fresh n juicy chunks of oyster :: RTW travel blog

To be honest, Caracas ain't all bad - then again it ain't much great either: dirty, poor and depressing in most parts, pretty dodgy in others; scarily rich with huge villas and estates just a few metro stops east from the centre, a few stops the other way and you find conditions similar to parts of urban Nigeria. Not entirely pleasant.
But hey, I did not come here only to complain, so here are the fun activities. Then again I didn't come here with fun in mind, so maybe all is good.
There's the almost beautiful Parque del Este with a small zoo inside and activities for kids - however, it seems to be desolate during the day and entirely populated by lovers and skiving school kids.
The major other things that seem worth 'sightseeing' for are shrines, birthplace and everything else devoted to Simón Bolivár, a South American independence hero and the object of an almost unhealthy adoration by Venezuelans, as widely advertised in graffitis. The most entertaining one I spotted said something to the effect of Bolívar kicking Bush and Blair's asses (presumably after turning over in his grave or something).
Anyway, I feel that I've had my fair share of Caracas and am happy to be moving on tomorrow morning, taking a bus to Ciudad Bolívar, as fate would have it. It's hard to escape him here... Apparently it's a nice town though, lying next to the Orinoco river and with beautiful surrounding areas.
¡Viva Bolívar!