The “Quotidiano di Bari” speaks about us

From Puglia to Porlamar for a better life.

Guido, from Italy, has been transferred to the Island of Margarita, Porlamar, tired of a reality that had left him prisoner of a stressful life and a problematic and complex work.

On the island, he has recovered his freedom and has opened a travel agency, ItalCaribeClub, which not only organizes trips, but also helps Italians who decide to leave their country, hoping to rebuild a better life, wherever the sun always shines.

Many of them come from the Italian capital of Puglia, likeCiccio Bari and Lele de Conversano, who decided to transfer to the island, given that they have no future in their hometown.

Guido, why did you decide to leave Italy? And where do you live today?

I have always been a dreamer, a romantic person, a man who in ordinary language, defines himself as a “tough man”, but at the same time, it moves me to face a sunset, the smile of a child, a poem, in love with life and living.

Here I found all this and at the same time, the freedom to live. I am currently in Margarita Island, Porlamar, in a condo with direct access to the sea, swimming pool, concierge, minimarket, laundry and with the windows of my house that resemble the drawings made by the Great Architect of the Universe.

Days of intense blue sky and nights with daylightfrom the moon. I fall asleep with the sound of the sea and wake up with the unmistakable singing of gulls fluttering.

In Italy, what kind of work did you do?

In Italy, I had my own construction company, a company that was growing slowly.

It is a company that builds and restores buildings, houses, apartments, especially in Toscana, but also in Emilia, Campania and the Lombardíaregion. My days were almost always the same, between work, banks, municipalities, offices and millions of miles in car between one site and another.

And now, what is your occupation?

To the Island, I came with the hope of a change of life and work, but without any doubt, I did not expect to feel so accomplished in such a short time, I now have a travel agency that is in charge of taking clients to Venezuela and offering them the opportunity to have a quiet, serene and economical vacation in a wonderful place among the beaches, theCaribbean Sea, bars and restaurants.

Unlike other travel agencies, ItalCaribe Club, that is the name of our agency, has been able to get trust and friendship with our own customers, making their holidays as if they were ours.

We are constantly discovering, together with our clients, the corners of the country that we live together, new emotions and very different days.

Not having to endure the high costs and efforts like other tour operators, we managed to propose highly competitive holiday packages and offer the usual packages of other agencies with a real decrease of 30-40% of the price.

What type of clients are of interest to you? And what kind of service do you offer?

The clients who come to us are very diverse, both in age and by region, with a common denominator: the awareness that South America has its own rhythms, habits and contradictions.

Anyone who comes here, they trust us completely or almost entirely.You should only think about having fun, and enjoy the beauty of the country and its people, no worries, no fear, no question that has not had a sure and reliable answer.

In recent times, probably in response to a political situation that for many has become incomprehensible, our work has enriched themselves with a clientele that we did not expect: the fugitives,we call them with laughter.

We are fugitives from a country that we no longer felt able, to give us a type of life and a condition of life, according to our traditions and expectations and, with several messages and stories in the media, in an appearance in “Ballaro” a couple of months ago, we were able to convey all this in a sincere and clear way.

This resulted, I repeat once again, unexpected, the fact that many young people looking for a place in the world of work and many old retirees, looking for a good life, serene and also economically, as well as from the social and the climate point of view, have turned to us for advice, or simply a push to take this step that so many times have dreamed.

It is now the phase of our work that gives us more satisfaction: To feel gratitude to a young person who lives happily and builds his life, or a retiree who lives serene walking in the uncontaminated sea of these parts, enjoying the last part of his life, really in the sunlight in front of us, it really is priceless.

It is a huge satisfaction that in the economical aspect, which is the part thatinterests us the less, now we work in all aspects as if the requests were from a younger brother, an uncle, a grandfather, rather, someone from the family.

And our new friends perceive it clearly; it is born as a synergy of purpose that seems much more to a personal satisfaction for a job.

You told me that you have several clients from Bari as well. How did they get in touch with you? And what kind of information have they found in Venezuela?

This is mainly due to chance. And word of mouth, a tangible sign of a job well done and confirmed expectations on our part. This, if it is a simple vacation or a real transfer.

I still remember a young man named Ciccio, from Bari, who came on vacation with us about a year ago; here he found himself so well, to the point that we are waiting for him from one day to the next, because he has decided to come here and stay to work, or also a man with his wife and son, Lele, from Conversano, who is waiting of the necessary permits to transfer to the island and to continue his life in a country that, in his own opinion, feels it his own, much more than his native Italy.

After the serious crisis affecting Venezuela, what does it still have to offer this land?

There is no crisis here! People live well, produce, have their jobs and spend what they earn.

Taxes are not an issue that worries the family economy and everything that is produced, is spent and recirculated, generating more employment and more wealth. The shops are full, the restaurants equally, the couples buy houses and have children, everyone who want a job, find it.

The country is rich in raw materials such as oil, gold, gas, diamonds and precious stones.

Tourism is a constant source of income, politics with its contradictions, is a policy that deals with the elderly and poor.

The country has a lot to offer for a European, a house with two rooms costs around 50 thousand euros, gasoline costs only a penny of euro per liter, monthly electricity bills are around 6 euros, spending for four people are around 300 euros per month and so on.

Here, with an income of one thousand euros a month, we still live very well without any difficulties and worries, the possibilities come every day, just enough to have the desire and time to be able to get it.