OP et al,

I have been to Caracas several times, and also Maracaibo. Unfortunately I was there on Thu April 11, 2002 when they had the coup-counter-coup. Not a very pretty ordeal, and I had to dodge bullets on the way back to my hotel and lost a laptop in the process. I was lodged at the Tamanaco Intercontinental. We also had a gun battle in the street below the swimming pool the next day, Fri [the hotel sits on a bluff]. I momentarily thought I was back in the army, but without any close-air support. I snuck out of the city early Sat morning, April 13, before the airport closed [down for a short while]. The route down to the airport looked horrible: burned out cars, burned tires, trash brought down from the slums ["ranchitos" they call them], etc. On Sun Chavez was back in power. I have not been back to Venezuela for business since, as it has dried up for the most part, along with their economy.

The Tamanaco Intercontinental is, however, a very nice place, and is secure. Caracas itself has a lot of trendy restaurants and night clubs, and I must say the women there are exquisite looking and have very long legs. As a normal tourist destination I would not put Caracas on my list. However, the city is a womanizer's paradise [hope not to offend]. There are many expat U.S. Americans there in the category I call "The Hemingway People" [search subject on other thread].

Isla Margarita is nice, but it is one of the biggest money laundering centers in Latin America, so I would exercise caution in going there. If you want to vacation in Latin America I would suggest Costa Rica or Uruguay. These are safer locales, I know much about them and the region, so if you want info just PM me.

Cheers,

Z