Punta del Diablo

Our trip to Diablo took about 2 1/2 hours. It was mixed weather and a good day to be travelling.

Margarita and Michael told us that Diablo was a hippy town and they weren't kidding. We pulled up to our beautiful little house and I discovered something about myself. I'm an old hippy who never took the opportunity to explore that part of me! This place is amazing and we feel right at home here even though we are definitely in the minority. There are a few "grey hairs" in this town and they don't all sport braids and beards, however the majority of people to throng here are under 40.

Our landlady Diana, is a beautiful young Uruguayan who lived in New Jersey for 3 years during the truly dreadful days following 9/11. She said that she never felt comfortable in the U.S. and was happy to return to her home with her Italian husband Giovani. They built three adorable houses here and they live in a wooden cabin behind the houses. Ours is decorated like Darla and Peter's first home together; lots of sun and moon images, bright colours, tile floors (wood in the bedroom), funky furniture, curtains and bedspread. We have a balcony off our bedroom and the view of the ocean is wonderful. This is such a busy town and, just like our house in Toronto, beside a park, there is always serious people-watching to be done.

The mural you see below was done for Diana by an artist friend who we happened to see painting (it's all done with spray can paint) at Carnaval in Periapolis.

There are endless km's of beach to walk, surfers to watch, forest to explore and bumming to do! This is a perfect place for all of it.

Below: See the three colourful houses above the fishing boats? The yellow to the left of the blue one is ours. The location is excellent.

I will save our trip to Chuy for another day. Monday was rainy and we thought it would be a perfect day to drive the 40 km to this border town. The middle of the main street divides Uruguay from Brazil. What a bizarre place! We will revisit and take pics to share with you.

In the meantime, be good to yourselves and know that we think of you and love you all!!

Ciao!!

The Rest of Periapolis

Here we go again......pics that failed to upload yesterday! I LOVE technology!!!

Have to show you my awesome stove in the cabin! It must be 100 years old and works!

Below: Castle built by the Piria dude

There is a Canadian who sailed his boat to Uruguay and is apparently living aboard at the marina. Try as we did, we couldn't find him. We were hoping that this was his boat and that we could buy it...teeeeeee heeeeeee!

The following pic is a brain-teaser (I know you brainy people are out there!). We are on the east coast of South America, looking out at the mouth of the river to the Atlantic. So why are we watching the sunset!!!?????

Bob eating his "guilt-free" (and fantastic) ice cream after dark....hoping I wouldn't catch him...ahaaaa...busted!!! Marny, this one is for you.....we are eating DULCE DE LECHE!!!! The BEST we have ever tasted! Notice the sliver of moon over his shoulder? Beautiful evenings on La Rambla (waterfront) in Piriapolis!!

Last Saturday, Bob and I thought we'd visit an area a few kms away from the town where the locals are invited to make and sell their best efforts, right from their home. We found the houses and farms however everything appeared to be closed. Margarita had told us about this place and said that we must go on a Saturday, however Margarita and Michael had never been here, having heard about it from a friend. We had just returned to our cabin and considering what to do next and decided we should ask our landlady about the place. She told us that we needed to honk our horn or stand outside the homes and clap our hands (this is what you do here!) to let them know someone is outside. If they are open, they will invite you in. We were just about to leave again when our landlady came to the door and handed us the phone. It was Margarita, asking if we would like to go to a horse race (Margie dubbed it "Ascot"). They arrived 40 minutes later, picked us up and off we went. Now, they have never been to a horse race either and they had a vague idea where it would be....close to where Bob and I had just been. One of their construction workers raised, broke and races his horse and we were about to see Uruguayan racing...but first we had to find the track. Margarita, in her brilliant Spanish, engaged many people in a local village and by the side of the road. They all pointed us in the same direction but we just couldn't find it. We did learn, from a couple of gaucho's, that the race had been cancelled due to the heavy rain the night prior. What to do? Off we went, back to the artisan area. We stopped outside several homes and were delighted to buy (very inexpensively), fresh produce, cheese, baked goods and Margie and Michael found a stone worker who might do work at their old house.

Below: Lucy and her daughter ...all baking done in a wood stove! We pretty much cleaned them out.

The next home was owned by a mother and her daughter. The father died 7 years ago. They own a farm with 76 head of milk cows and make their own cheese, booze and fabulous fried dough that tastes like funnel cakes. There are three sisters and none of them ever married. This one does all the farming, cooking and booze making while the 85 year old mother makes home made pasta noodles. Anyone can call and book a reservation for their little restaurant to eat probably the best pasta in Uruguay. Beautiful people! We had a blast here....can you tell??

Below: Mamma (the fella in the corner is interesting but not very lively; the token male in the family...safe enough I reckon)

Below: The daughter. Again, all cooking is done on and in a wood stove

Further down the road we discovered a young woman who makes dolls from wire and fabric. Her work is sold in shops in Montevideo and one of her dolls was used for the cover of a program at the Opera House. She spoke English quite well and it was lovely to not have to make Margarita translate (as she so willingly did all along the way).

We had pretty much reached the end of the tour however saw another inviting sign and decided to drive up the road a bit. We discovered a beautiful quarry below us and would have loved to explore down into it.

A fence prevented us from getting in. What do mature people do in a situation like this? Click below to watch a clip. Needless to say, I was busy video'ing and therefore didn't participate in such silliness (RiiiiiiiiiiiiGHT!!!)

There are other photo's I would like to share however this wifi is just too slow to upload them. We had visited a place called "Flora y Fauna Reserva", run by the municipality and free to enter. We expected to find a place where all the animals were well fed and housed and what we found instead was quite appalling. Although there were many who had huge fields to explore (wild pigs and emu), even they were fed a diet of bread! Some of the forest cats were in very small cages and had no company other than humans. Very, very sad.

I will leave this segment with a couple of photo's of the SOS marine centre and the creatures being saved to return soon to the wild.

Below: The little marsupial

and one of the orphaned sea lions

What did we do in Piriapolis???

I have to back up a bit here....we are now in Punta del Diablo, however need to do some work on our wonderful week in Piriapolis.

Below: Our cute little cabin

Below: Walked to the marina several times....wonder why......and saw new boats and fisher boats with their catch of the day

...and yes, the old truck was parked at the marina

Received a call from Margarita and Michael and took them to lunch down by the water. Then Bob and I took the chairlift to see what Piriapolis looks like from the top!

Continue to ponder why anyone would name a hotel "Colon" (remember the pic from Buenos Aires??)

Evidently a bit too much time on our hands.

Piriapolis was turned into a tourist town in the 1930's by an Argentinian developer with the last name of Piria. One of his brilliant ideas was to build a 350 room hotel called The Argentino. It's quite something! Bob's lense isn't wide enough to show you the entire building.

The same dude built this little shack for himself on the edge of town. I suppose it's what super-ego's did in those days....but really, is it any different today???

(Photo's tomorrow....hopefully!)

Enjoyed Carnaval!!! Every evening, something different....hippy drummers, dancers, rides for kids, gymnasts, .........people truly enjoy the outdoors here and events go on into the early hours of the mornings. Dinner is usually after 10 pm; parilla's (bbq's) are the order of the day and all done on wood fires so the entire city smells like our campgrounds in the evening. Beautiful!

The kids were great on the mechanical bull and it was rewarding to see that the only child who stayed on through the entire ride was a girl!!! Power to the chicas!!!

We had read about a recovery centre for injured animals and Margarita and Michael told us about finding an oil covered penguin on the beach a couple of years ago. They took the bird to this place where the owner cleaned it up and helped it make a full recovery.

It's just a tiny place and is funded by adoptions and donations. There weren't any animals to adopt and he didn't have many that day, however we learned a lot about what is happening in the oceans. He said that in the year 2000 he had 100 oil covered penguins to work on and the numbers have been increasing dramatically until last year when he had 480. Man of course is the biggest threat to all wildlife and he told us that large freighters and other ships are dumping their bilge into the seas, causing disastrous consequences to marine and bird life. He had two turtles that had ingested plastic bags and two juvenile seagulls with droopy wings, due to toxins they encountered on the shore. Two orphaned sea lions are to be released back into the wild in April and several small birds; one that flies 40,000 kms on it's migratory path, were just simply exhausted and fell to the ground. They too will survive to fly another day.

The little marsupial you see below, was one of 5 that were babies in their momma's pouch when hit by a car. She died and all of the babies survived. (photo's to follow)))))))))))))))

Ok! Now, after an hour of photo's easily uploading to the blog....I'm stalled and can't get any more... Will try again tomorrow so that you have the full story....THEN we'll move on to Punta del Diablo!

Cheers!!!

Piriapolis

Here we are, back on the east coast in the beautiful town of Piriapolis. This town is described as "vaguely reminiscent of a Mediterranean beach town and arguably Uruguay's most picturesque coastal resort". It also (if you squint your eyes and open your ears) is vaguely reminiscent of Grand Bend and Wasaga! Crazy place and a fantastic town to people watch. We've seen pretty much everything on the beach here! Yiikes! I think I'll wear that thong after all!!!

We have a little cabin a few blocks from the ocean (which is actually the mouth of the Rio de la Plata river in Colonia) and it is adorable. I will attempt to get some pics loaded however I'm finding that WiFi here is really slow and I'm reminded of some of my experiences in Oz.

We'll be here for a week and will leave Sunday for the beaches further east where we will be in a cabin in a much more secluded area.

Only good things to say about Uruguay! Super place!!! Ok ....back to Spanish class...

Here's the beach!

The fellow below rides around town all day with taped advertising blasting out of the loudspeakers. It is hilarious!

Love to everyone!

Montevideo to Punta Bellena to Colonia Del Sacramento

The evening prior to our departure up the coast, we had dinner with a beautiful couple, Maria and her new husband Carlos, at a restaurant of their choosing. We were connected with Maria through a former client (and now friend) of mine from Royal Trust and RBC-DS days, Linda Banks. We had lunch prior to Christmas and she reminded me that her work with Sabre (airline booking systems) took her to Montevideo on a regular basis. She offered to introduce us to Maria and off we went. We had several connections in Uruguay and between Maria and our other connection, who will read about in a minute, we had more detailed info than we could have imagined. We had invited Maria and Carlos to dinner, to celebrate their recent wedding and to thank them for their kindness. One of the more interesting characteristics of South Americans is that they dine very late in the evening. Maria told us that she would be home from work at 8 pm and that they would pick us up at 9 pm. We had a nap (as you can only imagine, since Bob and I normally go to bed at 9:30!) and at 8:45 pm, received a call from Maria, telling us that Carlos (who is a real estate lawyer) was delayed and that they would pick us up around 9:15. They arrived at 9:30, full of energy and drove us to a suburb (at breakneck speeds) where they live and to a restaurant that specializes in bbq. This is huge in Uruguay since the largest part of the economy is based on beef export.

Below:Maria and Carlos

I ordered what was recommended by Maria and Bob ordered ribs and when the meal arrived, I felt almost defeated before I began. The portions were huge! I have a very healthy appetite (as our fellow travellers will give testament to) and yet, the hour and the size simply overwhelmed me. Bob had 3 racks of ribs and managed 1 1/2 total while I age a third of my dinner. Delicious and simply too much.

We learned a lot about the history of Uruguay, Maria's European ancestry and Carlos' Greek background and how they landed in the country. Their honesty in the both the good and the bad in the history of their country was touching. We had such a great time with them.

The next morning we caught a bus from downtown to Punta Bellina on the coast. This is just south of Punta de Esta, the Miami Beach of Uruguay. We were met by the second couple we had never met before.....parents of Darla and Peter's friend Nicholas. They are ex-pats and lived for many years in Brazil where Michael ran the South American division of IFF (International Flavors and Fragrances). Marguerita has South American blood and was raised in Montreal where she met and married Michael. They are now living mostly in Uruguay and renovating a 100 year old general store in a village 20 minutes from the coast. They hired local construction workers from the village and are being rewarded with loyalty and the most beautiful result. We can see where they are going with the project, which started last April and which will be, when completed, a fabulous posada (inn or B&B), set among the beautiful hills. Margie volunteer teaches English at the village school...so perfect a role for this woman. I cannot begin to write about her volunteer work in South America. She is an incredible force.

The house they are currently renting is owned by a nautical freak! The door to our suite was either from a submarine or a ship. Everywhere there are windows, wood and collectibles from the marine world. Interesting!!!

Below: Michael and Marguerita; the view from our room; the window at the end of our tub; the house

They asked us if we would join them in celebrating the birthday of one of their construction workers. Margie was supplying all of the food with the exception of the meat. That was raised and being supplied by the birthday boy himself. We were told that the party would be in the house they are reno'ing and that it would be a simple feast, just as the workers would like it to be. They are country people who live a simple lifestyle and Margie told us that she didn't want us freaked out by the way the meat was being cooked. DEAD ANIMAL ALERT TO THE SENSITIVE READERS!!!!!!!!!!! (I'll assume we've lost Darla for a bit). We were certainly excited by the opportunity to meet the workers and their families and also to get a look at the building.

There were around 20 people gathered at the party on the edge of the village. The men were cooking the meat and the women and children arrived a bit later. We set up the tables and made benches out of boards and stone. Michael had taken a few plastic chairs which we gave to the villagers. Every single person who filed into the "dining room" kissed us on the cheek and greeted us kindly. We really wish that we could converse in Spanish however made words and gestures suffice. The children were wonderful and Bruno (the boy in the green and white striped shirt) practiced his English with Bob and me. It was a perfect evening in the hills, with breezes blowing through the open unfinished windows.

Above: All of the stones you see in the structure were recovered from the original building. A young stonemason from the village is doing all the work and every room in the house (5 bedrooms plus dining room, library, kitchen, living rooms (there will be two) plus the courtyard, will all have at least one wall of stone.

Margie arranged an incredible price on a rental car for us and told us that if, at any time we are uncomfortable with accommodations on the coast, we are to stay with them. Fantastic people!

The next morning we left them and headed back to Montevideo and beyone, 180 kms west to the most beautiful town of Colonia Del Sacramento. Colonia was founded in 1680 and sits on the east bank of Rio de la Plata River, only 50 km from Buenos Aires by ferry. It's Barrio Historico, a nucleus of narrow cobbled streets, is a Unesco World Heritage site and sits on a peninsula surrounded by the river. Our little posada (inn) was only 3 streets from the Barrio. All the streets in the older section of town are lined with fantastic sycamore trees.

Car junkies, get ready for some eye candy! This place is filled with some great specimens.

Below; Our sweet little posada; ...and parked right outside....

Below: You can even have dinner in this old baby, at a restaurant called "El Drugstore"...I kid you not!

Below: The remains of the old fort; remains of the old lighthouse contrasted with the new

Below; Other beautiful sights

The best waiter in Colonia! He told us that he has over 90 hats that he wears throughout his shift, every one has been given to him as a gift. He sings some crazy song in a powerful baritone and everyone loves him...including us!