Uruguay

Beach Resort of Punta del Este 

From Rio I took a flight to Uruguay, where I stayed for about 1 week. My first destination was Punta del Este. Normally Punta del Este is  full of partying students, but in the end of february, in the late season, it was quite calm. It was also much colder than Rio, so I got a bit too careless with sunscreen at the beach. The result was a huge sunburn on my back...ouch...
My next stop in Uruguay was Montevideo, where I got the first contact with Tango, which originated here in the estuary of the Rio de la Plata. Whether on this side in Montevideo or on the other side of the Rio in Buenos Aires is still heavily debated. There are plenty of cafes and bars in the alleys of downtown Montevideo, where bands play tango music and the guest are dancing on the streets.

Downtown Montevideo

Mercado del Puerto, Montevideo

The last stop, before i crossed the river to the argentinian side was Colonia del Sacramento, an old contrabandist town from where the British and the Portuguese were smuggling all kinds of goods to the spanish territory at the other side of the river. Going to Colonia is like traveling back in time. Beautiful ancient houses, narrow cobblestone streets with antique cars.

Streets of Colonia del Sacramento