Getting to Know Your Host

Traveling abroad can be a fun and exciting experience. You get to experience new things and immerse yourself in a different culture than home. This can be a challenging and beneficial situation. To help ease some of the challenges, you will have a host/travel guide for your upcoming trip to Caracas, Venezuela. Before we begin to cover the various information that will help you face potential challenges abroad, here are a couple things about your host, Domingo Mendoza.

New opportunities are represented by yellow, Spain represented
by red, and the Atlantic Ocean separating the two represented
by blue. There were only seven provinces when Venezuela
gained independence, represented by the seven stars.

[Upper right: Venezuela's coat of arms.]

"¡Hola! My name is Domingo Mendoza. I am excited to be your guide through your stay here in Caracas, Venezuela. I am 35 years old, but don't let that have you thinking that my humor is like your dad's. I've got some good jokes up my sleeve if you ever need a laugh.

Question: ¿Cómo llama el vaquero a su hija?

Answer: ¡Hijaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

For those of you who may need to brush up on your Spanish, the joke is "How does the cowboy call his daughter?" The Spanish word for daughter is 'hija' which is similar in sound to the stereotypical shout a cowboy may make, 'yee-haa'!

Getting back to business, my first language is Spanish, but Caracas is the melting pot of Venezuela with the diverse amount of cultures present. I can understand some Cariban languages, European languages, and my English is getting better. So don't laugh if I have to ask you for a translation.

In my spare time, I enjoy making dishes with my family. So, please bring your appetite! When you get here, I will make sure that you experience the range of flavors that Spanish dishes have to offer. And don't worry if you go home with a little more around the waist than you came with, I'm sure that you can burn it off at the gym in no time!

I look forward to greeting you as your get off your plane and learning a little about you too. Names here are unique to say the least, and while a recent government intervention cut down on the number of unique names, there are still many out there. My name was chosen by my parents to reflect the dedication to the Holy day in our affiliation with Catholicism, which is one of the major religion present in Venezuela. Can't wait to here about the story behind your name! Hope to see you soon!"

"National Flag of Venezuela." World Flags 101. WorldFlags101.com, n.d. Web. 05 Mar. 2017.
     <http://www.worldflags101.com/v/venezuela-flag.aspx>.
Romero, Simon. "A Culture of Naming That Even a Law May Not Tame." The New York Times. The
     New York Times, 04 Sept. 2007. Web. 22 Feb.2017.
     <http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/05/world/americas/05venez.html>
Romero, Simon. "What's in a name? In Venezuela, just about anything - Americas - International
     Herald Tribune." The New York Times. The New York Times, 07 Jan. 2007. Web. 22 Feb. 2017.
     <http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/07/world/americas/07iht-venez.4124068.html?pagewanted=all>