Villa De Leyva, Colombia

We took a little side trip from the city of Tunja to do some fossil hunting. This little town was once part of an ancient sea. The conditions were just right.... it's full of fossils! Even the building materials are old fossils. Very cool! Villa de leyva was exactly the small town we were looking to spend our last few days in South America.

Back in Colombia

After a week in Venezuela, we entered back into Colombia. Crossing the border was kind of unique. We happened to be on a bus that just drove across and didn't stop for any formalities. We ended up having to back track back across the river (back to Venezuela) and locating the so called border office (that was back in town, no where near the border, mind you) to pay our exit fees and get our exit stamp. After killing about 1 1/2 hours we were back in Colombia. We continued on a 6 hour bus that was supposed to be one of the worst roads in Colombia (altitude gains and road conditions). I must say, we had quite a luxurious bus. We dreaded the ride for little Nootch's sake, since she often has bouts of motion sickness. But I am happy to report, it wasn't bad. The bus was pretty empty so the kids had their own seats. It seems to be better for us all when we can spread out!

Boa's in Venezuela

Cool!! Brave kids!

GUINESS BOOK OF WORLD RECORD HELD IN MERIDA VENEZUELA

We found the the record holder of ice cream shops with the most flavors. Over 900 different flavors have been created in this shop. Boy are some of them gross! First imagine every flavor you can think of and then turn your mind to every savory item you can imagine and then think of it as an ice cream flavor...fish, calamari, pork, mustard, etc.

We each sampled four scoops. 3/4 of Team T stuck to sweet ice cream and Daddy T stepped out of the box to try rice, tomato, onion, and beef. It was pretty bad.

Merida, Venezuela

After Maracaibo, we left the Caribbean coast and headed back to the Andes. We spent a few nights checking out Valera and headed to Merida.

Here is a glimpse of the mountain city. It was mostly socked in with clouds and mist while we were here. Merida was much more picturesque and modern than Maracaibo.

First Impressions of Venezuela

OLD CARS, HUGO, & OIL

When you cross over into Venezuela, you travel back to the mid seventies. Almost every car is an old imported American car. That is, a relic of the mid seventies. Chevy Caprice Classics, Chevy Novas, Plymouth Dusters, and Cutless Sierras rule the road. Our first taxi was an old beat up Caprice that drove us 3 1/2 hours to Maracaibo. We rode in some pretty snazzy old beasts...royal blues, ruby reds, and perhaps even a purple one. Why???

Cheap Gas! These gross polluters dominate the roads in western Venezuela, but at 100L for a dollar locals keep them going. Minus the fumes, it was fun to have a ride from the past and share these mobile couch experiences with the kids.

Oil is big business in Venezuela. It's there and its real. We caught many glimpses of the industry as we passed through small towns on the bus.

Finally, smiling Hugo Chavez is everywhere! His socialist programs are plastered all over every town and billboard.

Team T Heads To Venezuela

After a few weeks on Colombia's Caribbean Coast, Team T heads to Venezuela. We took a look at a map and decided to head south back towards Bogata with a side trip through the western part of Venezuela.

Venezuela??? Why Not? After all, we made this trip up day to day. That is the beauty of living in the moment.