Uruguay

Colonia

We returned from the falls to BA but got right on the boat to Colonial in Uruguay. We arrived at our hostel at night and settled in. The next morning we walked around the old part of town which is another UNESCO world heritage site. Its colonial architecture the mixes the Portuguese and Spanish influence of the first colonists. This area at the river mouth was very strategic and went back and forth many times between colonizing countries . In the afternoon we took a guided walking tour with a local woman Ana. She was delightful and the old town came to life for us.

For some reason I have been taking lots of photos of windows..

...and doors. Maybe its time for me to open or close some?

Family in a nice hotel courtyard

There are many old cars in Uruguay, most in better shape than this.

The next day we took a tour in the surrounding country side. We visited a winery and a farm. The farm produced cheese and jams. But its real claim to fame was the farmers collections. He is recognized by the Guinness book of world records for having the biggest key chain and pencil collections in the world. They are on display at the farm. As are other things he and his wife collect. It was fascinating. He started the pencil collection when he was in grade school in the 1950s. He is in his 60s now. Human beings do so many strange and interesting things.

Winery warehouse. We bought two bottles.

One of the many single items in the farmers collection. Behind it is part of the key chain collection.

In the afternoon we explored another part of the city with the same man who toured us in the morning. As we talked we found out he lives in a cooperative community and is home schooling his children. This is very unusual here. He made sure to let us know that they are not”hippies” (too bad hippies have gotten a bad rap world wide) but are trying to live a life outside of the fast paced, consumer driven one that they see around them. He was from Argentina originally and had been living in Uruguay for about two years. He was as interesting to talk to as it was to see the city and the surrounding area.

Dave taking a break from the heavy touring experience.

Ruins of the bullring built by one of the eccentric characters in Piriopolis history.

Montevideo Stop over

We tool the bus from Colonia to get to the beach part of our time in Uruguay. But on the way we stopped in Montevideo the capital of Uruguay. It is a git city, one million people, the biggest in Uruguay. But it has a manageable feeling and is much calmer than BA. The architecture is even more impressive with many older style one next to the other and modern buildings in between. It would have been nice to spend a night or two and explore more but we were on to the beach.

Piriopolis

Piriopolis is a resort town that was developed in 1920s by a visionary man. He planted trees and laid out the plan for the streets. There is a huge old grand hotel and a promenade along the beach. It has a very Mediterranean feeling, along with a feeling of being a bit run down. There are art deco buildings amid the moderns ones. The pace is slow and relaxed. Our hotel had an indoor pool with warmed water from the river. The sand was like powder. It was very relaxing to be here.

Lobby of Grand hotel in Piriopolis

Mayne and I in crazy hotel lobby chairs

We celebrated my birthday on the roof top terrace with sparkling wine from the Colonia winery

Besides lying on the beach and dipping in the water we did get out of the town one day. We went to a “castle” of the city founder. But there was not much to see as the interior was closed for renovation. From there we headed to another Flora and Fauna reserve. It was a nice park but the animal part was more like a zoo and a bit depressing. There were several wild cats who never seem like they should be in cages. I enjoyed more just the walk in the park and the views of the country side.

The Castillo

Nandu native ostrich like bird

Largest rodent in the world, native to Argentina, the capybara

Uruguay was similar to Argentina but different at the same time. It felt more relaxed and people seemed more down to earth. The pace was calmer. They still drank matter and ate meat (Uruguay has the highest meat consumption in the world). They may be a little more conservative than Argentina. The food left a lot to be desired. But over all it felt easier to be there. I would like to go back and explore more.

View of the old grand buildings form the water

The beach

Piriopolis beach sunset

We had to end this relaxing time and head back to BA. Mayne had two more nights there before he had to head home. We had one more night with him before we headed for Northwest Argentina. So we took the bus and the boat back. We had our last meal with Mayn at an Asian restaurant, one of the bet meals we had in BA. The next day we said goodbye to Mayn and headed out on our next adventure.