VENEZUELA

Indiu Village, Brazil – Santa Elena, Venezuela - 40 km

By early morning, the weather was already scorching and, as more hills waited, I
departed while Ernest was still getting ready.

A slow climb of a near 1,000 metres in sweltering heat led up to the Gran Sabana
plateau, Pacaraima (the border), and Santa Helena in Venezuela. At Pacaraima, I
purchased more Brazilian coffee, which became a firm favourite during our Brazilian
travels.

Concerned about my Brazilian visa, which had expired 16 days previously, I wasn’t
sure what the procedure would be. Luckily, the fine of 132 reals was only payable
on re-entry into Brazil. This was great news, as the more cash one could take into
Venezuela, the better. At the time of our visit, changing money on the street was
twice as good as drawing from an ATM.

Once immigration was cleared, a short cycle took us into the touristy border town
of Santa Helena. Being the starting point for people who wanted to climb Mount
Roraima, the town offered plenty of accommodation. The trek would’ve been great,
but my cycling partner wasn’t one for such ventures.

Santa Elena

Upon crossing the border into Venezuela, the first thing I noticed was the cars. Old,
fuel-guzzling monsters bounced along at a snail’s pace. Venezuela had the lowest
petrol price per litre globally, and the fuel price was thus no major concern.