Tyumen Woman in Venezuela Shares Life in Caracas After US Operation
On January 3, the US military conducted a military operation in Caracas, the capital of Venezuela. The military first struck the capital several times, after which they extracted the country«s president Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores from the country. They are accused of collusion with drug cartels.
A witness to these events was Elena from Tyumen. The woman works as a licensed guide for Venezuela, lives in Caracas, and runs her travel blog from there. With her permission, we tell where she was during these events, what is happening in the capital now, and how she is living.
How It All Began
The Tyumen woman lives in Caracas with her Venezuelan husband and two children from her first marriage. Elena was lucky: at the time of the operation, she was not in the country«s capital, having gone out of town with the children.
«We are not in Caracas, so we didn»t know anything and didn«t hear anything. According to information from friends, everything is calm for now. Everyone is staying at home. There is electricity, water, and communication. Shops are partially open,» she wrote in her Telegram channel.
She also said that Russian tourists have left Venezuela on regular flights, and there are no new ones yet. According to the Russian embassy, none of our compatriots were harmed.
At first, Elena could not return home. And here«s why.
«In the area where we live, it»s unsafe. The strikes were nearby, almost all residents have left. We are living with friends for now. In our area, there is no electricity or internet, our house is almost entirely evacuated, a few families remain. Our cat is left alone at home. We need to devise and carry out an operation to rescue the cat,« she wrote on social media.
Managed to Return to the Capital
Elena with difficulty found a driver who agreed to take her to Caracas not for exorbitant money.
«It»s difficult: public transport isn«t working, and drivers want a lot of money. I»m waiting for a driver now, I«ll go for the cat,» she said.
She managed to return — the cat is safe, Elena«s family is too. In the city, however, there were difficulties: there were disruptions with food, deliveries weren»t working, open shops could be counted on one hand. In those that were open, queues formed.
«The plan is to go to the store, buy some bread, cook dinner, return home and live in the current conditions. People can»t return home yet, but neighbors write that they go there to take products from refrigerators, in general, they«re passing through,» Elena described the situation.
What is Happening in Caracas Now
Now Elena with her family, judging by her social media, is at home. The family draws electricity from a large portable battery, somewhat similar, according to her description, to a large power bank. The city is gradually coming back to life, people have gone back to work.
The family isn«t relaxing yet: just in case, they are stocking up on water and non-perishable food. The Tyumen woman found herself in a difficult situation: there is no flow of tourists, so for an indefinite period, she is left without work and income.
«There are no flights to Russia now, and financial capability doesn»t allow it. We bought as much food and medicine as current possibilities permitted. Overall, the mood isn«t great, but we»re alive. It«s very difficult to talk about plans, but it»s not the first, second, or even third time that things happen here that are hard for a normal person to comprehend. We«ve probably grown some kind of zen and ability to adapt, so that we simply have no plans,» she summarized.
Tyumen residents often find themselves in the thick of events. For example, last winter, a resident of the greater Tyumen region, Daria, helped clean Anapa from fuel oil. This also happened during the New Year holidays. Read her story here.
