Our Location
The country is renowned for having South America’s largest lake and third largest river, the highest waterfall in the world, the longest snake in the world, and some of the most impressive sights you will ever see.
A country of opposing landscapes
Venezuela sits at the top of the South American continent touching the turquoise Caribbean Sea. It is a country of opposing landscapes: steamy Amazon jungles, wide-open grassy savannahs, snow capped Andes mountains, and miles of white sand beaches. Venezuela is also one of the wealthiest nations in South America due to the vast oil reserves that were discovered in the early part of the 20th Century. Because of this, the country boasts excellent road networks, modern architecture and a well-developed tourism infrastructure. Travel throughout Venezuela is easy and comfortable, and some of the cheapest flights to South America from the US and Europe are to Venezuela. But not all of Venezuela was touched by the oil boom, and in the more remote parts of the country there exist numerous communities of indigenous people continuing their traditional way of life as much as they can. Interested Aldeas de Paz volunteers will have the opportunity to work closely with indigenous communities representative of the Pemón Nation.
Venezuela is a third larger than Texas and occupies most of the northern coast of South America and the Caribbean Sea. It is bordered by Colombia on the West, Guyana to the East and Brazil to the South.
A short history
Columbus explored Venezuela on his third voyage, when the area used to be inhabited by Arawak, Carib and Chibcha Indians. The name, Venezuela, was thought up by another Spanish explorer and translates as ‘little voice’. Caracas was founded in 1567.
It was one of the first countries to revolt in 1810, winning independence in 1821. Federated at first with Columbia and Ecuador as Republic of Greater Columbia, it became a Republic in 1830. A period of unstable dictatorship and fluctuation in the oil trade followed, until the 1970’s when Venezuela benefited greatly from the oil industry.
Language
Spanish is the main language; however there are numerous indigenous dialects, Brazilian Portuguese and some Guyanan English in Santa Elena.
The small town of Santa Elena de Uairén is the headquarters of the Aldeas de Paz, in the heart of La Gran Sabana National Park.
Santa Elena de Uairén
The town has about 25.000 inhabitants and is at an altitude of 900m - 1000m (3000f - 3250f) with a nearly perfect climate (16°C / 45°F - 28°C / 79°F all year round). The town was founded in 1922 as a Capuchin mission, and grew in the 1930s with the establishment of gold and diamond mines in the region.
Santa Elena is surrounded by breathtaking scenery, and a wealth of nature. The region is one of the oldest geological sites on the planet where prehistoric flat topped mountains are like ecological islands with endemic species such as carnivorous plants and many other natural treasures. The Guayana shield, located in La Gran Sabana, is the earth's oldest surface. It is estimated to be 2 billion years old, and was formed when South America and Africa were still part of the super continent Gondwana.
Travel Information
You will find good shopping opportunities, restaurants, internet cafes, postal and telephone services, clubs, pool halls and nightlife opportunities, as well as a wide variety of tourist travel destinations. Santa Elena is also a good place to arrange adventure tours into La Gran Sabana and Mount Roraima in particular.
Santa Elena de Uairén. I cannot say enough about the people, the character and dynamic, the scenery, the music, the food, the fauna (dogs) and the overall ambience.
∼ Jared Steinklein / Valhalla, USA
La Gran Sabana
The area known as La Gran Sabana,“The Great Savannah” is located in the south-eastern corner of Venezuela, at the border with Brazil and Guyana. It is a high plateau, a land of wide open spaces (75,000 square kilometers), tropical forest, spectacular tepuys (flat-topped mountains), rivers and gorgeous waterfalls. It is also home to the Pemón aboriginals. It is unknown when La Gran Sabana was first occupied, but there are artifacts that demonstrate that indigenous peoples were occupying the Orinoco Delta at least 2 to 3 thousand years ago. At the time of the arrival of the first Europeans, La Gran Sabana was inhabited primarily by Pemón aboriginals.
Besides flat plains, La Gran Sabana also features tropical regions, jungle and cloud forests, rich in palm trees, fern trees, orchids, bromelias — also animals including tapirs, jaguars, pumas, deer, anteaters, snakes, are all native to the different ecosystems of La Gran Sabana.
Tepuy
Tepuy is the indigenous name given to the fascinating geologic formations that are unique to South-eastern Venezuela. These enormous sandstone fortresses rise from the tropical forest and loom over the savannah. There are about a hundred of these tepuys scattered across the Gran Sabana, spanning the states of Bolivar and Amazonas. Only a few are accessible on foot, some are still unexplored, all are protected as National Monuments under Venezuelan Law.
Tepuys are the remnants of sandstone deposits which were formed underwater about 1.8 billion years ago, when South America and Africa were still linked as part of the super continent Gondwana. 200 million years ago warping of the continental plates created fissures and fractures in the sandstone plateau, and then erosion by rain and rivers for millions of years produced the striking mountain forms that remain today.
It is easy to imagine the pinnacles and towers of rock around us as the ruins of temples from strange, long-ago cultures. My mind conjures up colossal Egyptian statues, Greek deities, Siamese pagodas, Roman gods, dwarf elephants, and giant camels - all grown stiff for eternity...."
∼ excerpt from National Geographic / May 1989 / description of the top of Roraima by Uwe George
Country Information
Exchanging Money
The Venezuelan Currency
The currency of Venezuela is the Bolivar Fuente (BsF). It is best to change about US $100 into Bolivar before traveling. Currency controls remain in place in Venezuela and the official changing rate ($1 USD = $2,15 BsF) is about half of the actual changing rate (obtainable only through black-market exchange). Bolivars can be obtained through banks and some travel agencies in your country (but need to ordered in advance from your local bank). This will enable you to have cash to pay for your bus ticket and to purchase food. In most towns and all major Venezuelan cities, credit cards are accepted in shops and hotels.
Mostly mayor credit cards are accepted at Venezuela´s ATM´s and over the counter bank transactions. All bank transactions in Venezuela will result in Bolivar calculated by the official changing rate: $1 USD = $2,15 BsF.
Bureau de change at the Caracas airport, will exchange US dollars or Euros for Bolivars, as will some major hotels ($1 USD = $2,15 BsF). Some banks in Caracas will buy US dollars for Bolivars or sell Bolivars against a foreign credit card. US travelers' cheques are accepted at most Italcambios offices in Caracas but not in Santa Elena, where Aldeas de Paz is located. Banks and Bureau de Change can be found in all major cities where you will be able to withdraw money and change up travelers’ cheques if you need to. There will also be ATMs, which will accept most major credit cards everywhere and also in Santa Elena.
Food
European, Indigenous and African roots
- Pabellon — stewed and shredded meat with rice, black beans and banana
- Hallace — traditional Christmas dish of filling wrapped in banana leaf
- Cachapa — type of sweet corn pancake served with cheese
- Arepa — round cornmeal bread, stuffed with cheese, ham, chicken etc
At restaurants and bars tipping is at the discretion of the client and not obligatory. It is likely that there will be a 10% charge added to restaurant bills. It is not customary to give baggage handlers or taxi drivers a tip.
Please do not drink the tap water in Venezuela. Shops, food stores and restaurants should have bottled water readily available for you to purchase. Fresh fruit juices are always available, and you will find sugarcane juice with lemon and fresh coconut milk is popular. Rum is a commonly found spirit, and coffee is the most popular hot drink.
Religion
Being Respectful of Customs
The vast majority of Venezuelans are Catholic, though there is a small emerging percentage of Protestants.
Religion is an important part of life in Venezuela, and we would urge that you be respectful at all times in and around places of worship. Do not be surprised to see individuals crossing themselves when passing any object of religious significance or reciting religious adages at appropriate times.
Clothing
Adapt your style in accordance with your surroundings
It is important to remember, especially for female travelers, that the kinds of clothes you feel comfortable wearing in your own country may not be an acceptable form of dress in Latin America. Short skirts for example, will invite unwanted attention. With the warm climate and humidity, we advise that you pack a selection of lightweight, layerable clothing. As the evenings can get quite cool, a jumper or jacket is advisable. Always bear in mind the activities you will be doing when you are packing, both at the project and socially. Casual dress is fine but you should avoid beachwear away from the coast and dress conservatively, especially in rural areas, which tend to be fairly traditional and religious. When entering a religious area, please make sure you are appropriately covered.
Public Holidays
Venezuela is full of holidays
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Note that thes are not community-based volunteer activities
- 1 January New Year’s Day
- 19-20 February Carnival
- 5 April Holy Thursday, followed by one week holiday
- 6 April Good Friday
- 19 April Declaration of Independence
- 1 May Labor Day
- 24 June Battle of Carabobo
- 15 July to 15 September school summer holidays
- 5 July Independence Day
- 24 July Birth of Simón Bolívar
- 12 October Columbus Day
- 25 December Christmas Day
- 15 December to 15 January school holidays