Centre of Colonia Tovar, Venezuela, October 2023

Last weekend was great. I finally managed to leave Caracas. Together with Leo (my colleague/assistant here in Venezuela), we went to explore the place called Colonia Tovar, a small village, tucked in the valleys of the mountains, some 80 km west from the capital.

I loved the village a lot. Okay, it seems to be more German than the actual villages in southern Germany (as commented by my German friends, who saw the pictures from the trip), but I found it very charming and relaxing. I especially liked the nature though. Dramatic colours, amazing views, breathtaking vegetation. Really loved it. I also enjoyed observing how much Leo seemed to have enjoyed the trip as well. It was his first time to see the place, and he appreciated it very much, also because, he has not had chance to travel around his country a lot. I am already planning my next visit there!

The coming weekend will be less fun, I am afraid. We are having parliamentary elections in Poland and it will be observing it with lots of anxiety. I will actually have a chance to vote as well (on Saturday), but the exit polls will only be available on Sunday evening (Sunday afternoon Venezuela time). The available polls are not too optimistic, so I am actually preparing for a disappointment.

The last week of October, I will be travelling to southern Venezuela for work. I will be visiting some of the humanitarian projects that my organisation is supporting in Apure State. I have not been to the field for a while and I am very excited to go, also to get a bit of a boost and remind myself why we do this work. When you stay in offices for too long, you tend to lose touch with reality. I am therefore trying to make sure to get out of my comfortable bubble as much as I can.

Finally, at the end of November, I will be travelling to Europe. I am fixing my tickets already. The plan is to do my Portugal home visit, but also travel to Dubrovnik in Croatia. I have not been to Croatia yet, so very excited by the prospects. If I actually manage to get there, as planned, Croatia will become my 27th country I will have visited in the EU, thus completing the aim to travel to all member states of the European Union 💪🏽.