10/15/2009

Went to the island of Santa Fe today. It took about two hours to get there, we all(Marshall, Jason, Dylan, and I) rode in a taxi whilst Phillip and his family drove. The countryside is truly beautiful here, supposedly only during the rainy season. I do have to put my two cents in about the drivers here. They shouldn't exist. I counted 6 times we got in near fatal accidents because people passed others without regard and consequently came within feet of hitting us.

Once we got to the beach, we had to take a boat out to the island, the waters were calm and besides the mass of people there, it was really calming. I don't know if I've ever seen waters so beautiful. They were a gentle teal color and extremely clear. One bothersome thing is seeing all the garbage both in the ocean, and just on the side of the road. This place has so much potential.

After 7 beers on an empty stomach, I ate dinner compliments of the school, a nice fried red snapper. Mmmmmm....fresh seafood. On the way back, we drove through Puerto La Cruz and there were a large group of skateboarders in front of a crowd, with a nice setup of one foot high launch ramp. I wish I'd had my board with me, time, and no headache. I really wanted to meet the skateboarders out here, and see what there is to offer in that department. I've seen plenty of spots here, but I'd really like to know where and when to skate without the police hassling you.

The police are still my #1 fear here. The son of a member of the board for the school was at Santa Fe today. I was introduced, and he started talking about how the police are the ones to watch out for. He mentioned he'd been beat twice by the police for no reason. He is Venezuelan and speaks perfect Spanish. I really am not looking forward to a run in with the police here. Hopefully I'll be able to avoid it whilst I'm here.

I really feel so blessed to be able to be here and have this wonderful opportunity. There is so much to learn, so many people to meet, and places to go. Hopefully school wont drain all of my enthusiasm. N E WAYZ, at first I was sure I would fly home over Christmas break, now I have so many ideas running through my head, I'm not sure what I'd like to do. Hopefully I'll figure it out by the end of September, because flights are all booked up past then(out of Barcelona).

Here are some other pics:

My first bag of groceries, and my house



A man filling up a can of gas ^ in back of the truck, since it's illegal to fill it up outside the vehicle.

The Anaco Biker gang, Ave Miranda, and a trip on the boat