Venezuela - The Rough Guide to South America on a Budget - page 897

CIUDAD BOLÍVAR

Río Orinoco

N

Buses to terminal

P A S E O O R INO C O

Bank

Pharmacy

Casa Correo
Del Orinoco

Val Web

Pharmacy

Bank

Bank

C . ZE A

Casa del Congreso
de Angostura

C . B O L I V A

PLAZA
BOLÍVAR

Catedral

Jardín
Botánico

11

A P A T R I A

Parque el
Porvenir

R I

C

ACCOMMODATION
La Casa Grande
Posada Amor Patrio
Posada Don Carlos
Posada Doña Carol
Posada Turística Sousa

2
5
4
3
1

EATING
El Caribeño
Comidas Margarita
Mini-lunch Arabian Food
Restaurant Vegetariano
Restaurante Caribe
Tostadas Juancito's

1
4
5
6
2
3

0 200

metres

Post Office (2km), Airport (2km) & Museo de Arte Moderno Jesús Soto (2km)

Jardín Botánico
The city's Jardín Botánico (Mon-Sat
8am-5pm, Sun till noon; free) is
a popular spot for picnicking locals,
while deeper into the gardens, which
should be toured with a guide (free,
although a BsF10 tip is appropriate),
is an impressive array of plants from
around the world. The park's main
entrance is on Avenida Bolívar at the
intersection with Calle Caracas.
ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION
By plane The airport (Tomás de Heres Airport; T 0285
632 6635) is at the southeastern edge of town, on
Av Táchira, at Av Aeropuerto. Taxis to and from the
casco histórico cost around BsF40. Buses displaying
Ruta 1 or Ruta 2 in the windscreen go via the airport
and cost BsF4; hail one from the shopping side of the
Paseo Orinoco.

To the west of the plaza, the Casa del
Congreso de Angostura (Tues-Sun
9am-5pm; free) is the site where Bolívar
and the Angostura Congress founded
Gran Colombia, the post-imperialist
super-state which encompassed modern-
day Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador.

Museo de Arte Moderno Jesús Soto
The works of Jesús Soto, Venezuela's most
famous contemporary artist and a Ciudad
Bolívar native, are displayed in the
excellent Museo de Arte Moderno Jesús
Soto (Tues-Sun 9am-5pm; free). Many of
his paintings and sculptures make use of
optical illusions, and you can ask to be
accompanied by one of the guides who will
point out the visual tricks. Taxis here from
the centre cost BsF40; to return, catch a
bus from the McDonald's across the street.