys working for different tour companies grabbed my arm and offered me deals to Angel Falls before I could even catch my breath. The really good news was… Read More »
December 17, 2007
Day 810
I got so San Fernando de Apure from my overnight bus at dawn and immediately went in search of a hotel. I found about five of them, but they were all full. It turned out that there was some sort of soccer tournament in town, so all of the… Read More »
December 16, 2007
Day 809
As soon as I got up this morning, I tried to figure out how to change my dollars into bolivares on the black market (this is technically illegal, but everyone's doing it nowadays). I quickly learned that in Venezuela, the most often used word is "no."
"Do you know… Read More »
December 15, 2007
Day 808
I rode for seven hours in a taxi to Cucuta on the Venezuelan border this morning rather than take the bus for the same price. Maybe the only reason buses aren't more popular in Colombia is because they should be way cheaper than smaller vehicles but aren't. At any… Read More »
December 11-14, 2007
Day 804-807
I stayed at Eduardo's place again for a few days in Bucaramanga. I finally got to see his famed gallery of native artwork lots of exact copies of ancient pottery, statues, gold jewelery, and even a red… Read More »
December 9-10, 2007
Days 802-803
El Cocuy National Park Trip Day 6-7
I started my bus trip back to Bucaramanga, but met a girl named Rosita who invited me to visit her family in a small town called Tipacoque. It sounded like an interesting side trip, so I went along and… Read More »
December 8, 2007
Day 801
El Cocuy National Park Trip Day 5
I was up at dawn again and started walking as soon as possible to avoid the daily bad afternoon weather. Today, however, was cloudy and rainy from the beginning. At one point, the freezing rain was driving so hard into my face… Read More »
December 7, 2007
Day 800
El Cocuy National Park Trip Day 4
I got up at first light today and left the relative comfort of my tent for the freezing cold conditions outside. Last night's rain turned into a sheet of ice that covered the fly of my tent this morning, and I had… Read More »
December 6, 2007
Day 799
El Cocuy National Park Trip Day 3
Everyone I talked to yesterday, including the park ranger, the refuge owner, and the owner of my hotel told me that the milk truck left at 5:30 in the morning, and could drop me off near the refuge. I began looking for… Read More »
December 5, 2007
Day 798
El Cocuy National Park Trip Day 2
I took the first bus out of Soata this morning at 7:00 AM. It was another terrific journey as we went higher and higher to the point where I caught my first glimpse of snow in Colombia. But the trip felt a… Read More »
