la travesíajourney / crossing
La travesía continuó desde Venezuela hasta Brasil.
Culture · Latin America
Venezuela y el Amazonas sobre dos ruedas: una travesía en moto
Venezuela and the Amazon on two wheels: a motorcycle journey
B213 minArticle reviewed
Before you open the article
This preparation gives you the story context, essential vocabulary, useful expressions and reading questions. Study it first, then open the original news article, which is written in Spanish.
Start preparing with vocabulary ↓What this article is about
This travel chronicle follows two Ecuadorian motorcyclists through Venezuela and into Brazil, describing hospitality, difficult roads, mining zones and life along the Amazon. The second half becomes a more personal account of separation, travel by river and the sense of scale and vulnerability produced by the Amazon landscape.
Background you need
Travel chronicles combine factual description with personal impressions, memory and subjective judgments. This piece moves through several countries and regions, including Mérida, Maracaibo, Caracas, the Venezuelan interior, Boa Vista and Manaus, before continuing by river toward Peru. For language learners, it is useful for noticing route vocabulary, past narration and vivid descriptive language.
Key vocabulary
Essential vocabulary
la carreteraroad / highway
La carretera estaba tranquila, pero tenía muchos huecos.
la fronteraborder
Los viajeros cruzaron la frontera hacia Brasil.
la hosteríainn / guesthouse
Los motociclistas pasaron varios días en una hostería.
la selvajungle / rainforest
El camino hacia Manaos atravesaba la selva.
la balsariver ferry / raft
Las motos viajaron en una balsa por el Amazonas.
el recorridoroute / journey
El recorrido atravesó Venezuela, Brasil y la Amazonía.
el motociclistamotorcyclist
Los motociclistas continuaron el viaje hacia el sur.
el alojamientoaccommodation / lodging
La hospitalidad local les permitió encontrar alojamiento.
la inmensidadvastness
El autor describe la inmensidad del Amazonas.
Useful expressions
Expressions
seguir el camino— to continue along the route
Después de descansar, los viajeros siguieron el camino hacia Brasil.
pasar de largo— to pass through without stopping
En Caracas decidieron pasar de largo.
quedarse impresionado por— to be impressed by
El viajero se quedó impresionado por la inmensidad del Amazonas.
Language focus
Language focus
The preterite moves the journey forward through completed events, while the imperfect describes background, habits and ongoing conditions.
Llegamos a Mérida cuando ya era de noche y la carretera estaba tranquila.
Travel writing relies on sequencing markers to guide the reader through changing locations.
De ahí bajamos hacia el sur y luego cruzamos la frontera.
Chronicles often use repetition and intensifiers to convey personal experience and scale.
Manaos es una ciudad grandísima, enorme.
Before you read
Questions to keep in mind
- Which countries and major cities form the route in this part of the journey?
- What kinds of hospitality and difficulties do the travelers encounter?
- How does the tone change when the journey reaches the Amazon?
Continue with the original
Now read the news in Spanish
You have prepared the main context and language. The button opens the publisher’s original Spanish-language article in a new tab.
Open the original article in Spanish →After reading
Reflect on what you read
- Which episode best shows the role of motorcycle communities in the trip?
- How does the author describe the contrast between cities, roads and the Amazon landscape?
- Which narrative tense or expression helped you follow the route most clearly?
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