Chavez in Caracas

We marched, danced, shouted and chanted for hours through streets filled with people dressed in red. We thought what we´d seen so far had already been a pretty big rally but then we looked down on Avenida Bolivar and the next street across which were both absolutely chokkas. Chavez addressed the crowds in the blazing sun for a couple of hours. The crowds were incredible diverse, I saw queer contingents, indigenous contingents, and every sector of society from sportspeople to finance workers for Chavez. I stood watching everything and laughing at how much the CIA and State Dept reps, who I´m sure would have been there, must have been freaking out. It was eerie though, looking around at all high rise building and noticing that on each was stationed a sniper - necessary defence when the world´s biggest war machine doesn´t agree with the democratic decision of a nation. Coming from a country where parliamentary politics is always such a sham and the idea of a president driving through adoring crowds seems somewhere between impossible and naff, its hard to describe just how electric and festive the whole atmosphere was. After Chavez drove past, turning just in time to see the Australia Venezuela Solidarity banner and smiling AT US!!!, there was an absolute wave of people following the truck, chanting and singing. We saw the big man again on the night of the elections, making his speech from the people´s balcony at Miraflores, really amazing seeing history happen. More accounts of the brigade coming soon.