From Venezuela Con Amor
PHOTOGRAPHY Nick Saglimbeni

Venezuelan actress Carol Borjas thwarts our efforts to solve an ancient South American mystery

It was your typical smoggy day in Los Angeles. I was sitting in the offices of Open Your Eyes poring over the evidence of a less-than-challenging case: proving that Ricky Martin is gay. That’s when a top-secret assignment landed on my desk. My mission—which I gladly accepted—was to solve The Great Venezuelan Mystery. Not sure what I’m talking about? Well it doesn’t surprise me. It’s one of the CIA’s most heavily-guarded secretos, cleverly referred to as Operation Babes Under Wrap.

Still not sure what I’m talking about? Well I don’t want to be too obvious because our intelligence indicates there are several Open Your Eyes subscribers at CIA headquarters. I’m not sure if they’re double agents or just have Latina fever, but I digress..

Have you ever wondered why so many of the world’s most beautiful women come from Venezuela? Venezuela is a relatively small country you know—its population roughly the same as Iraq’s. Don’t you find it suspicious that so many of Venezuela’s women go on to international fame and stardom? They seem to scoop up beauty pageant titles the way Kenyans scoop up marathon victories.

Could it be something in the water? Perhaps some superhuman Amazonian gene-splicing experiment? I decided to get to the bottom of this conundrum by going straight to the source of this mystery. That would mean identifying, interrogating (and hopefully frisking) a Venezuelan bellisima. My target: actress Carol Borjas.

Little did I know what I was getting into. It was obvious she’d done this before. I was like putty in her soft, loving hands. I meant to question her long and hard about her CIA contacts…but I never made it that far. Before I knew it, she had turned me into a willing tool of her own objectives. I became nothing more than her publicity puppet.

I awoke the next day with only foggy memories of her “interrogation,” and all I was left with is the interview that follows...and if you’re still reading this, be careful. This magazine may self-destruct in 30 seconds.

You’re from Venezuela. Tell us one interesting fact most people don’t know about your home country.
A fact? Hmm? Well, maybe the fact that we have the biggest waterfalls…but I love food so I’d rather tell you about our famosas hayacas, which are traditionally eaten during the Christmas period. Hayacas are made of dough that’s filled with vegetables or meat. They’re wrapped and cooked in banana leaves, and they are absolutely delicious.

What projects have you worked on recently?
I was hosting a Spanish TV show called Hablemos de Cine on Azteca America. It was a show where we would go to the latest premieres and interview stars. I got a chance to interview Eva Mendes, Paul Walker, and Christina Ricci, to name a few. I did that for about six months. We finished the contract with Azteca America and now it looks like Telemundo will buy the program. It’s pending right now.

What would you say is the best thing about living in Venezuela?
The people. Venezuelans are very warm people, and I think that is what Latinos are known for. I love that there is a priority on family and friends. Priorities are somewhat different. People work to live, not live to work. I miss that attitude here in the U.S.

What kind of reaction do you get from people here in the U.S. when you tell them you’re from Venezuela?
The reaction I always get is, “Venezuela? The country that has the most beautiful women? Where all the Miss Universe winners come from?”

Does that mean that the streets of Venezuela are filled with beautiful women?
Well yeah, there are a lot of beautiful girls over there.

Why do you think that is?
I really don’t know why that is. All I can tell you is that there is a huge mix of just different types of girls. You have girls that just have dark skin, and you also have girls that have lighter skin and hair.

Or…I don’t know…maybe it’s because we are known for having all these Miss Universes. Going out for the Miss Venezuela pageant is the biggest event that a model can participate in. People go to school for that. It’s a huge deal.

You made Venezuela’s national rhythm gymnastics team. How long were you on the national team and what were some of your biggest competitions?
I was part of the national team for ten years. I am proud and thankful to have been able to represent Venezuela in tournaments around the world including the Pan-American Games.

Was there one country that you loved to beat?
Well, I would say…we’ve always had this thing with the team from Argentina. Even though they are really good.

So how did you do in the world of gymnastics?
I received the Best Gymnast Award in Venezuela for five consecutive years, between 1989 and 1993.

Have any of your boyfriends ever asked you to perform one of your gymnastics routines for them?
Like…they’ve seen me dancing. I’ve danced for some of them. I am very flexible. It’s always like I’m stretching my legs and guys are just like, “Wow!” Of course guys are always thinking of something else.

Can you blame them? Um…not that I think like them, but are you still pretty flexible?
Yes, I’m still very flexible. I love stretching. And I’m still very active, dancing and sports in general are still a huge part of my life. Just to give you an example, when we would do splits we would have to do the splits while somebody was grabbing our front leg and putting it even higher. So it would go farther than the normal splits.

Wow! Just out of curiosity, does that mean you can put your legs behind your head?
Oh, of course I can. I could do it if I wanted to. It’s just that it doesn’t look very pretty.

There are probably a lot of guys who would disagree, but let’s change the topic before I get too hot and bothered. Tell me what one has to do in rhythm gymnastics to really impress the judges.
In my opinion, being well prepared and well trained along with having a strong creative and artistic interpretation in your routines.

With all you had going for you in your athletic and dancing career in Venezuela, what brought you to the U.S.?
It had nothing to do with my dancing aspirations or my gymnastic abilities. Actually, it was love. Initially I came because I fell in love. Although I’m no longer together with that person, I feel blessed that many doors have opened for me here, both professionally and personally.

So what happened, why didn’t you end up with that guy?
We were together for five years…and I don’t know. We were both in the entertainment business, and I guess the fact that he wasn’t doing as well as I was affected him a lot.

You’re also a champion salsa dancer…
Salsa is a very passionate dance style. I grew up dancing it. In Venezuela, salsa is all around you—at family parties, when you go out with friends, on the radio. It’s a part of your everyday life. To me dancing salsa is another form of expression. It allows you to interpret music in a very personal way.

Any tips for those of us who suck at salsa dancing?
My best advice for beginners is to let the music guide you. Allow yourself to feel the music. And most of all, have fun with it!

What would you do if the guy you’re dancing with stepped really hard on your toe?
Probably keep dancing, although maybe not so close.

Is it true that good dancers are better in bed?
Yes, absolutely. If you think about it, it makes sense.

Does that mean your boyfriend has to be a good dancer?
He doesn’t have to be a good dancer. I can cover for him if needed.

What’s the wildest thing a guy has done to get your attention?
I was on tour in Brazil with Lou Bega (Mr. Mambo #5). One evening we were leaving a club and this very handsome Brazilian young man came up to me, introduced himself, and gave me a kiss on my lips. He was so fast and smooth that I wasn’t able to react fast enough!

So did you slap him or hang out with him?
Well, we hung out. When you’re on tour you’re barely in any city for more than two or three days. So I actually hung out with him, but it was only for a couple of days and that was that…He kept calling me once I went back home, but it’s just so hard to have a relationship when you’re so far away.

What kind of things do you do to get a guy’s attention or let him know you’re interested?
Usually, by the way I look or smile at him. But I have performed some crazy stunts in the past…I actually sent red roses to an ex-boyfriend.

How do you distinguish between an honest guy and a player?
I pretty much rely on my intuition. I can get a pretty good read on people after a few minutes, although I have made some mistakes in the past.

You have been in music videos with artists like P Diddy, Will Smith, LL Cool J, and Snoop Dogg, to name a few. Which of these guys would you say is the smoothest?
I would say P Diddy is the smoothest. But Will Smith is my favorite…we did the “Welcome to Miami” song and I was dancing salsa with him for the Wango Tango annual concert. He is just very fun to be around. He puts everyone around him at ease and is extremely professional.

Who else have you enjoyed working with?
I truly appreciate having had the opportunity to work with tremendously talented artists. Going on tour with artists such as Paul McCartney and Brian McKnight and performing in front of thousands of fans has been an amazing experience for me. There’s nothing like the rush you feel when performing in front of a live audience!

What other things give you a big rush?
Being in love. I am just the type of girl that loves being in relationships, nice healthy relationships. I’m just that type of girl. I am very romantic. Spending time with somebody that I am in love with is just one of the most wonderful things I can experience.

Has anything embarrassing ever happened to you while performing?
Yes. I fell on stage once. I was in the front, so I couldn’t play it off. It was really obvious. I got up and I just started laughing at myself. The reaction of the people in the front row was like, wow. When they saw me laugh, they started laughing too.

What words of advice do you have for our readers?
Be true to yourself and others. Live life to the fullest, with no regrets. Be passionate about what you do. And be thankful for what you’ve experienced along the way!