Hello again.

We've just got back to Caracas after our trip to Angel Falls. I have a lot to write about so get yourself a nice English cup of tea ... ok then ... if you are sitting comfortably I will begin!

We left Caracas on Friday 21st to go to the Castro family's beach house on the Carribean coast. It's about a 3 hour drive from here so we didn't arrive until 5pm by which time it was dark but still very warm!

The next morning we woke to glorious sunshine. At about 8am it was as hot as midday on a hot English summer's day. So after breakfast, armed with our factor 50 suncream, Nick and I went to the beach accompanied by Elisa's brother Daniel. The house is in a private complex and as we were there for the weekend when the Venezuelan elections were being held we were the only people there! Unfortunately because of the type of sand the water isn't clear so it didn't look as idylic as we had imagined but the water was lovely and warm and quite rough so we had a lot of fun playing in the waves. By about 11.30 it was too hot for us to stay in the sun so we retreated to the cool of the house and had bbq'd beef for lunch (which was lovely!) By 3ish the heat became more bearable and we could head out for another play!

Day two at the beach house followed pretty much the same pattern - playing in the sea, reading and playing board games in the shade.

Day three and the adventures began!! Francisco drove us to Puerto Ordaz, a town about an hour and a half further along the coast so we could get the bus to Cuidad Bolvar, where flights to Angel Falls depart from. This was our first experience of a South American bus station!! Very confusing and overwhelming. Lots of ticket sellers shouting and people asking if you want a taxi. Anyway, Francisco sorted us out and we bought a ticket to Cuidad Bolivar.

The bus was due to leave at 12midday but suprise suprise didn't actually leave until 12.45 and so began the bus journey from hell!!! The only seats left when we got on were right at the back where the potholes in the road have the most impact meaning that we bounced rather than sat for most of the journey! In addition, the seats were all ripped and covered with fleas!! As I had insect repellant on I only got bitten once but Nick got a lot of bites round his ankles. Then, the air conditioning broke!! It was absolutely boiling in there, everyone was dripping with sweat, after about 15 mins the driver stopped to try to fix the A/C but to no avail. So with the roof hatches open we continued our journey in the sweltering heat!!

We arrived in Cuidad Bolivar at about 5pm where we met a very nice tour guide called Ruben who recommended a lovely Posada (like a B&B but without the breakfast) in the Historic centre of town. The owner, Isabella, spoke fluent English.

The next morning we got a taxi to the airport to start our Angel Falls tour. Unfortunately, when we got there no-one had heard of the tour company we'd booked through so didn't know which company we we're flying with! After about an hour it was all sorted out and we joined two Canadians in a 6 seater Cessna heading to Canaima - only to turn back after 15minutes as the plane had no fuel!! Second time lucky, with a new plane and new pilot, we took off with full tanks and made it to Canaima by 10am.

Once there we met 4 Kiwis who were also on our tour and played semi-professional Rugby, which Nick loved as he got to hear the result of the Austrailia/New Zealand final! Then we were straight out on the tour with our guide, Hector. A mixture of walking and travelling in a traditional wooden boat (with a traditional engine!) took us all the way to the camp near Angel Falls with a stop at lunchtime to swim in a smaller waterfall.

The next morning we got up at 5am to hike to the base of Angel Falls. By going that early we got the place to ourselves and swam in the pool at the base. The falls are just amazing, so high you can see why the indians believed the water came from the sky! After the hike back down the hillside we had breakfast and headed back to base camp in Canaima for lunch before going to visit Salto Sapo. A waterfall that we could walk under. Absolutely amazing!!

On Thursday, we hung around the camp all morning waiting for our flight (which eventually left at 3.15 with the same pilot who had forgotten to put fuel in the plane on the way out). We then returned to the Posada in Cuidad Bolivar so we could spend the next day exploring the city. Big mistake - it only took us a couple of hours and we spent the rest of the day hanging around waiting for the night bus to Caracas which didn't leave until midnight!

So now we're back in Caracas with the Castros and about to go with them to their house in the mountains so I'd better go now to repack my bag!

Bye for now,

Zoe and Nick

xx