Minor Melt Down

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Wow, I didn't realize how much I was loving the Patagonia area until I came back to the city. I have been in Buenos Aires for a couple of days and am really dragging my feet about doing anything, including writing a blog. Nothing seems interesting enough to share, so I haven't. But, I do want to keep you up on what is going on, so here we go. Today I had planned a trip to Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay. It was listed as a nice day trip on a fast ferry to a quaint historic town. Sure, that sounded great. It was a nice trip on the ferry. It seemed odd to have to pass through customs and get a passport stamp for a 1 hour ferry ride, but it is to another country. I guess I am more used to the European Union where travel from 1 country to another is a non-issue. My new passport has been broken in quite nicely this trip. I'm glad, because I hated having a blank passport.

The tourist season in Colonia has obviously passed. Most of the shops were closed, restaurants were empty or only partially open giving the Old Town an air of desertion. I had seen pictures on someone's TravelBlog of a lighthouse that was open to climb. It opened later in the day, so I strolled around looking in shop windows and enjoying another sunny day. The streets and buildings in the Old Town were quite nice, but if you know me, you know that simply walking and looking at buildings isn't enough to captivate my attention. After several passes through the town, I saw that the lighthouse was open. It was a nice climb and pleasant view, but still wasn't quite what I had in mind. Such is the life of a traveler. I decided to grab a table at one of the outdoor cafes and had a nice lunch while watching ships and ferries in the distance. This town is so geared towards tourists that the bill was offered in US dollars, Uruguay pesos and Argentine pesos. I had changed money back in the States so that I would have the correct currency. Guess I could have waited and just used regular money.

After lunch I wrote a few postcards, wandered down a pier for a different look at the town and then grabbed a taxi. On the map there was a museum about ships, ship wrecks and artifacts from ship wrecks. It sounded like something I would like, so off I went. Closed. Came back and for the first time this trip, I was pretty much taken for a ride. What he charged me was outrageous. Since neither of us spoke the others language there wasn't much I was going to be able to do about it but pay and not tip. Still, it put a bad taste in my mouth about this place. We had passed a couple casinos, so I thought that would be a good way to kill the rest of the afternoon and the rest of my pesos, but once I was there, I just wasn't into it. Perhaps if I hadn't recently spent time in Las Vegas I would have been more likely to have gone in, but as it was, I walked past and went to sit on the beach for a bit. True, I should have brought sunblock instead of an umbrella, but live and learn. After sitting on the beach I went back up to the main street. As I was sitting, in the shade this time, I looked over and saw the most beautiful wreck of a building. Even though it was crumbling and falling down, there was something beautiful about it. Have you ever looked at something and were able to instantly see its past? That is how it was with this building. I ended up walking over and taking pictures of it. Through the broken windows I could see that the roof had collapsed and vines were growing everywhere, but it captivated me. I posted a couple pictures of it on here.

Having killed most of the afternoon I worked my way back to the ferry terminal and waited for my ferry back. It was a nice afternoon here, but somehow I had expected more. Not sure what I thought it would be like exactly, but I don't think I was alone in my thoughts; several people were at the ferry terminal well before we needed to be. But, I can't complain too much. A so so day here was still a day out in the world. Back at my B&B I had wine and hors d'oeuvres with some of the other guests. It was nice to trade travel stories.

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Photos

Company
It was nice to have company at lunch

Beautiful Wreck
There was something about this building that intrigued me. It was so beautiful and yet falling apart.

Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Oh my
That looks tasty.