J. Selene Zander
Venezuela

This summer I have chosen to work out of Mérida, a city of about half a million people in the foothills of the Andes.  Mérida is a popular tourist destination for many Venezuelans because it is the site of a world-famous teleférico, or cable car, that transports visitors from its base at 1500 meters to an altitude of 4700 meters (about 15000 feet above sea level), with several rest stops along the way.  Needless to say, it gets a bit chilly at that altitude, so the final rest station provides hot cocoa and a strawberries-and-cream concoction, both of which are supposed to help with altitude sickness--a condition foreign to most Venezuelans.  Back down in subtropical Mérida, local attractions include mountain biking, river rafting, and "canyoning" (repelling down a fast-flowing river).  Venezuelan women are known to avoid this last activity due to the delicacy of their perfectly-manicured finger- and toenails.  However, rafting remains a popular sport in this part of the Andes, in part because it allows Venezuelans vacationing from Caracas to flaunt their beautifully beach-toned bodies in the latest style of bikini while simultaneously chugging their favorite brand of national beer and chowing down on locally-made arepas (thick corn tortillas) stuffed with perico (scrambled eggs with bell peppers and spices).