Venezuelans in Caracas process a weekend “for the history books”
CNN teams in Caracas spoke with Venezuelans who were out and about Sunday after the United States captured President Nicolás Maduro. Though the streets have been quiet, the Venezuelan government has urged citizens to resume their normal routines.
“Why did I have to go out?” said Judith Ledezma. “I have a pet that needs exercise and I was really stressed out staying indoors.”
Her orange dog sat beside her on a park bench in Caracas, flanked by numerous shopping bags. Ledezma, who lives near one of the airbases hit by US airstrikes, told CNN the noise from the attack woke her up Saturday.
“I thought it was an earthquake,” Ledezma said. “I got scared and came running out with my daughter and the dog.”
Olga Jimenez told CNN she finally left her house Sunday after staying in all of Saturday. Maduro or no Maduro, Jimenez said, she doesn’t expect much to change in Venezuela – except maybe the lines at the shops.
“I’ve been glued to the TV, watching to see what’s going on, and what there is is uncertainty,” Jimenez said. “You don’t feel a change of government because everything is the same. The only thing is that we don’t know.”
Maria Azocar, meanwhile, told CNN that “having lived through so much, nothing really worries me anymore.”
“As I say, this is for the history books,” Azocar said, before listing the names of past Venezuelan leaders: “(Marcos) Pérez Jiménez, (Isaías Medina) Angarita, Rómulo Gallegos, Juan Vicente Gómez – people who, in their time, were overthrown or displaced.”
