I don't know what it is, but P and I never seem to remember to bring the camera. Some friends took us to Colonia Tovar last weekend, and of course, no pictures. Colonia Tovar is a town in the mountains settled by German immigrants and was thus built German-style. Most of the buildings look like what I remember the chalets at Afton Alps looking like. (Of course, most of my time at Afton Alps was spent falling down and skiing into parking lots and under various types of vehicles, but that's another story...or two.) Many of the folks who live there look like me. It's really a beautiful area. The small downtown is purely for tourists, and it was fun to check out the little stores. I must say that when we go back (WITH the camera), we're going to have to do our best to eat at the Schmuck Restaurant. Doesn't that just sound like something you should do once in your life?
We did actually remember the camera when A & N took us up the Avila in the cable cars a couple weeks ago. The second picture above is a view of Caracas from said cable cars. It's really an impressive city. One side of the Avila slopes down into Caracas while the other runs into the ocean. Unfortunately, the ocean side was cloudy, so there was no water to be seen. We'll have to go up again. They accepted our SCSU id cards for the student discount, so it's really reasonable. We also walked partway down the mountain to a town called Galipan where we had lunch. Eating lunch with clouds floating by was a wonderful first for us. Very cool. The walk down was enough for us (good shin and calf workout on those steep hills), so we took a truck back up. Before heading back down via the cable cars, we had some lovely fresas con crema - strawberries with real whipped cream and sweetened condensed milk (taste bud bliss!).
Speaking of fresas con crema, I am adjusting well to Venezuelan cuisine. (This should not surprise anyone.) Because of the size of the Caracas, you actually have to look pretty hard to find "comida criolla." It's not just on every corner like it is in Nicaragua (at least not where we live). There is a bit of everything here, including especially large doses of Italian and Asian food. However, on our own and with some help from our friends from Caracas, we've tried arepas, cachapas, golfeados, fried pork, blood sausage, pan de jamón, hallacas, tequeños, and more. I can't complain...and we will be investing in an arepa maker soon!
The top picture is a night view from our dining room. The floor to ceiling windows make it a nice place to sit and check out the action below at any time during the day. For now, I'm off to be part of the action myself. Che and I need a good walk up the hill to work off all these new foods! (Maybe I'll remember the camera this time.)
