uruguay
we set out across the water from buenos aires and after an almost embarassingly easy hour ride across the still waters of the rio del plata pulled into colonia de sacramento. the quaint cobbled streets of this small, invitingly picturesque uruguayan town were attractive enough, but arguably it was the blue skies and sunshine supplementing the lighthouse and river views that were most alluring. a day was more than enough to amble around the small grid of streets, see the sights and befriend the local canine populace (a task admittedly undertaken by only one member of the team, but whole heartedly so) but it was a day well spent.it was with a very positive feeling about uruguay that i woke the next day, in preparation for another extremely easy journey up to montevideo. my good mood was dampened somewhat by my own stupidity when, in a desperate attempt to flee the slightly strange man following me around the shop where i was considering buying an oh so healthy yogurt, i chose to hop out of the store flat on my ankle, rather than my foot. ouch, and proof that no good can come from trying to have a healthy breakfast. still the bus ride was, again, very easy, although the drive through the outskirts of montevideo, crumbling shanty towns with high rise buildings in the background, was a shock, a remainder that the comfortable elegance of argentina and chile may not be totally representative of a region which retained a share of poverty and dismay that we had not encountered at all for weeks.
this impression was reinforced when wandering the streets of the capital, filled with the same colonial houses and edifices as buenos aires but which had crumbled into decayed grandeur rather than been converted into boutique hotels. it was actually an ambience i really enjoyed, particularly as it was one that bought to mind the shabby streets tinged with the whispers of refinement of calcutta. despite its proximity to buenos aires, the short journey across to montevideo seemed to take us from chic west european suburbs into a world which it could be believed was fifteen hours from home. finally a sentiment of dislocation corollary to geographical distance; it´s arguably this sensation, this sense of difference, that is the most rewarding thing about travelling, more than the sights and photo opportunities, and so it was an unexpected pleasure to have it back, albeit briefly.
we head across uruguay and back into argentina now, to get up to iguazu. it´s been the briefest of sojourns in a tiny country, but one that has been surprisingly reinvigorating.
posted by bicrom @ 2:24 pm
<< Home