Christopher Columbus has the credit of exploring Venezuela for the first time. In 1498, he touched the land of Peninsula de Paria. He discovered Rio Orinoco delta just by following the coast line. However, the country was named a year later by Alonso de Ojeda. "Little Venice" was the expressive name given due the stilted houses developed over the lakes and reminded Ojeda of Venice. Hence, the name Venezuela.

After one year, Spanish established their first settlement, Nueva Cadiz. At that time, colonization of Venezuela was loosely ruled by Bogota. The Spanish concentrated in the western parts of South America because the region was rich in natural mineral resources. But the fact that Venezuela owns massive oil reserves was in the shadow. This amazed the world, when oil discovered. Early 1900s was the time when the ultimate "discovery" stood on its own feet. After few years, by the 1920s, Venezuela began to enjoy the benefits of its own natural resource.

Romulo Betancourt, the first president of Venezuela, made some required corrections to the country's constitution. The ruling class was rolling in money. This was giving rise to an unequal distribution of money, which continued till 1947.

Next few years were quite normal. In the mid 1970s, an oil boom created a flow of money. In the 1980s, when prices of the oil came down, the country once again came near to the critical deadlines. On top of that, Caracas faced riots, which with corruptions, made the nation restless.

After all these incidents, Venezuela still has its own charm and liveliness. The nation is facing these random changes as a challenge and making an outstanding mark in front of rest of the world.

Pauline Go is an online leading expert in traveling industry. He also offers top quality articles like:
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