Pocketful of Memory Cards

I am not ready to leave.  Last year, when we left Tahiti after two weeks, I was more than ready to leave.  I would have left earlier, as beautiful and charming as it was.   We were talking to a tour operator on the beach this morning after we'd taken our final stroll along Playa Del Agua and I felt a sudden pang in my chest at the thought of not being able to spend the day under a beach umbrella with a "coca-lite" clutched in my hand and a paperback flipped open in my lap. I think it has to do with the people.  Many of the homes and business are run down and sometimes it's frustrating to see the garbage lining the roads and piled up on the beaches. It's frustrating to see because Venezuela is such a rich country but the current government doesn't want to pass the wealth on to the people. It's a complicated situation that you can't really make clear in a brief blog, but despite this, there's something about the friendliness of the Venezuelans...

We decided to do a little driving tour of our a little corner of Margarita this morning, since we'd spent three of the last four days on a beach.  With gas prices at less than four cents a litre, it was well within budget.  We started at the outdoor market where my husband bought the merlot coloured jersey of his beloved football team Venezuela's Vinotino. Cats and dogs are part of the landscape here.  Most look fairly healthy, I never saw anyone being mean to them and they lie wherever they wish, taking their time moving out of the way when you meet them on a road.  They don't pester you when you're eating but often sit nearby and love a little scratch behind the ears.  A few we saw were not in very good shape at all. Like any other animal it is survival of the fittest but it can be heartbreaking to see.  Most Venezuelans are Catholic and the Madonna is a very predominant feature.  Every shop has a shrine to her as do most homes.  Some ...

"On the beach, you can live in bliss."- Dennis Wilson of the Beach Boys