- People who are here right now. - I'm going to show you. - They have been here since yesterday, day and night, just to get registered. [Music] Venezuela Luisito Comunica [Music] Hello friends! Welcome to one more adventure!. I greet you from the beautiful, incredibly beautiful Venezuela I took a trip to this country in 2017 and decided to return 4 years later. To see the evolution of this territory. In 2017, I encountered a country that was facing a tremendous crisis. It was more than evident, people were far from satisfied. And today, I have found a country that has evolved positively in many aspects. And not so well in many others. So here are the changes that I have noticed. In Venezuela over the course of 4 years. Some things have changed, and others that perhaps have always been this way. But I hadn't noticed. So on this journey I delved much deeper into everyday life. Getting to know the inner and intimate life of Venezuelan households. These are my personal observations. Number one. Coming to this country has become much more complicated. Flights are super expensive, and before boarding the plane. They ask you so many, too many questions. Which hotel are you going to stay at? They call the hotels to verify reservations. When is your departure flight? They call the airlines to confirm that the flight has indeed been purchased. What are your planned activities with an itinerary?. Where will you be? What day?. The entire immigration process is super time-consuming even before boarding the plane. Spent two hours trying to check in. Wow! It's complicated and time-consuming. They ask for everything, hotel reservations, return flight. In fact, we are taking too long; they sent my flight there. From Venezuela they have to give the green light. Then they let me board the plane. And we're seeing that, well, all the people are taking a long time. Because if you ar not staying in a hotel, it's an invitation letter. So, they call to check the visas. Everything has to bounce over there, they give the green light, and they'll grant you access. And it has changed a lot. Four years ago, I remember it was like. Okay, you're going to Venezuela, enjoy Venezuela, okay. And now it's like, are you going to Venezuela? Why? Why do you want to come to Venezuela? Give me evidence. I check them, review them, send them to be checked. Yes, very time-consuming. A lot has changed in these four years. Number #2, the arrival and first impressions of the streets in Venezuela. Four years ago, I remember that all the walls of Caracas were painted with protest symbols. Similarly, protests happened practically every day. The symbol of "harina pan" flour could be seen everywhere with the message "Wanted". That's not the case anymore. In fact, it feels quite peaceful. At least during the days I have been in the territory. And this leads me to my third point. Today there is a lot more supply, many more products in stores and markets. You walk into a supermarket, and it's not like it was in 2017. When the shelves were truly empty. There are numerous imported products, variety, brands, flavors. Truly, going into a Venezuelan supermarket today is completely different. Much more pleasant experience. I went to a supermarket quickly to see changes I've noticed, significant changes. Wow! The supermarkets are full, full, full. It wasn't like this the last time I visited. Later, I might make a video solely dedicated to the supermarket. But a quick overview for now. Last time I was here, there was no "harina pan." It was very, very difficult to find. Everywhere there was a proposal for there not to be any "harina pan". And now there's plenty of all types of "harina pan". There's a new presentation, in fact, and there are even more varieties. More artisanal I imagine. Yes, even the mix for "cachapa". Yes, it's much easier now to find "harina pan" everywhere. So thats´s good. However, moving on to the next point, everything is much more expensive. There is often the international belief. That Venezuela is a country where it's cheap to come. Where a dollar goes a long way. This is a fallacy, it's a lie. I would say that coming to Venezuela is expensive. Much more expensive than coming to other countries in South America. This is mostly because the population has unofficially adopted the use of the dollar. Which is seen everywhere. Even street vendors charge you in dollars. So, look, this is how payment works. Right now, we ordered a beer and we're going to pay with dollars. Dollars are accepted everywhere. The problem is the change, the coins. Let's see, this will be about $2.50 or so. It's 10 million bolivars, roughly $2.50. So, will you get the change? Yes, yes, yes. Change is always a problem. It's always a big issue because usually. People return your change via mobile payment. But as foreigners, we don't have mobile payment. Mobile payment is a platform like SMS messaging. Where you can send money via text. It connects to your bank account. That's how it works, that's how they pay. It's very convenient for locals, but not so much for foreigners. Absolutely everything is charged in dollars. There are very few things you can pay for with bolivars, the local currency. There are even stores that would rather accept Colombian pesos than bolivars. Which brings me to the next point. Wow! How has money changed in just four years?. Four years ago, these 5,000 bolivar bills were in circulation. 5,000 bolivars. Let's take a look at the bill. In fact, this bill was printed in the year 2016. 5,000 bolivars. Let it be crystal clear four years ago. Well, nowadays, 5,000 bolivars are practically worthless. There are bills of 500,000 bolivars and even one million bolivars. One million bolivars in just four years!. How did they go from having a 5,000 bolivar bill to a million in four years? And it's not even like the million bolivar bill is worth a lot. As of today, the day I'm recording this, one dollar is worth four million bolivars. Four of these bills. I'm told that soon they're going to remove six zeros from the currency, the bolivar. Well, it's a problem. Truly, everything, everything costs millions. Want to buy a cereal? 25 million. 15 million 900 thousand, 7 million 250 thousand, 6 million 550 thousand All of them, all of them, a backpack, seventy-two million. The Avengers 117 million. How much will a television cost? One billion?. The change in money in just four years is something that has me extremely astonished. I will make a video soon talking only about this. Because it's truly a very extensive, very complex topic. Now, the situation with electricity and gasoline. I would say gasoline has worsened. The lines you see nowadays. I don't recall seeing them four years ago. They are truly long. So long that there are people who line up, without exaggeration, days in advance. And it's incredibly impactful that you can only fill your tank once a week. This depends on the state you're in. The regulation itself states that every Venezuelan. Is entitled to one hundred twenty liters of gasoline per month. -The people who are here right now, I'm going to show you. - They have been here since yesterday, day and night, just to get registered. - The next day, they will actually pump the gasoline tomorrow. So, you line up a day in advance and they make a note of it. - This is Station.
- The VIP are entering there. - The VIP enter first. - Those who pay more, so they don't have to wait in line - Go straight through at this time.
- And here, the line starts. And here, people are already lined up.
- Yes. - This line has been here since yesterday to get registered. There's no space left if you want to get registered, well. - Oh yes, this is the fixed spot, the everyday spot. - To get registered and then get filled up the next day. Wow! And it continues all the way here. - No, and the other thing is that many people line up repeatedly. - When they open the window to sell gasoline, and they make a living out of it. Oh yes.
- They buy it at 0.5, sell it at 1, 1.5, and 2. - Their job is to stand in line. And people who can't stand in line pay them. Yes, so you arrive, you line up, and you charge because you're lining up. And filling up your gas tank costs 250 bolivars. Which, let's see, this is really nothing. Point zero, zero, zero, zero, one dollar.
It´s really nothing. But what's available now is an alternative. Where you can buy gasoline at the international price. And in this way, avoid queues, not entirely. But not having to endure long hours or even days of waiting in lines. The price of international gasoline is 50 cents per liter. By the way, I'm not exaggerating about the queues. I recorded several, many of them, to show you that the situation is truly like this. Now, the topic of electricity. Depending on where you are, the state in Venezuela where you find yourself. There might be more or less, but the reality is that power outages are quite frequent. The power plants have not been repaired for years. And I encountered cities where getting something as simple. As a bag of ice is quite a challenge. Obviously, because ice requires a lot of electricity to be preserved. So, no power, no ice, and many basic necessities are unavailable. This leads us to discuss the topic of water. I'm not sure if this is a new issue or if it has always been this way. But it's really quite common to find that there's no water. You go to any regular, everyday house. And the most likely scenario is that they don't have tap water. I'm not aware of the specific reason for this, but it's a fact, and I'm not exaggerating. Look, I'm recording the bathroom of a regular house, a typical household. Just to show that it's indeed normal for there to be no water. There isn't any. And this is really, in many, many places, very common. No water, doesn't work, it's like it wants to come out, but nothing comes out. So, people always resort to using a bucket of water drawn directly from the well. You flush the toilet this way. And you get used to taking a bucket shower, right? Showering like this. That's very normal. In almost all the regular houses I've visited, there has been no water. I visited seven houses once, and in six of them, there was no water. Similarly, there's never water in the public restrooms at gas stations along the highway. Without exaggeration, this is a common issue for everyone, every single day. But this doesn't mean it's the case everywhere. Obviously, in hotels and many areas, there is water. But I'm speaking in a general sense. I'm not aware of the reason behind this issue. But it's a fact. It is what it is. I'm sharing this with you. [Music] But now, what I want to highlight the most, and what's really beautiful. Is that in four years, one feels people are much happier, much more content. In 2017, I encountered a country where there were protests every single day. And the people's frustration was palpable. Call it resilience, call it acceptance. Or perhaps because certain things have indeed improved significantly. But people are much happier now. Walking through the streets no longer feels as dangerous. Street food stalls are open in abundance. There are new stores, new malls opening up. People are out consuming. I'm not sure if it's due to the normalization of the dollar. But overall, one feels that the economy is moving much, much more. And that is very heartwarming, it's very beautiful to see progress in this way. Because it could just be a door, a window. To all the great progress that lies ahead for this territory. I've had an excellent time, I've recorded beautiful things of all kinds. If you're a new follower, let me inform you that this isn't the only video. On my journeys, I tend to upload many, many videos. I can tell you that many videos about Venezuela on various topics are coming up. Which I believe encompass a little, just a little. Of the beauty, contrast, unpredictability. And adventurous spirit that this country holds. Thanks to the people of Venezuela for welcoming me so beautifully. Stay tuned, in a few days. We'll start with the actual videos about this incredibly beautiful country. Goodbye! My friend.
