Over the Orinoco

Well, look up to the subtitle and scroll right down to our first few blog entries. We promised you the Rio Orinoco, and this should have happened sometime back in early January. But, due to water levels in the river delta, it didn't happen at all.
A promise is a promise, and here it is! We crossed over the Orinoco at Ciudad Bolivar on the way to our final goal in Venezuela, Santa Elena de Uairen. Here is the mighty river:

So we left Coro on the value night bus to Caracas, which delivered us direct to the Terminal de Oriente in time for a very early breakfast of hot coffee and pan de manteca, as well as the chance to buy a ticket for the 8.00am day bus straight out again, direct to Ciudad Bolivar. We saw a little of Caracas by night, and a little of the hills surrounding the city. Very beautiful, but the city: very dangerous, no time to linger! The first few hours of bus journey out East delivered magnificent views of the mountians, the mists and the favelas. Magical, but best enjoyed from the safety and comfort of the bus. We arrived in Bolivar around dusk, just in time to secure a ticket on the night bus down to Santa Elena. Dawn was breathtaking, and suddenly, as we reached the village of San Francisco, we glimpsed Monte Roraima from the bus windows. This is going to be the experience of a lifetime!