Caracas, Venezuela

I just returned from an 11 day trip to Caracas, Venezuela! We went for a YFC regional conference. Ten of us came from Bolivia. There were about 45 people total representing the Latin America and Carribean YFC countries. We had about 3 days of intense meetings and then 2 days at a camp in the jungle to relax, reflect, and discuss the last few days of meetings. It was so great to get to know the YFC family! The group was so diverse, yet united in their love of Christ and their vision for the youth of the world.
While in Caracas we had to chance to take a gondola ride up to the top of El Avila. It's a sweet mountain overlooking the huge city! The views were awesome. On one side you could see out to the ocean and on the other side you could see the entire city of 8 million people!
On Sunday, many of the YFC national directors preached at different churches all around the city. That morning, before church, David, Ross, and I put on our shoeshining outfits and shined shoes at breakfast. We wanted to do this to share some culture of Bolivia and spark interest in some of our ministry activities. Everyone loved it. Donovan, the regional director of the Carribean, was so touched that he wanted to use me as a demonstration during his sermon. Donovan preached at the international church in Caracas and I tagged along to represent the shoeshiners of La Paz. It was great to get to talk to the church about what's happening with the ministry in Bolivia.
The 6 Bolivian gringos stayed in Caracas for a couple days after the conference to enjoy the city! We had the chance to make a trip out to the beach and enjoy the rays. It was my first time to swim in the Carribean sea! And of course, despite applying sun screen, almost all of us got burnt! Oh well, such are the joys of being pale white!
Caracas was a fun experience. It was great to make new friends and travel to a new place and culture! And, besides a couple of weird looks and comments, we didn't face any troubles being Americans in Venezuela.