After my college buddy Jason arrived from the states for a quick vacation we took a quick tour of Buenos Aires. The usual steak dinner and wine ensued as I tried to bring Jason up to speed on what I knew of Argentinean culture. We did a bit of touring of some gardens and the usual sights and then headed out of the city by bus to the town Rosario, four hours north of Buenos Aires. Rosario is known for its passive river and laid back atmosphere as well as being the birthplace of the Argentinean flag and Che Guevara.
We did not have much time in the city so we headed to check out the river where we enjoyed the calm atmosphere and younger crowd. Because we arrived in the middle of the week, finding the nightlife took a bit of effort, but we managed to find a karaoke bar to amuse us. I somehow managed to start some sort of singing competition between a local girl and found myself singing "I will survive" and "Bohemian Rhapsody" to a crowd of drunk Argentines. I have to say that I sang pretty well and though her skills were almost as
impressive I think I clenched the title on that one.
After a another day of checking out the town with our new karaoke friends we made plans to head to Punta Del Este in Uruguay. It was a journey that included three different bus rides, a taxi, a boat and a border crossing, but sure enough we made it. Punta Del Este is a booming resort town, though mainly in the summer months of December and January. Our first night there started out rather quiet and looked a bit dead beyond the hostel. Jason, wanting to find something beyond the traveler crowd convinced me to try and find something in town. But after a bottle of wine we found ourselves walking along the beach feeling a bit bored. BUT WAIT, what did we see in the distance... A CASINO! So why not, we were in Uruguay. And into the casino we went. After exchanging small bills and change in three currencies we headed to the slot machines to spend the four dollars we exchanged. But unlike Vegas, free drinks come only at the tables where real money is spent. So Jason, with a little help from the wine decided
that since this had been such a cheap vacation why not spend a little money. And so after few cash withdrawals and a lot of drinks we started to feel like high rollers in the strange establishment. Convenient for Jason they accepted only dollars and the cash machine gave out dollars. But at the end of the night we had only lost less than $100 ( all his money), but made up for a lot of it in free drinks. After seeing our luck turn we said goodbye to some scary rich African gangsters that had befriended us and headed out into the Uruguayan streets.
They next day was spent laying on the beach piecing the past night together. Soon enough our time in Punta Del Este was up and we headed to Montevideo for a day to try and take in the sights.
Montevideo in no way resembles a capital and in that sense was more tranquil, but in some ways it was a bit more sketchy than Buenos Aires. The sights in the city were the usual statues and plazas. We saw some sketchy characters rolling cars (they seemed to be in neutral) around near the
waterfront. Not sure if that is how they deal with parking or if they were just trying to steal them, but we quickly felt unsafe in that part of town.
Jason's last night in South America ended on a hostel rooftop in a deep conversation with other travelers on politics, something I am learning to avoid because it just comes down to the fact that everyone hates America, I mean except for the movies, the clothes, the music, the shopping and most other things in America...hmmm.
So the next day back in a taxi, a bus, a subway and for Jason a plane and the adventure came to an end. So another country in the passport as the trip moves quickly on. Only about another week in Buenos Aires before heading on to Mendoza and maybe some high altitude. Until then, tchau. And leave a comment if you have some time.
Uruguay's Flag
Map of Uruguay