A glimpse, in words and pictures, of the places where Georges and his team shot the different episodes in the INSECTIA series and of some of the incidents that occurred. A chance to meet the people they met and to catch Georges live, in all his glory.
Venezuela - San Juan de la Galdonas
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Georges looks for a boat that will take him up the Orinoco Delta |
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When our story begins, Georges is at the seaside, in a small fishing village called San Juan de las Galdonas. It is located on the Paria pensinsula which is bordered to the north by the Caribbean Sea. A new road has now opened up the coastal villages to tourism, which is beginning to flourish.
At San Juan you can cross the peninsula to Guiria, the main port in the region, and from there, take a boat to the Orinoco Delta. |
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Venezuela - Orinoco Delta
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In the Americas, the Orinoco Delta is the second most important delta after that of the Amazon River. It is divided into 40 major canals and covers a total area of over 25,000 square kilometres.
The entire region is covered in lush rainforest, which protects an extraordinary diversity of wildlife from the influence and intervention of man.
The only people to inhabit the delta are the Warao Indians who live in villages built along the canals. They are coastal people and avoid venturing inland. |
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The Delta, before sunrise. |
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Venezuela - El Dorado
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A road sign that says it all |
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About 180 kilometres southwest of Ciudad Guayana begins the Venezuelan El Dorado. In 1849, rich gold deposits were discovered in the RioYuruari basin -- it was a bonanza!
Gold fever spread through the region, villages mushroomed, boomed, then went bust. Most are now reminiscent of one-time Wild West boom towns and hold little attraction for tourists. |
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The gold is mined by large international mining companies as well as a few small independent miners. Some work in family units, others, like the bateros, try their luck solo.
This unbridled mining is having a disastrous effect on the environment. The miners use mercury to wash the ore and high-pressure water hoses to uproot trees. Mercury, as we know, has a devastating effect on the environment and everything that lives in it. |
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Miners threaten the rainforest |
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