Uruguay 2

Huge parrots’ nests

We have spent 2 weeks in Uruguay, and think we have a fairly good idea of what the country looks like. Some of the inland country side reminded Craig of the Midwest. Except for the palms and the flat topped hills that look like volcanic craters, but are not. The weather has continued very pleasant - have had only one totally rainy day. I doubt I have heard thunder for hours on end before that day, though.

Link to Uruguay 2 pictures

Am starting this on the ferry back to Buenos Aires from Colonia del Sacramento, an old town across the Rio de la Plata. Thanks to Sue & Doug we now have new friends here! We enjoyed a very pleasant day chatting with Dolores & Alejandro - Argentinians who have settled here after raising their family in BA. They chose to come here because it is quieter, and still close to their kids who remain in Argentina.
It was interesting to hear them say they have discovered a new way of life, after spending 6 months traveling in an RV from Mexico to Alaska this past summer. We all have enjoyed meeting people from all over the world, and from all walks of life. Having few routines, the flexibility to do what seems worthwhile, and simply seeing new things is fun!
And I think we all know how lucky we are to be able to do this. Our new friends camped for free when able to, mentioned they consider human rights important, and learned to tell the difference of political opinion based on the type of RV people drove. The largest ones pulling a Hummer usually supported Trump.

Our first stop after Barra de Valizas on the coast, was Tranqueras, some 50 km/30 miles from the Brazilian border in the north. It is a very small town, where it is almost impossible to find dinner even if you are not a picky eater, would stay up late, and happily would spend $$$. Craig enjoyed his veggie burger the first night, and we looked forward to returning to this restaurant our third night in town. Unfortunately this place is closed Tuesday evenings, so dinner that night was pretty sad at the only other establishment in town. I guess the food truck in the main plaza also was open.
The veggie burger was great - lots of veggies, a little cheese and cooked egg in a large, thin bun of sorts. I didn’t even realize there was no burger because it was so filling.

We came here because it is close to the Lunarejo Valley. This is a National Park with a visitors center, but it seems most of the >29 000 hectare- (72 000+ acres) Park is privately owned by several different people. The hostess of the cabins we stayed at, sold us on using her contact, one of these owners, who is establishing a tourism business on his own property. This hostess said the visitors center ‘doesn’t know much’, and that you need to go with a guide to access all the privately held land.
Cesar is 23, bought 500 hectares 5 years ago, is slowly renovating his house, and building a hostel. He leads walks and multi day horseback rides, also has sheep, a couple of horses and the ducks are pets. He absolutely adores his 3-month-old daughter.
We are happy with the day we spent with him walking some 12 km through woods, in/across streams, through fields with horses, cows and sheep, and to a waterfall. His puppy came along, Cesar speaks some English and is a very nice guy. When we returned to his definitely basic, rustic house, a friend of his was there, and the 2 young men played their guitars for us, and another local instrument. Uruguayan music (at my request) including the Milonga - a ‘cousin’ of the tango I think, and an international tune I believe each country adds its flavor to. Am afraid I can’t remember what they called it, but it apparently has been popular for approximately 2 years now.
Craig regrets not thinking of recording a little because they are very good.
They have 4 poisonous snakes in Uruguay, and Cesar has cats to keep them away from his house.

Uruguay is about the size of Washington State, and away from Montevideo and the main tourist towns on the coast, there is very little traffic. The country is very sparsely populated and at times we drove for miles without seeing a house. Seems one is supposed to slightly pull over even in the presence of a double yellow line, to allow someone to pass. Some of the roads were really bad - think the most potholed street in MA with nothing but piles of asphalt to unevenly fill in some of the holes. They become bumps, and Craig was reminded of his summer job for the highway department when he said he shoveled asphalt just like we saw guys do here. Our chip and sealed roads in CT are way better.

An old general store, now a museum

Next was San Gregorio de Polanco in the center of the country. Students from an Arts School in Montevideo come here every year, and paint murals. There is also a huge dam with soft sandy beaches - presumably a destination in the summer.
From here we drove a few more hours to Carmelo, on the west ‘coast’. The area is known for its vineyards, but we didn’t check them out. We had tasted a Uruguayan wine - Tannat, but from the grocery store. Totally OK, but we can only comment on the cheaper varieties.. Our Airbnb was in a gorgeous part of town, but the walk we hoped to do along the river, ended up being short when we didn’t quite like the look of the path that continued past the town dump (official, or not..?) - we would have been bothered by at least bugs I think.

Our last stop was in Colonia. It is a small old Portuguese town, now very much a destination for tourists. The old town is nice with lots and lots of sycamores lining the streets, just like in many other cities. The highlight was meeting our new friends, a perfect end to our visit here.

We have now arrived in Bariloche, Argentina - amongst mountains and lakes with gorgeous sunshine!