Day 2 - Montevideo, Uruguay

Our first port to visit was Montivideo in Uruguay. This city was really easy to navigate around and there were many local people there to ensure you did not go a stray. Before the cruise, we researched each of the areas that we would be going to visit and decided which tours we would book as guided tours and which places we wanted to tour on our own. In Montivideo we had decided to do our own walking tour.

The picture below the maps is a picture of the port. The cruiseline had a map in there newsletter that we used to help us navigate to the areas we had chosen to visit. Montivideo is the largest city in Uruguay and the capital. It was originally a Spanish fort.

Leaving the port we first approached a area of vendors - what a wonderful area of fresh fruits and vegetables. There were also some booths set up by local artisans. We were heading to two local park areas with historic monuments.

The first area we saw was the Plaza Zabala. In the middle of the park, there was a monument to General Zabala. One side had a sculpture depicting the common people and the other the a shepherd herding his sheep. It was pointed out to us that the sheperds held an important place in society here at one time.

The next stop was the Plaza Independencia where the tomb of the Father or Uruguay, General Artigas is located. Like the monuments in Plaza Zabala the sculptures were just incredible and full of detail. Montivideo is a beautiful city that combines the old with the new. There were many modern buildings around the square and yet many streets filled with older houses. A truly marvelous mix.

We thoroughly enjoyed our walk back and stopped for lunch.

Near the port there was a large indoor market and here we found a magnificent artist. We purchased one of his works and will write and see if we can arrange to get a few more pieces shipped home. The one that we chose to purchase was a picture of the market. After that it was time to head back to the ship and bid farewell to Montivideo.

1st Stop Buenos Aires, Argentina

The first stop of our escape from winter was Buenos Aires, Argentina. We spent 3 days here before boarding the cruise ship.

We arrived on New Year's day later in the afternoon. After freshening up, we set out to explore. Most of the shops of course were closed but we quickly found Florida street and did lots of window shopping. The street was really quiet. On the way back to the hotel we stopped for dinner and made plans for the next day. The map indicated that we could walk to Recoleta - one of the areas we wanted to see.

The next day we ate breakfast and headed off to Recoleta. It was a nice walk and the weather was just beautiful. When we reached Recoleta, we went to visit an old church and then off to the cemetry where Evita Perron was buried. The cemetery was massive and it was incredible to see all of the different types of mausoleums. Some were in need of repair but most were really well kept.

We had lunch there and then enjoyed our walk back to the hotel, with a stop in one of the parks. Towards dinner we headed back to Florida street and it was a lot busier than the previous day. Many of the restaurants were full so we walked back to another one we had seen on the way, and enjoyed a really nice meal with some great Argentian wine.

The last full day we had to explore, we decided to take the bus to La Boca - an artsy area with lots of things happening. On the bus we meet 2 couples from Brazil and they took us under their wings. The pictures above show the ocean on one side and one of the streets on the other.

We arrived there early enough so that most of the artisans were just setting up for the day. The first stop was the soccer stadium and on the way we had our picture taken doing the tango - this is as close as we ever got to learning how to tango. Afterwards we headed off to an outdoor cafe to have a snack. The empanadas were absolutely wonderful.

The other two couples headed off to the zoo and we continued to tour around for a bit. Since we could not find change for the bus (coins are hard to come by and the bus only accepts coins), we opted to take a taxi back. The driver was really friendly and gave us lots of tid bits of information about Buenos Aires.

The next morning we had our transfer to the cruise boat and so our exploring was limited to the port and then the cruise ship. Entering the port, I noticed a store that had leather goods with flowers on them. I had been wanting to buy something like this but up to this point did not see something I felt I could use. Here I managed to get a cell phone holder.

The embarkation on to the cruise ship was smooth and quick. The rest of the day was spent touring the ship. Wow what an experience! When we got to our State Room DH had a bouquet of roses waiting. Since this is our first cruise probably a bad president.

The last picture was taken as we were sailing out of Buenos Aires - in some ways sad to leave but so much more to explore. The next day we would be in Montivideo, Uruaguay.