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Caracas - our first encounter with South America - was a bit of a
surprise. We knew it is a dangerous city and had our money belts well
hidden, and made sure to be back at the hotel well before dark. No
surprise there, but it's also ultra modern (we want a metro like that
in Stockholm!) and the shopping malls and out-door cafes in Sabana
Grande, where we had more empanadas and freshly made pineapple juice
than we deserved, don't match our prejudice picture of South American
chaos and poverty. Then, of course, Caracas has some 5 million
citizens and from the roof of one of the 53 stories high buildings in
Parque Central, we saw several shanty areas just outside the city
center.
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The two faces of Caracas: ultra modern (above) and shanty town (below).
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Our new friend Carlos! Actually, he's a friend of a friend and he
took care of us and showed us the city.
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Chess must be popular, this place in Sabana Grande was always full and the men (no women) looked very, very serious...
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Making a phone call. It took a while to figure out that the symbol at the side means the phone is good for international calls.
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