Crew of the Kruzenshtern sailing ship visits Venezuelan capital

As part of its circumnavigation of the globe, the Russian Kruzenshtern sailing ship made a port call at the Venezuelan capital of Caracas on its way from Vancouver in Canada to the Cuban capital of Havana. For the first time in the ship’s 84-year history, two top state officials boarded the vessel. The visit of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez did not prevent the ship’s crew from taking a walk around the Venezuelan capital.

A part of the old colonial city survived amid the high-rise buildings of modern Caracas. The photo shows Casa del Libertador, the house where Venezuelan national hero Simon Bolivar was born on July 24, 1983. Now the building houses one of the country’s main historic museums.

The crew listens to stories of Latin America's struggle for independence from Spain.

One of the museum’s most precious exhibits is Bolivar’s sword.

The words of the national hero are caste in bronze in Venezuela.

A monument to Simon Bolivar at the eponymous square in Caracas.

A crowd of people on Bolivar square.

A cenotaph of Venezuelan revolutionary Francisco de Miranda, who died in a Spanish prison.

Bolivar’s grave in the National Pantheon of Venezuela.

A glimpse at Venezuela’s future follows a look at its past.

A final walk on dry land before embarking on another long trans-Atlantic journey.