Kanaima or Canaima, the voice of the indigenous "Pemón". The Caribbean Amerindian inhabiting this area, have been named one of the most important national parks in the World.
The National Park is undoubtedly one of the most extraordinary scenic beauty of the planet, which scientists attribute to be the oldest geological formation of the earth and are attributed to be 2100 million years old.
Canaima National Park, was declared "National Park" on June 12, 1962, and registered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, World Heritage of Humanity since 1994 and approved as such by UNESCO..
Features:
Size:
3,000,000. hectares.
It stands on the plateau of Guiana and in turn on the geological shield of the same name, considered the formation of the oldest metamorphic rocks of the earth.
Age:
Between 1,500 and 2,100 million years, with mountainous outcrops amesetados called Tepuyes.
The landscape is dominated by two major configurations: the impenetrable dense forest, characteristic of the Guiana Shield in the western area and the stunning Gran Sabana in the eastern sector.
Has the highest waterfall in the world (karepakupai-vein), known as Churum merú or "Salto Angel" with 1,000 meters of free fall from the Auyantepuy mountain.
Vegetation:
Covered by grasslands, tropical wet forest morichales.
More than 6,000 plant species are present in the National Park of which are about 500 species of orchids.
Fauna:
The fauna is very diverse, but not abundant. There are about 150 species of mammals, 550 birds, 72 reptiles and 55 amphibians.
Hydrology:
The abundance of water that are born and run through the park, is such that form an artificial lake of 3,919 square kilometers and leads to the second largest hydroelectric dam in the world: The Guri dam, with a production of 10,000 megawatts of electricity.
Housing, food and crafts from the Pemón:
Housing:
The size varies considerably Pemon villages, while some are made up of a single family of 13 people about six other host families can have an average of 50 members.
If conditions permit, pemones, prefer to build their homes near a river.
The typical house is made pemón adobe walls, which support a roof covered with palm leaves, carefully interspersed to prevent leaks during the rainy season.
There are some houses in a circle and usually without divisions on the inside.
In Canaima, the pemones settled in the area, have been introduced for the construction of other, more modern homes, as are concrete blocks, rebar, etc. and have even changed the structure of housing, adding divisions to the same inside, identifying specific areas: rooms, kitchen, living room or receipt, etc.
Food and culture:
For thousands of years, have cultivated their land pemones to meet their food needs.
They practice shifting cultivation, where they grow cassava, which prepared the cassava (Indian bread).
They also prepare a spicy called "Cumache", which along with fish, is the basis of their diet.
Also know the art of processing cassava fermented drinks and Paracari Cachiri calls.
Other food sources include peppers grown, mapuey, sweet potato, taro, bananas, pineapple, etc.
Handy Crafts:
Participating in tourism while continuing to work with their local handy crafts.
The pemones also take advantage of natural environmental resources for timber, fiber and clay, which together with the production of cotton, provides the raw material needed to produce an extraordinary craftsmanship, as oars or paddles, a variety of baskets, beds or hammocks, pottery, carved animal figures, etc.
The native canoes called "curiosity", are used as transportation in hunting and fishing and as a vehicle for tourist excursions.
Join the River of Gold Expedition 2011, after 3 days of searching for Angel Falls Coordinated with Google Earth we believe to found the right spot, if you are interested please write us an e-mail.... HB
