Back to Buenos Aires

I squeezed out every minute at the hotel that I could. In the end I never left the property. I was so wonderfully content there that I saw no reason to leave. As it was, I stayed until the very last minute until it was time to take a taxi to the port.

Too bad I hurried! The boat was an hour late showing up.

Ah well, I had time to finish the final book of The Hunger Games trilogy. Phew! Those books consumed me. All I wanted to do was read...which is actually a great feeling that I didn't dare challenge.

Now it's time to start working on my verbs again. Time spent with Carlos and Javier who don't speak English reinforced that, although I did quite well. I also want to start into the kids' book Tales of Beedle the Bard, in Spanish. That's my goal for this week, my last week (gulp!) in BA in addition to checking out the museums I haven't made time for yet, getting down to Boca, hitting a few milongas, chilling with Guille and savouring my last few days of this amazing trip I'm on.

So tonight was my big night out at Teatro Colón. I was so excited to go see a show in the newly remodelled, famous city landmark. The building was stunning. It was a real treat to get to see the inside of it and experience a little culture along the way.

But...I'm just going to say it...I found the experience of sitting through an opera to be more like an endurance test.

It was too warm in the balconies, the seats were too close together, the quarter of the stage the singers spent most of their time on was obscured because of the seating arrangement, the girls beside me seemed clueless that every time they leaned forward they blocked my view of the stage and the subtitles (even in Spanish they're a big help) and I kept falling asleep. Every time I snapped out of a mini nap it seemed that the subtitles always read the same - god have mercy, save me from my pitiful life. Oh, and there was a whole song on how great war is. They were definitely different times when Verdi wrote "La forza del destino"!

And I paid good money to come here tonight to see a show. I think it's fair to say it was mostly for the architecture!

I began to wonder what key element about appreciating the show I was missing since the crowd seemed to be going wild -even those standing through the whole performance, poor things! Loud bursts of 'bravos' came at the end of each song. The place was packed and this was just one of a dozen nights this show runs for. Porteños like their arts. I guess I'm not as cultured as they are! ;o)

Sadly, this photo represents my favourite part of the show!

De nada!

Didn't do anything today. It was great. Laziness is a skill I need a bit more practice with but holing myself up in this fabulous hotel has its advantages!

Where I spent most of my day:

Operation Flake-Out

I am excited to start my two day escape at the Unique Luxury Hotel today. After three nights in a hostel that felt more like a refrigerator and wasn't super 'gezellig', I was eager to check-in and begin Operation Flake-Out.

Before shipping out though, I accepted Javier's invitation to accompany him to pick up his son, Thobías, at school. I'm really glad I did.

It was neat to see all the kids let out from school in their (unfortunate) uniforms chatting to friends or eager to tell their parents about their day. Thobías greeted me with a beso on the cheek, which is such a wonderful part of the culture here. Canadians take note!

He's adorable and I can see why Javier makes such an effort to see him when he's not out on the boat. It was heart-warming to watch them walk down the street holding hands. Most ten year olds I know wouldn't be caught dead doing that! ;o)

I had a lovely time with them walking around town and having a bite to eat. They stopped to play football at the playground next to the hostel. Before I said goodbye to them, Thobías took this picture of Javier and me.

The Unique Luxury Hotel is FABULOUS and I'd be surprised if I leave the property before 11AM on Saturday when I go catch my boat back to BA. Then again, the beach is about 200m down the road and when it's sunny here it's so nice out. We'll see. No plans, other than a massage. That's the deal!

The common areas here are fabulous and I came up to the Sunset Lounge to watch the sunset. It's so cool that I can see BA's skyscrapers across the river today!

And a little while later the sky went orange as the sun set.

Toro!

I couldn't resist going back the historical centre this morning.

The museums were open today so I paid the 50$ (~$2.50) and went to see four of the eight available to me on the same ticket. They were all pretty small but interesting nonetheless. The Museo Casa Nacarello was a Portuguese house done up as it would have been in the 18th century. The Museo Municipal Dr. Bautista Rebuffo had old artifacts from natives and imperialists and old maps which I love.

The town changed hands between the original Portuguese settlers and the Spanish ruling Argentina on the other side of the river. It's not surprising, therefore, to see original Portuguese homes with their slopes roofs next to Spanish homes with flat roofs.

My wandering today took me to the same places as yesterday only because the light was different, I managed to get some more interesting photos. This place is a photographer's paradise.

My favourite home on the Plaza Mayor:

Where's Waldo?

As I looked up from my camera's viewfinder I noticed Carlos wandering down the street. Yesterday he offered to take a picture of me with my camera. Today he offered to escort me out to the Real de San Carlos bull fighting ring this afternoon. Wow.

From Wikipedia:
Plaza de Toros Real de San Carlos is a bull ring in Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay. It is currently a derelict building that is crumbling down. It is forbidden for safety reasons to access the bull ring.

Bah!!! As a local Carlos, knew where the hole in the fence was so in we went. It reminded me a lot of the Colesseum in Rome (minus thousands of tourists). We went up into the stands at first and then down into the middle of the field where Carlos watched for the expression on my face when he clapped his hands. The acoustics were simply amazing! I never would have known to do that without him showing me the trick.

We then wandered over to the Train Museum (it was just across the road so why not?) and walked along the Costanera before catching the omnibus back. He was so sweet and I was grateful that he was willing to spend an afternoon playing tour guide.

When I got back to the hostel Javier was there and we ended up cooking up a pasta to share along with some good Uruguayan wine. It was a nice night but the wine combined with all the fresh air made me super sleepy! Just as well, I was sleeping in the dorm room tonight and the place was SO cold. Nothing like a little wine induced stupor to ward off the elements...and three blankets.

Colonial Colonia

Colonia is as amazing as everyone said it is. I'm so pleased I made the effort to come here and I'm also pleased that I'm not just day-tripping here. I want to soak it all in slowly. However...

...coming at the end of April means its mid-Autumn here and it's cold! My wardrobe seems so inappropriate, especially now that I took half of it to the laundromat.

Coming mid-Autumn also means that there are fewer tourists. I wandered around the streets of the old-town today and could really appreciate the town for itself. I can imagine the zoo this town would be in the summer but now it's so peaceful and chill. Lucky me.

Other than aimless wandering, I went up the lighthouse, into the cathedral, the old port door, a few shops and around the squares and the riverfront.

During my wanderings, a local I bumped into, Carlos, offered to take a picture of me. This is the picture he took right outside his front door. What a neighbourhood!

I also stumbled upon a FABULOUS photography-antique shop where I bought a kid's book on Canada in Spanish. That should be interesting! I also picked up some inspiration for photos of Colonia. The brazilian photographer is a genius!

While reading in my room at the hostel tonight I could have sworn I heard a brass band. I needed to go check it out. Maybe there was a fair going on at the plaza. Instead, it appeared to be a figment of my imagination or I was too late. Either way, I walked up and down the street looking puzzled only to discover that Javier from the hostel had witnessed my deranged little outing.

I'm not imagining it, I protested in spanish because Javier from Montevideo speaks no English. No importa, he said and then added that he was bored at the hostel and did I want to grab a drink. Well...I had my coat on already. Why not?!

We wandered over to the historical town to share a bottle of wine. We took the long way back, weaving through the streets of colonial Colonia. It was such a treat to see it at night. There were no cars so we walked in the middle of the road, although that's hazardous because it's so uneven. The street lamps give off a warm yellow glow making all the buildings look even more special. It was magical.

What a wonderful first day in Colonia. Warm fuzzies! ;o)

Surprise! A feriado in Salto!

Summer's over! Everyone was bundled up in coats, scarves and toques (gorros!) with their matés in one hand and their thermoses tucked under the same arm. I joined them at the bus station this morning to catch the 7:05 bus to Salto. Baby steps as I inch forward towards Colonia.

The first real evidence of progress today came when I got a new stamp in my passport! I was a little apprehensive since I didn't have an explicit visa but apparently I didn't need one. Then again, that information was from the same source that said I didn't need for for Brazil! In any case, it was a piece of cake and I've finally made it to Uruguay. Hurrah!

I arrived at the Salto bus terminal at 08:15 and my heart sank when I was told that the next bus to Colonia was at 15:55. I am not having much luck with the bus schedules. I was even more sad to discover that it's an 8 hour journey. Oh man am I ever earning a night at a fancy hotel!

Salto turned out to be a charming little town.

The national holiday in Uruguay is the 19th of April which they make into a nice long weekend so today was a 'feriado', or public holiday. Fortunately some stores were open in the morning so I poked around.

I often wonder what kind of chaos would ensue if there was ever a maté shortage!!

Everyone seemed really friendly and I left with the feeling that I'm glad for the 'gift of time' in which I got to see a little more of Uruguay. Lovely though it will be, Colonia will have the feel of a tourist town. Salto felt anything but. Again, I was something of a curiosity today to most! It's actually quite a rare and special feeling.

Finally - the bus I'd been searching for for nearly two days!!!

Good thing I brought movies on my iTouch. It sure seems that I've seem a full range of buses on this trip. The one from Mendoza to BA was like business class on an airplane. Now I'm on one that's...well...it's kind of clean.

The journey was fine for the first six hours or so but the last two were almost unbearable and I desperately wanted OFF! When I finally arrived in Colonia at midnight I kitted up in my backpack and other bags and walked the six blocks to my hostel with only a cursory study of a map ahead of time. Any other city and that might have been asking for trouble but there was something so peaceful about Colonia del Sacramento and I felt completely safe. Yep. I'm going to like it here.

Change of plans.

Change of plans today. It's Sunday. There are no buses to Salto today. Oh.

Part of me was still too groggy from a predictably sleepless night to want to deal with that news. Still, I got myself sorted at a hotel in Concordia by 9AM. I was so pleased to get to shower and have a little nap that I didn't mind too much that they were overcharging me!

With a little sleep, some coffee and a tostada (my usual), I was easily able to see the benefits in the change of plans. Forced chill time! The town is pretty much shut down so there really wasn't much to do.

I spent a good hour and a half working on writing out my verbs. Revision is going to be key in getting these into my brain but I enjoy the challenge...or at least I will until it's time to consider the subjunctive!

It was nice to get out of the concrete grid and find the Costanera. It's a recreational area along Rio Uruguay with parks, boardwalks, beaches and of course...hot water stations for maté!!!

I wandered quite happily. There was Uruguay teasing me on the other side - so close but so far. There were families out with dogs, strollers, kids on bikes and naturally plenty of PDA's from young couples in love! Oh those Argentinians!

It's obvious that Sundays are important in the culture here. They're family days. I wondered about what my routine will become when I settle back into my life in Calgary. Given that I've been away from my family for over four years, it seems like a decent priority.

Plaza 25 de Mayo near dusk. Every bench was filled with people drinking mate. It's amazing. I noticed they drink it more in the smaller towns than they do in Buenos Aires.

And the view from my room at night:

Eureka moment: All day while walking around town and having lunch and dinner solo I couldn't help but feel eyes on me. Mostly in a curious sense but the feeling was there nonetheless. I've only just clued in that there are no other gringos around. It's just me. Oh the questions they must have for me!