My original idea was to stay the whole day in Cumaná and continue driving only tomorrow but already yesterday night I had changed my mind and had decided to stay only half the day and leave around lunchtime. The money was running out and I wanted to have the chance to stay in an Indigenous village close to Mount Roraima in case I needed to. I wanted to inquire about the possibilities to participate in a tour already in a village closer to Mount Roraima rather than in Santa Elena de Uairen.
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I started my city tour earlier this morning because I did not want to miss the historic center of the town that was being considered to enter the list of the Unesco world heritage sites. Churches are always on the list if it comes to the main buildings of a city, so I went to see the cathedral first and then the oldest church Santa Ines.
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I had parked the car at the main square opposite the cathedral but suddenly I was not sure about the spot anymore. I went back and parked the car at an official parking at the park Ayacucho. I had to walk back to the Cathedral and to the church Santa Ines and from there up the hill to the castle San Antonio de la Eminencia. I passed the children going to school and the construction workers who were working at various points of the city including the castle. The city was found in 1515 and was preparing itself for its 500th anniversary on November 28th in various construction sites.
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I arrived at the top and the castle allowed the visitor to walk inside the inner wall a full round, but the gate to the platform was closed. I had a very slow walk and looked at every detail and was hoping that someone would open that gate for me to enjoy the views from the highest point. Nobody came; I still took lots of pictures from the different lookout points and the walked back to the parking.
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The park Ayacucho included some statues, a water fountain and a museum. The museum was still closed on my way to the castle but now it was open. A policeman in front of the entrance warned me about the security of my camera. He turned out to be the security for the museum and asked me to wait at the entrance. I was not sure why. A lady turned up and asked me for my interest. If this was a museum and if it was open, I would want to have a look at the exhibition. The lady asked to take off my baseball hat and guided me to the first exhibit and started to explain to me the document of a peace treaty.
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I had won a guided tour through the museum which had been dedicated to the general Sucre. Cumaná was the capital of the state of Sucre which had its name from this general who had been successful at the battle of Ayacucho in Peru during the war of independence and was later assassinated at the age of 35.
I had seen the historical center and went to see quickly the seafront shopping center and the Yacht Club before heading south to Maturin and Ciudad Guayana. The first bit of the drive south was along the river Manzanares and went slowly up into the mountains. I stopped several times to pay tribute to my friends in Spain, Miguel and Antonio Manzanares. But like in real life our ways split, the river Manzanares continued to the left, my road continued to the right higher up into the mountains. Whereas I was sure to not see this river again, I was sure to see my friends in Andalucía after the end of this project, I promise.
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The drive in the mountains was very scenic and I enjoyed every meter of it but then I drove downhill again and into the great plains of Venezuela and endless long streets. I had judged the time pretty well and arrived in Ciudad Guayana short before sunset and before getting into the end of the day traffic.
For a small understanding of the days travel, I have included a Google Earth map. The red pins mark the locations I have stopped and taken pictures. At the bottom of the page you will find a link for all the pictures I have taken. The link will open in a Google+ Album.
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See map and distances / Siehe Karte und Entfernungen / Ver mapa e distâncias / Ver mapa y distancias
0 km Cumaná
50 km Cumanacoa
100 km San Antonio
140 km Aragua
185 km Maturin
325 km Chagaruamas
415 km Ciudad Guayana
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