Since my last blog my little black cloud of self pity has passed! I decided that, instead of continuing to “immerse myself in the language” I would go and see some Brits! I have been on three weekend mini breaks in as many weekends and worked out that I have travelled almost 2000 miles! I spent a long weekend in Merida where another language assistant lives. It was exactly what I needed; the fresh Andean air really helped to clear my head. We spent a lovely relaxed evening cooking spag bol, drinking red wine and eating chocolate whilst watching trashy TV…an average Friday night in for many of you I’m sure but I hadn’t been able to do something like that in so long (due to lack of TV, wine and decent chocolate in Coro) so it was perfect. The next day we went to a beauty queen contest: The Feria del Sol takes place every year in the bull ring in Merida, there were thousands of young people and even three nuns supporting! Live music and great dancing made it a really enjoyable evening. Afterwards we went for some Mojitos in a cosy little bar which felt just like Bath! Feeling really refreshed I headed back to Coro.

The following week I only taught three classes due to a number of quite frankly ridiculous reasons but I didn’t have time to get frustrated because on Thursday night I got the six hour bus to Maracay where I was meeting some other English assistants to go to Puerto Colombia, a gorgeous Caribbean beach. We were quite an international crowd; English, French and Germans, twelve in total. We had a lovely weekend and it was good to catch up with some of the assistants from Caracas who I hadn’t seen since October. One day we paid a fishing boat to take us half an hour to another more secluded beach called Chuao. Sea food and cocktails for lunch on the beach with some really unusual music playing – a mixture of salsa, French rap and the Cure, and a hippy Italian who didn’t seem to know where he was born! As it was referendum weekend it was “Ley Seca” which means that it is illegal to sell alcohol from Friday until Monday…but we still managed to find a little corner shop behind a collapsed gate that was selling beers discreetly…although slightly less discreet when we all rumbled up! (Photo is Playa Grande in Puerto Colombia.)

The referendum, an amendment to the constitution allowing the President and other elected officials to be indefinitely re elected, was won by Chávez and the “Sí” vote with 54%. Hence in 2010 he can now stand for President again and as he has emphasised he hopes to stay until 2021! Although once again the voting itself on Sunday the 15th was free and democratic one can’t help but think that all of the political rallying and pressure from the Chavistas in the streets and the huge amount of state money poured into the “Sí” campaign, as well as denying new student voters to register had something to do with his success.

I only returned to Coro for a few days before I was back on the road with my bags. I travelled 12 hours all along the coast to a town in the East called Cumaná where two other assistants live. We then caught the ferry across to Margarita Island where we spent Carnaval weekend. We saw some of the parades and the costumes were fantastic, we drank cocktails on the beach and partied all night long in a bar called Senor Frog (!) in which a barman with a Spiderman mask jumped on us and poured Sangria down our throats…it all went downhill from there! Sometime in the early hours we had to make a quick exit because about 30 armed National Guard had arrived as apparently Chavez had decreed that no alcohol be sold after midnight all through Carnaval –party pooper! I then stayed a night in their house in Cumaná and we went out for some dinner and drinks in the Marina so I really felt like I was on holiday. (Photo is of me and another Kelly on Margarita Island.)
Back in Coro now. I have finally been paid for January, now that it is almost March. I taught my second French class which went really well and so many people came that there wasn’t enough room in the classroom. Unfortunately I have been informed that the new semester on the main campus will now not be starting until after Easter so I have a month of only teaching French and possibly one other class a week. Not really the fifteen hours of English teaching I signed up for. Nevertheless I am busying myself planning a few weeks travelling the Northeast coast of Colombia over Easter and probably some more weekend trips!