Punta del Este

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A Day in Punta del Este

We had a great day on Saturday in Punta. First, the sun was shining and the sky was cerulean blue and the temperature was definitely summer, so that was a large part of it.

While I had a Skype call with a client in the morning, Venetia went into Punta. After my call, I made us some sandwiches and took them with me, meeting her at the lighthouse. It’s a lovely spot, although you can’t get inside. We watched parrots flying around us — a sight that always makes me feel happy!

After having coffee in a place down by the port, we went for a wander by ourselves, and then hooked up with German, a tour guide who would take us around and give us some history and insights about Punta. It was great — and he even shared his mate with me as we walked around.

Finally, we went to a restaurant place at night to listen to candombe music, which was fun but VERY loud. We also met up with Alicia, a friend of our friend Montserrat who was here last week. She is a tango enthusiast, and she and some of her friends are taking us to a milonga on Tuesday, our last night here — glad I brought my tango shoes!

Here are some photos from yesterday.

The lighthouse at Punta del Este

The first hotel ever built in Punta del Este — now sadly abandoned with nobody willing to invest in it.

Lovely little church in Punta del Este — simple, much less ornate than most Catholic churches in South America

Wait for the candombe show to begin.

Sharing mate with our charming guide, German

In Cornelio, where the candombe show was

A glimpse of Canada in Uruguay!

Too bad I don’t have a Scotiabank credit card — I could have had a discount!

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Update — Kind Of

Well, for those who have written to ask why I haven’t been posting to the blog, as I haven’t done anything since the couch was out on the street, a lot has been going on. This will not be a full update, but just to let you know why I haven’t been posting.

Taken by Cecilia from the balcony

 

These bottles of champagne dressed for the occasion!

Anyway, the couch is now in situ and I love it! A couple of weeks after I moved in, I had a few of my best women friends over for a house warming — champagne and picadas. (Picadas are cold cuts, cheese and other nibblies that go down well with champagne — as what doesn’t?) We had a fun night. Cecilia stepped out onto the balcony and took this photo, which shows the girls as well as the living/dining room with the open kitchen in the background. Cecilia brought the lovely red roses. I think I’ll be having lots of parties here!

Internet

I moved in mid-March, but was told by the company I couldn’t get internet installed until Monday, April 1. Cecilia called them then and they said it would be installed on Thursday. When she called Wednesday night to confirm, they said no, it would be Monday between 8 am and 2 pm. So I figured a few more days using the cafe internet would be ok.

Monday morning, I asked Cecilia to call them to confirm — they had absolutely no record of me, my installation or anything else. She argued with them on the phone and got nowhere, so she got on two buses and went to one of the company’s agencies in the next town to hers. After she made a big noise, they finally agreed. She called me from there and told me to stay home as they were coming. Within an hour, the guy was here and installed it in ten minutes! It was painful, but I’m now online and the world looks sunnier!

My tango teacher, Alejandro — who is Argentine — told me his theory. Everybody makes everything so difficult and puts you through so many hoops that when things are finally done you feel so happy you think you’ve been given a gift — welcome to Argentina!! Never mind, I love it and I can put up with all the stuff — it’s fodder for the blog!

Punta del Este

Punta del Este is a very posh, upscale vacation resort in Uruguay, just across the Rio de la Plata from Buenos Aires. Venetia met a woman who has an American friend who has a house here and two dogs. She was looking for someone to house-sit and look after the dogs for a week, and we jumped at the chance.

The season is over now, so everything is very quiet (except the dogs!) and many places are closed now as the summer people have gone. But it’s still fun being here. I’ve been put in touch with a woman who is going to take me to a milonga next Tuesday, the night before we leave, so I’m looking forward to that.

I have a business Skype call in about ten minutes, and Venetia has gone ahead into Punta itself. After my call I will put the dogs in the living room and join her there. We are going on a walking tour of Punta, which will also give us ideas for things we might want to do the rest of our time here. I’ll post some photos and sketches soon.

La Barra

Yesterday we went to a place called La Barra, half an hour from here by bus. There is a beach where the Atlantic meets the Rio de la Plata, and it’s quite fascinating as you can almost see the dividing line. I couldn’t take photos as my iPhone is acting up and keeps running out of juice, but Venetia took some. I’ll ask her for copies and post here tomorrow.

I must go now to get ready for my client call. Thanks for continuing to be interested in my doings here, and I’ll get back to regular posting soon.

Ciao!