Information based on my perspective.

The custom of picking mangoes anywhere and everywhere persists. It remains the favorite fruit of this place and the one that sustained thousands of people during the greatest time of scarcity.

People look for any way to generate income, that includes renting chairs at nearby places where long lines form for extended periods.

It's perfectly fine to want to start a business and find ways to generate income, but lately, situations have been arising in many places where people essentially try to force you to give them a favor or buy their product or service. For example:

- At traffic lights, you'll find young men offering to clean the windshields of cars that stop at red lights. They don't ask if you want the service; they simply spray water on the windshield without any warning, and when you tell them you don't need or want the service, they get angry and even insult you.

- People who watch over cars parked on public streets. This has become widespread (to put it mildly) throughout almost all of Venezuela. They are responsible for "protecting" the cars from being broken into or stolen. The curious thing is that no one forced them to be there; it's voluntary work, and they expect a monetary donation. Although no one is obligated to give them money because it's simply a public street, they get annoyed if you don't give them anything.

- The beaches are also a public space, but the vendors who have permits to rent chairs and umbrellas take over almost the entire beach area, placing their umbrellas and chairs even when no one is using them, much less when they haven't been asked, to force tourists to buy their services. And if you politely ask them to remove their umbrellas and chairs because you want to use the space but not buy their service, they get angry, insult you, fight, and refuse to leave. Of course, there is no authority regulating this.

Public transportation (buses) is infrequent, more so in some states than others. They start running around 5:00 or 5:30 am and continue until 5:00 pm. In some places, the schedule might extend to a maximum of 7:00 pm, but it's very unlikely; I'd even say the probability of seeing a bus in service at 8:00 pm is 0.5%.

Of Venezuela's 23 states, only three have metro systems: Carabobo, Zulia, and Miranda. However, these systems don't cover the entire state; the metro lines are only located in the capital city of each state. The Valencia metro in Carabobo has nine stations, the Los Teques metro in Miranda has four, and the Maracaibo metro in Zulia has six.

Of course, Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, also has metro lines and has 51 stations.

Prices and exchange rates are crazy, you have to experience it to understand it, I'll try to explain it simply. It's crazy because every business or person charges different rates, and that creates confusion. You should always, always ask what rate they're charging for the product or service you want to buy.

A few years ago, things were simpler. If someone told you something cost $10, you paid with $10, or you used the "parallel" or "illegal" exchange rate in Bolivars. You could get a price estimate from a website or app. Remember, there are currency controls here; the government sets an absurdly low price for the dollar, making it nearly impossible to buy dollars at a bank. Back then, nobody relied on the official rate.

(Before continuing with the explanation, please refrain from making comments like "don't be an idiot, don't talk about dollars or bolivars, just talk about bitcoin." I'm simply focusing on explaining how everyday economic life "works" on the streets of Venezuela. I'm speaking from the perspective of an ordinary, nobody person who wants to buy a kilo of meat at the market.)

As expected, the government began forcing formal businesses to charge at the official rate of the Central Bank.

10 USD currency ≠ 10 USD official rate

This is where the madness begins, where many get confused, annoyed, frustrated, etc.

Because of this, businesses had to raise prices to avoid losses. That is, what used to cost $10 now costs $14, but that's calculated using the official exchange rate. If the gap between the parallel and official exchange rates widens, prices will rise again. Now, some shops and small businesses are using a tactic where they tell you: if you pay in foreign currency, the price is $10, but if you pay at the official rate, it's $14.

Today, May 5, 2026, 6460 Bolivars represents 13.18 USD at the official Central Bank rate.

6460 Bolivars, converted to the "parallel" rate (in this case, I'm using Yadio's rate), that would be 10 USD

Personally, I don't know anyone in Venezuela who uses Yadio, much less have I heard anyone in any establishment using it as a reference. So, what became popular was using the USDT rate on Binance. You walk down the street and hear people saying things like, "USDT rate" or "Binance rate." Yes, it makes me nervous to hear those phrases.

To complicate matters further, not only do they charge a different price depending on whether the payment is in foreign currency (cash, Zelle, Zinli, BinancePay), and in addition to using a "parallel" rate and the Central Bank of Venezuela's official exchange rate for the dollar, people are also using the Central Bank of Venezuela's official exchange rate for the Euro. Yes, the Euro.

I returned to Venezuela last year, after having been away for 7 years, so the first time I went out to eat with my family and we asked for the bill, I heard my sister ask the waitress what exchange rate they were using and the girl very politely said "the Euro rate". I'm sure my scream could be heard throughout the place. I said "WHAT? Euro?" My family laughed at me and told the girl, "Relax, she just arrived in Venezuela."

"What the hell is going on?" I asked.

The Euro exchange rate is higher than the Dollar exchange rate and is slightly closer to the parallel market rate, so some establishments have opted to charge at the Euro rate, while others charge at the official dollar rate, but "the prices are higher." For example: paying in cash in US dollars costs $10 USD; paying at the Euro rate would cost $12 USD; and paying at the Central Bank's official dollar rate would cost $14 USD.

At the end of the day, everyone charges however they want; few places give you the price in Bolivars. For example, one place might tell you directly that it's 5000 Bolivars, and then you can decide what exchange rate to use. Other places simply choose to peg the price to the dollar and charge at whatever rate they deem appropriate.

Continuing with the exercise, 6460 bolivars are €11.25

Of course, all of this lends itself to further speculation.

If someone in Venezuela tells you that they are paid 200 USD at their job, it is most likely that they are being paid at the official dollar exchange rate.

On Wednesday, Rodríguez additionally called for reforms to the country’s housing laws, claiming that there are half a million “frozen” properties presently that could be incorporated into the real estate market.
https://venezuelanalysis.com/news/venezuela-rodriguez-announces-labor-pension-tax-reforms/

In short, they want to create or have created a reform where they will take over houses that are unoccupied, either because the owner is out of the country or because they own several, to forcibly "rent" them to other families. The state would decide who lives in the property and the conditions.

The problem with gasoline, gas, and water remains a serious issue, and the situation with electricity has worsened.

Each family plans how to cope with these situations; those who can install solar panels or generators, others just endure the hardship. For water, some place tanks, or several if possible, others only have buckets full of water. Regarding gasoline, some have jerrycans full of gasoline in their homes. More than one family has experienced an emergency but cannot go in their cars due to a lack of gasoline.