Uruguay - Punta del Diablo

Pics above ..... pub life in punta del diablo

homemade pizzas......we ate well

sancha chilling on the beach

the Uruguayan flag

more food...... a typical breakfast

diary writing

(Pics: dinner at El Viejo y El Mar - the old man and the sea; Mitster and Patrick; Michelle at Punta del Este)








First of all, it´s green here. This is a bit of a shock to the system having spent two months at quite high altitude, dry and deserty environments! Secondly, the spanish is spoken at the speed of light, so just when we thought we were making progress on the lingo, it´s like being back in Santiago in week one!

We caught the Buquebus ferry from Buenos Aires to Colonia, a pretty town which we hope to spend some time at on the way back to BA. From the ferryport, we caught the bus to a place called Punta del Este which is like the Marbella of this part of the world. The countryside en route is quite green and really flat. Except for the palm trees and occasional swamp areas, it almost looks like the Netherlands :o) In Punta del Este, we observed fancy shops like Fendi, Louis Vuitton and mercedes cars driving around. It´s such a change from the other side of the continent and felt quite odd being in somewhere so monied, but dead quiet. It´s not quite summer here yet!

We stayed one night and then decided to move on further up the coast to Punta del Diablo (Devils´s Point) where Rowan and Barry had been hanging out for a few days already. The place is described in the LP as "off the beaten track", so much so that the buses are of the "one-a-day" variety so we took to hiring a taxi instead....not exactly backpacker style, but in the interests of reaching the sunny beach in a good mood, you understand right? Rowan and Barry raved about the place and we have liked the vibe so much we are still here a week later! The locals are fab, so friendly and welcoming: "swing by for food and drinks later, my friends". We have found much to do with our days, including:

1) diary writing
2) book-reading
3) sun-tanning
4) shopping at a variety of stores so as to spread our pesos about town
5) cooking fantastic meals (all boasting aside, we have done amazingly well)
6) visiting the local border town in order to find an ATM
7) walking the local dogs, there are so many of them and they are so friendly. They include Duke (aka Mitty as his owner is called Walter) and Dago (neighbourhood puppy who is really clumsy!)
8) dipping into the freezing cold atlantic and fighting mega waves (the beach is a good surfing spot)
9) thinking about our return home on 10 Dec.

It´s a tough life!!