THE SECOND TIME AROUND

The last time I visited
Caracas, Venezuela, I was
on a 10-day Caribbean cruise
with my mother. We took
the tour from the ship - an¢
an expensive little excursion
it is, too. As we returned to
our floating home we agreed
that we were glad we'd done
it but “Never Again.”

So, five years later
whatinhell was I doing
chugging back on another
bus tour to Caracas? Just
goes to show you that you
should never say, “Never
again!”

First of all, the bus tour 1s
the only sensible way of
getting from the harbor - in
La Guaira - to the city of
Caracas. If you are fluent in
Spanish - and have lots of
time - there are local buses
which will get you there
(eventually) for less than a
dollar.

If you decide to take a
cab, be prepared for a 30 to
40 dollar tab each way. For a
group of four a cab may well
be the way to go _ for
economy's sake but there are
some problems. If vou want
to have a good look at the

city, a cab will cost you an
arm and a Jeg on top of your

trayel-
wise

by Barbara
McCreadie

onginal fare.

Can the dnver speak
English? Probably not Do
you know where you want to

Vacations can

Vacations are a mental
and physical strain. And it’s
surpnsing more of us don't
book off sick-trme when it's
time to go back to work.

Because holidays and
vacations only happen once
yearly, most of us vigorously
plan to have a good and busy
ume In fact, its
Impossible to relax
planning

almost
when

And that makes us up-
tipht Unfortunately. that
upoght feeling often persists
nyht through the vacation

Once we're off and away

especially if were visiting
another part of the country
or some foreign nation, we
try to cram too much into
the holidays

It's dangerous It causes
faugue which dulls) our
reflexes. slows reactions and
sometimes causes us to make
stupid decisions when
confronted with unforeseen
changes in plans

The key to a successful
Vacalion whether at home
oraway isto make up a list

of projects to be done by
pnornty Concentrate on the

go? Probably not. But, most
important, will you be able
to get another cab to get you
back to the ship. before
sailing time? Maybe not.
Caracas doesn’t get my vote
for the city I'd most hke to
be stranded in!

Visitors to Caracas are
usually appalled at the slum
areas on the outskirts.
Although they're not as bad
as some I've seen, they're
bad enough. Your tour guide
will explain that the problem
arises when farmers leave
the land for what they hope
will be a dream of success in
the city. Instead of streets
paved with gold they find
slums paved with sewage and
rotting garbage. The “open
window system” of garbage
management is very much in
evidence in the slums of
Caracas - especially on a hot
day.

The currency system in
Caracas is Bolivars - about
4.510 a US dollar. But you
don't have to worry about
buying currency because
most merchants are
dehghted to accept dollars.
Shopping in Venezuela ts

be a ph

essenuials and pace yourself
to allow time for them.

Make sure you don't over-
eat and make a point of
getung plenty of sleep. Don't
rush and don't try to do too
much.

If dnving. don't go too far
in a single day and take
time to stop and enjoy the

scenery If your seat doesn't
support) your spine and
prevent fatigue and
backache, fold a towel
across the back above the
hip bones.

If flying somewhere. don't
sit in the same position for

Chinese invented rockets

The first known military
use of rockets Occurred tn
1232 when Chinese attached
small rockets to arrows to in
crease them cange whale
defending the city of Kar

Pung-Foo against Mongol in
vaders

The

venicd by

thermometer

Gsabnel
bahrenhest of
1709

was in

Danicl
Gsermany in
ahke Ohol,

and used

instead of mercury

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844 Park Royal North, West Van.

excellent but don't expect
much time for it if you take
the bus tour. On your own,
look for gold jewellery,

leather goods, cottons and

glass.

Venezuelans are obsessed
with Simon Bolivar, con-
sidered the father of their
country. Aside from statues
of this 19th century hero,
half the streets and most of
the public buildings seem to
be named “Bolivar.” If
Bolivia hadn't copped the
idea, Venezuela would
probably be named for him
too.

The bus tour takes you to
various public buildings
(Bolivar house, Bolivar
Square, Bolivar's birthplace
and, for all I know, Bolivar’s
biffy). Lunch 1s included -
and although we were al a
different hotel from the first
tume I took the tour, the
menu was exactly the same -
chicken and Delnor peas and
carrots. I'm sure that they
think all North Amenicans
live on frozen peas and they
want to make us feel mght at
home. Yetch.

C9 - Sunday, June 20, 1982 - North Shore News

After lunch comes
hair-raising part of the
excursion. Caracas 1S
situated in a valley,
surrounded by high
mountains. The main road
from La Gua.ia to Caracas is
a miracle of modern
engineering BUT in order to
visit the famous glass fac-
tory, the bus takes a
secondary road - about 15
miles straight up - a senes of
hairpin turns and = switch-
backs, with no barncades to
prevent a loooooong drop. |
jus hoped that our driver
was a religious man and a
teetotaller to boot.

Judging by the hundreds of
boxes from the factory that
returned to the ship, most of
the passengers found the
glass worth buying. I sull
have two lovely’ candle
holders I bought the first
tume and Brian bought a nice
set of glasses. Pnces were a
lot higher this year but there
are still some good buys.

the

And, the family’s reaction
to the tour? Glad they did it
once but NEVER AGAIN!

And, the funniest part of

sical strain

too long. Walk up and down
the aisies. Airplanes are big
enough.

Finally, dont get too
much sun. Sunbums and

heat prostration min many
vacations.

These hints are from the
B.C. Chiropractic
ASsociaton.

Never say ‘never again’ to Caracas

the day? There it was - right
in the centre of downtown
Caracas a BURGER

KING, proudly announcing
us slogan,
WHOPPER.”

“CASA DEL

WE HAVE
THE LOWEST
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AIR FARES

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TORONTO from °249
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HONOLULU from 6369
LOS ANGELES trom °199
SAN FRANCISCO from '189

SPECIAL-HONOLULU $398
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Sept —Nov. 13m

TS
Seattic Departures
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Call us for detatis
986-1377

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Venture Travel

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NORTH VANCOUVER

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owned and operated

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are proud to announce the opening of their second Hair Studio at
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