In “Sister City,” Pawnee’s visiting sister-city delegation comes from Venezuela.
The delegation represents Boraqua, Pawnee’s fictional sister city in Venezuela. Its members arrive at the parks department led by Raul, played by Fred Armisen, and immediately create culture clashes with Leslie Knope and her colleagues.
The episode uses the diplomatic visit to satirize political power, national stereotypes and the contrast between Pawnee’s underfunded local government and the delegation’s exaggerated claims about Venezuela’s wealth and authority. The fictional visitors boast about oil money and behave as though they are accustomed to lavish resources and strict government control.
“Sister City” is the fifth episode of season 2 and the 11th overall episode. It originally aired on October 15, 2009, and was written by Alan Yang. Viewers sometimes confuse the country with Boraqua itself, but Boraqua is the invented city; Venezuela is the country specified by the episode.