Widely known because of its large oil deposits and natural gas reserves, Venezuela is a country that offers breathtaking landscapes, great rivers, rich history and a wide range of adventure opportunities. Aside from being the home of the world’s highest waterfall, it is also a place of vast wetlands, majestic mountains and beautiful forests. The country is situated in the beautiful spot on the north coast, making Venezuela a convenient destination for travelers from the US and Europe. Caracas is the capital city and the top destination for visitors where national parks and natural reserves are protected by the government.
Important and Interesting Facts about Venezuela
- Venezuela borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south. Caribbean islands such as Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada, Curaçao, Aruba, and the Leeward Antilles lie near the Venezuelan coast.
- Venezuela is considered a state with extremely high biodiversity, with habitats ranging from the Andes Mountains in the west to the Amazon Basin rainforest in the south, via extensive llanos plains and Caribbean coast in the center and the Orinoco River Delta in the east.
- Since the discovery of oil in the early 20th century, Venezuela has the world’s largest oil reserves and been one of the world’s leading exporters of oil.
- The country’s center is characterized by the llanos, which are extensive plains that stretch from the Colombian border in the far west to the Orinoco River delta in the east.
- Venezuela lies within the Neotropic ecozone; large portions of the country were originally covered by moist broadleaf forests.
- Caracas is a bustling city of nearly 5 million residents. Speedy, progressive and multi-ethnic, the city offers a good range of museums, excellent restaurants and nightlife. Travelers may begin their tour of the city in Plaza Bolivar, the heart of downtown. The Catedral, the Government Palace and City Hall is located on the side of the square. In the city center and the Capitolio Nacional Casa Natal de Bolivar, where the famous liberator Simon Bolivar was born.
- Margarita island of vast stretches of coastline. Margarita Island is part of the Caribbean islands which lie d the east of the capital Caracas. Old white church, a beautiful palace, and the market combined with a variety of food outlets scattered in every corner of the island. So, visitors should not worry if you feel hungry.
- Canaima National Park has an area of 30,000 square kilometers and is located in southeastern Venezuela that borders Brazil and Guyana, precisely in the state of Bolivar. This park was established June 12, 1962 and is the second largest national park in the country after Parima-Tapirapeco.
- In Morrocoy, tourists can see the blue waters of the coral in the middle of the beach combined with beautiful scenery and wildlife that live around it. However, the main area is Morrocoy National Park which was built between the Village and Village Chichiriviche Tucacas. This place is perfect for nature lovers.
- Angel Falls is the tallest waterfall in the world with a height of 1002 meters. This waterfall is located in the Canaima National Park, Bolivar. The waterfall is 19 times higher than Niagara Falls.
- Amazon Jungle of South America contains a rich variety of flora and fauna. The hundreds of millions of years old Amazon Jungle of Venezuela attracts a great number of tourists from all over the world.The climate makes the atmosphere hot and humid with heavy rainfall through out the year. Amazon Jungle in Venezuela is the largest tropical rain forest of the world. It is the store house of greenery and wild animals.
- Caribbean coast is marked with white sandy beaches, ancient cities, tropical rain forests and high mountains. Caribbean coastline begins from the peninsula of Paria, the region that was discovered by Christopher Columbus. The Caribbean coast consists of almost 72 small islands.
Cool, Funny, and Fun Facts about Venezuela
- Venezuela has more Miss Universes and more Miss Worlds than any other country
- “The Lost World”, written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, was actually about an expedition on Mt. Roraima in Venezuela. Keep reading for more Venezuela facts listed below.
- During Christmas season, the people of Caracas roller-skate to morning services at church.
- The popular series, “The Simpsons” has been removed from T.V. channels in Venezuela, as it was thought to be inappropriate for children.
- Public school students attend classes in shifts. They may attend school from morning to afternoon or afternoon to evening. The literacy rate of the country is 95.5%.
- Venezuela is home to many weird and interesting animals including manatees, the Giant anteater, Three-toed sloth, Two-toed sloth, jaguar, Amazon river dolphins, Orinoco crocodiles and the worlds largest rodent the capybara.
- Hot showers are very rare in Venezuela
- Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela is South America’s largest lake with more than 13,000 cubic feet of water. In addition, it’s one of the oldest lakes on Earth at between 20 and 36 million-years-old.
- Venezuelan Poodle Moth is the cuddliest looking moth you ever did see. This moth was discovered in 2009 by Arthur Anker, Ph.D. and has confused many mainstream scientists on exactly what species this moth is.
- Venezuela produces the best rum in the world but have one of the highest consumptions per-capita of scotch whiskey.
Historical and Cultural Facts about Venezuela
- Archeologists have discovered evidence of the earliest known inhabitants of the Venezuelan area in the form of leaf-shaped flake tools, together with chopping and plano – convex scraping implements exposed on the high riverine terraces of the Pedregal River in western Venezuela. Late Pleistocene hunting artifacts, including spear tips, come from a similar site in northwestern Venezuela known as El Jobo.
- When Columbus explored Venezuela on his third voyage in 1498, the area was inhabited by Arawak, Carib, and Chibcha Indians. A subsequent Spanish explorer gave the country its name, meaning “Little Venice.” Caracas was founded in 1567.
- Simón Bolívar, who led the liberation from Spain of much of the continent, was born in Caracas in 1783. With Bolívar taking part, Venezuela was one of the first South American colonies to revolt in 1810, winning independence in 1821.
- Federated at first with Colombia and Ecuador as the Republic of Greater Colombia, Venezuela became a republic in 1830. A period of unstable dictatorships followed. Antonio Guzman Blanco governed from 1870 to 1888, developing an infrastructure, expanding agriculture, and welcoming foreign investment.
- The traditional food is the ‘Arepa’, which is a flatbread made from cornstarch, water, and salt. It’s easy to make and can be eaten with sea food delicacies like shrimp, oysters, fish, cheese, ham, chicken, etc. Beer and South American wines are the cheapest drinks found in Venezuela.
- Venezuela’s music scene is diverse, and ranges from traditional genres to western-style pop & rock. One of the most popular music genres in Venezuela is joropo – a musical style that originated in the plains (llanos in Spanish) regions of the country, made popular by artists like Juan Vicente Torrealba, Ignacio Figueredo, and others. Venezuela’s Zulia state, is the home of another popular style of music, gaita, which is especially popular during Christmas.
- Early on, Venezuela’s Art was dominated by religious themes. During the 19th century, a movement led by Martin Tovar shifted the focus of Venezuelan art to historical and heroic figures. Modernism became a popular art form in Venezuela with the changes in Western society that began during the late 19th century and continued into the 20th century.
- The most popular sport of this country is baseball, though other sports such as soccer, basketball, tennis, etc., are also played. Soccer is called ‘futbol’ in Venezuela.
- The local cowboys (llaneros) show their skills at coleo competitions by roping cows by grabbing the tails and dragging them to the ground.
- One of the major festivals in Venezuela is celebration of Corpus Christi where masks and uniforms of Dancing Devils, which are now almost world famous are dancing at the streets.
- Indigenous music of Venezuela is exemplified by the groups Un Solo Pueblo and Serenata Guayanesa. The national musical instrument is the cuatro. Typical musical styles and pieces mainly emerged in and around the llanos region, including Alma Llanera (by Pedro Elías Gutiérrez and Rafael Bolívar Coronado), Florentino y el Diablo (by Alberto Arvelo Torrealba), Concierto en la Llanura (by Juan Vicente Torrealba), and Caballo Viejo (by Simón Díaz).
