This is not about apple juice. It is about little things; little things about my short stay in Venezuela. I want to be able to remember some details that I am sure to forget. And some people, I know, are interested in details. I usually am not which is probably why I tend to forget those things
But lets start with apple juice. Apple juice is in Venezuela is nothing like apple juice in Canada. I asked some of my friends to pick up some of the great juices that they have here and they came back with apple juice. I was disappointed because I really do not like apple juice. I find it too acidic and not substantial like the pear or mango juice that I had here. But I was wrong. Their apple juice was thick and satisfying.
I need to remember the rides in the small private buses, caminettas, I think. Usually when we got on one there were no seats and the thing would bounce down the rough roads of the barrio with an unforgiving crunch. Some people seemed to hop on them while they were moving through the open front door that never closed. Sometimes there was a spare tire in the space in front of the back door that was never used. I need to remember that it cost 1.5 BF which amounted to about 25 cents to ride it. Crushed in and jostled as people were, they did not lose their humanity. Seniors, pregnant women or someone with a newborn always got a seat.
Then there is the subway that must have served millions of people a day. During rush hour, people were packed in and each of the train’s eight cars must have held 200 people. The stations were big and clean and the cars usually air-conditioned. And the ride was less than 40 cents each. Their subway map showed 4 or 5 interconnecting lines and they were building about ten new stations. Toronto should be ashamed.
What about the home where there was no shower. A tap filled a bucket and you ladled the water over yourself. It worked. The same family owned six hectares of land.
I need to remember the small open air diner next to the hostel where a huge meal was served for 20 BF or about $3.00. And the nice people there who made and served the food.
And the hostel, where for 25 BF a night we stayed in relative middle class luxury.
I need to remember toilets in the shower stalls and the towel I bought that stained all my whites.
Lots of things to remember about the trip but I also have my pictures to help.
Most important of al, I need to remember the people from Caracas and Toronto that I have met.
