Carnival Weekend

The long weekend for Carnival could not come soon enough. I was so excited and ready for Lane to arrive on Friday afternoon. Luckily his travels went smoothly and we only hit mediocre traffic on the way home. I was excited to show him where I live and what it's like here. And he brought a whole suitcase of goodies for me including TP and bar soap!!!

Friday night we went out to dinner with some of my friends so they could meet. We went to this restaurant called BarSi, which was supposed to have a "vegetarian" menu. It seemed promising because it was a Thai restaurant, but when we got there the menu didn't have any vegetarian entrees. Of course they had changed the menu the day before. But we made it work and it was a fun dinner. Afterwards we went to see Spanish Flamenco music and dancing at the Hard Rock Cafe. We got there just in time to see the last song. After unsuccessfully finding other entertainment in the mall, we called it a night.

Happy Couple

Saturday we got up early to go hiking. We planned to hike the Paraíso trail, which I have not done yet, so I was excited. We hiked to the ranger station and the ranger said we were good to go. We took a little break there and took some pictures of the view. Then when we continued on our way, the ranger said he just got a call and we were not allowed to go any further because all the further trails are closed because the forest is too dry right now. When the area is dry, it's too at risk for a fire for people to be on the trails. So we walked to a different hike, the popular Sabas Nieves. I just about died on that hike. It wasn't long, but it was steep and rocky. 1) I was expecting it to be an easy breezy hike because it's such a popular one. And 2) I was very congested and couldn't breath very well. Lane thought he was an expert hiker when he was able to do it with ease. I'm hoping my excuse of having a cold is really the reason it was so hard for me. But we made it up and back down and got a reward of a refreshing Cocada at the end. On the way home we had lunch at the really good Mediterranean restaurant I had been to before. It was delicious and we ate a lot so afterwards was obviously nap time. 

There was a belly dancer who was messing with everyone,

including balancing a sword on Tracey's head

Saturday was Valentine's Day, therefore all of the good restaurants were completely booked so Lane and I decided to make our own romantic dinner at my house. It was really nice to have a relaxing night in :)

Sunday we went off to El Hatillo for brunch; I found a place that not only has Sunday brunch, but even serves Bloody Marys. When I was asking the taxi driver to take us there I forgot that 'h's are silent in Spanish and he had no clue what I was saying. Finally a lady nearby corrected me and we were able to get there without a problem. While walking around to find the restaurant we got stopped by someone asking for money. It was amazing how well he spoke English. I was later telling my tutor about it and she said that often homeless people here are actually well educated, they just have addictions that have shamed their family and have no one to help them. Anyway we found the restaurant, El Cine, only to find out we could not order Bloody Marys nor Mimosas. It was a sad brunch experience indeed. I was not sure if it was because they did not have the supplies or because it was Carnival but we clearly understood the waitress when she said no alcohol. But at least the restaurant was really nice and you ordered on tablets that had pictures of every item on the menu. And of course, the good company. 

Non-Alcoholic OJ

After eating, we walked around the shops where all the locally made souvenirs are sold and I got some pots for my new orchid plants I got from a friend!  We ended up passing a place that had live salsa music playing on a terrace and decided to go there for some afternoon beers. The weather was perfect, the beer was cold, and it was a good time. And the taxi driver home understood me the first time. 

At Happy Hour

The plan for Sunday night was to have dinner at a nice restaurant and get drinks afterwards. I texted one of the taxi boyfriends and while waiting for a response, we took a bottle of wine down to the pool to drink while the sun set. After trying six different taxi boyfriends with no avail, I messaged a friend to get some more taxi numbers. They tried two more taxi boyfriends, two taxi services, and a taxi app, but we could not get a single taxi! We finally gave up, a bottle of wine and two hours later, and made another good dinner at my house. These things happen in Venezuela, you just have to be "flexible" as my friend said. It still turned out to be a good night of course, it is just one of those things that is annoying.

Monday we went with other friends downtown to the center of the city. There is not much to do in the city center, but even less during a holiday. However, there were still lots of people there for some celebrations that were taking place. We took the bus and then the metro so Lane could see what it is like. First we went to Simón Bolívar Plaza and then to his house and museum around the corner. I had never been to the museums so that was kind of neat. 

Beside the National Assembly Building

Simón Bolívar Plaza

Casa de Simón Bolívar

Three most important people to Venezuela? 

Simón Bolívar, Jesus, and Chávez

From the museum 

Then we took another bus to the mausoleum where Simón Bolívar is buried. It was closed so we couldn't go in, but it was really neat how empty the square was. We also walked to some "famous" churches that weren't really so impressive. We went into one of the Catholic churches and I was so embarrassed because one of our new friends walked up near the alter and was having her picture taken while people were trying to pray. And when it didn't turn out the way she wanted, she was asking someone to take another and so a congregation member shushed her. Yet she still went up to pose again! 

Side of the mausoleum

Me on the front steps

We ended up taking a bus to La Candelaria, a neighborhood which has a strong Spanish influence, and got an amazing lunch at La Cita, a Galician restaurant. We were there for a long time, eating and drinking Sangria. It was by far the best meal I have had in Caracas! It was also the most expensive. But even then, for two people I paid an equivalent of $31. We left fat and happy and took a bus to Chacaito so we could catch our bus home. 

Near the bus station was very crowded with holiday celebrations. Tons of people dressed in costumes and spraying silly string and confetti everywhere. 

Chacaito Carnival

Monday night we were still so full from lunch to even think about going out to eat, but we successfully got a taxi to go get drinks. We made it to Lola, the lounge I wanted to show Lane, but it was closed. Luckily Entre Hojas Lounge was open and so we lounged around on their patio for the evening. 

Tuesday was just a sad day. The last day of a much anticipated weekend and a farewell to the much appreciated boyfriend. 

Only 36 days until next time :)

Los Museos De Arte

This week I became extremely conscious about my spending. On Monday I was discussing my weekend with a local co-worker and she told me that most of her weekend was spent going to different stores in search of shampoo and waiting in lines to get milk and butter. She was explaining that it is getting very difficult because once you find what you need, the prices have more than doubled, but salaries have remained the same. I sympathize with her, but even though we live in the same city and work at the same school, I have it much, much easier. As my new Venezuelan-American friend put it, "I live in a bubble." It is no secret that the expats enjoy a higher standard of living simply because we get paid partially in dollars. However, because the recent spikes in prices and scarcity, I think it is becoming more sensitive. 

When I was doing my weekly grocery shopping right after school on Tuesday. I was amazed that there weren't any lines to check out. Instead, it was in the back of the store and wrapped all the way around to the front. There must have been news that the store was going to release something precious so people were getting ready. I felt bad as I rushed to do my shopping before the items were put out. I knew as soon as whatever it was they had was put out, the whole store would be a mess like usual. A friend of a friend was my cashier as I put all my groceries on the conveyor. Again, I suddenly felt self-conscious. Because of the items I was purchasing, namely, the wine, my bill was quite high. It was probably more than this girl makes in a week… 

The week at school was disappointing. My students definitely "live in a bubble" and they really do not care about learning. That is all I will say about that. 

Friday I was supposed to go to a dinner party at a teacher from another school's house, but it got canceled at the last minute so a few of us just made dinner at home and ate the amazing brownies we bought to take with us. Somehow the panadería next door doesn't seem to have a problem getting sugar or flour or butter or chocolate. 

Saturday I felt sick from my sinuses, but I had promised to go exploring the art museums with some friends. One girl picked the rest of us up in her car so we didn't have to bother taking the bus. Ten minutes from our house and we hit traffic…of course. The unexpected and unexplainable traffic here is one of the most frustrating things for me. I can live without milk. Anyway, after getting through the traffic, we had to park at the Sambil mall and take the metro to the museums because there isn't easily accessible parking I guess. In total, it took us two hours to get to the museums. I really was not feeling great by the time we arrived.

First we went to the Museum of Contemporary Art, which is supposed to be one of the best museums in Latin America. It had some cool pieces, but most of the rooms were closed for an unknown reason so we didn't get to see much. 

My favorite. Sharks?

I can appreciate Pablo Picasso or Jesús Soto, but a lot of contemporary art I just don't understand. For example:

 I feel like if I could make it, 

why does it deserve to be in a museum?

Next, we went to the Bellas Artes Museum, which I liked much better. It didn't have too many pieces either, but they were more interesting to me. Good thing admission to the museums is still free. One room consisted of science art that had pictures of microscopic objects. Another room had photography of an indigenous area of Venezuela that was really cool.

The entrance 

   

The courtyard at Bellas Artes. 

You can see the mosque in the background; 

it's the tallest in South America.

   

Me with the cool "Math" art

   
After appreciating as much art as they had, we took the metro back to the car and went to the Valle Arriba Mall to get Avila Burger, which I have been told has the best vegetarian burgers. They were not the best, but I was pleased that they had a vegetarian option at all. As soon as I got home, I slept the rest of the day. I am really getting tired of my sinuses always swelling; I must be allergic to something here.

Only five more days until a nice long weekend!

The Progressive Dinner

This week was consumed by work. It was a busy week at school with double after school classes and too many parent conferences. One student asked me how I was doing on Friday and when I replied, "Tired" he said, "Miss, you always say that." I guess it is true. I am always tired though! I have also decided that it is an American habit to respond to greetings negatively, like saying "I'm tired..." and "Can't wait until Friday..." It seems to me like people are more positive here… or maybe just less honest… but probably more positive because they do seem open to speaking their minds.

By the time Friday came, I was very much ready for the weekend. A couple of us made plans to have a "progressive dinner." We would get drinks at one place, then entrees at another, and dessert at another. We started out at Mokambo, a favorite of many of the expats. I'm not sure about the food, but the wine was good and it had a great ambiance.

Our next stop was a cute little place called Antigua. We didn't make reservations which turned out to be a bad idea. I can see why, but the wait was too long so we decided to move up our dessert stop. After walking fifteen minutes in the wrong direction, we walked into another restaurant called Barriott that looked promising. It was super fancy. My definition of super fancy: A restaurant in which all the waiters wear suits. As we were browsing the menu, some people made comments that it was quite expensive. Sure the prices were higher than we usually pay, but with the exchange rate it was still about $4-10 an entrée… I was pretty embarrassed when we changed our minds about eating there and walked out. You know it's bad when the gringos are leaving. Although, my meal at our final destination ended up being the same price, so I'm still annoyed we had to leave. I was getting hangry.

The view from the table where we were seated 

(I stole this picture off the internet because we 

left too quickly that I never got a picture 

of the heaven that was there)

We ended up finding Veranda, the place we were planning to have dessert at around 9:45. It was also a really cute little place and the food was great so I was happy. And now I have a few other restaurants to add to my list of places to visit. 

Afterwards, some of us went out dancing at Pestana, the nice rooftop lounge. It was an entertaining night. And even though I was exhausted, I was not passing up the chance to get out and have some fun.

However, I was so tired the next day that I cancelled my plans to go exploring the art district and instead I watched netflix. It was a much needed rest day and now I am ready for another week. Hopefully it won't be as crazy and I will be ready for more adventuring next weekend.