Uruguay
Autor: Valerie de Estados Unidos | Publicado: 2012-02-14T16:21:00-08:00

Last week was a pretty good one. Monday night, I introduced my roommate to margaritas with 1800 and Cointreau; we sat up singing karaoke with YouTube videos. Some of the songs we got the biggest kick out of included: Tina Turner's Rolling Down the River, The Eagles' Hotel California, and Britney Spears' Hit Me Baby One More Time. It was a lot of fun to just relax and have a good time :)  
Thursday, after some serious last minute planning, Ana, her daughter Duda, and I took a weekend trip to Punta del Diablo, Uruguay. On our way, we drove through an ecological reserve called Taim where we saw a variety of animals and one of the most beautiful rainbows I've ever seen. We stopped in the border town of Chuy and traded our realis for pesos but not before stopping in one of the duty-free shops to find a toy for Duda. While there, a couple of kids (probably 9/10 years old) ran out of the store, a disgusting smell trailing behind them. Upon reaching the toy section, we discovered those kids had POOPED on the floor! I couldn't believe it! I felt so bad for the lady who had to clean it up; and for the rest of the weekend we giggled about the half-grown kids who would do such a thing. We stopped just to take a pic!
We arrived in Punta del Diablo where it was raining and after having chuvitos for dinner, we finally, after a long day of driving, settled down in a hotel which I believe was called Hosteria Pescador. We also learned that most, if not all places, in Punta del Diablo (PD) do not accept credit/debit cards and cash must be used. Friday morning, we had to drive back to Chuy to exchange more money to make sure we were set for the rest of the weekend.Friday afternoon, we hung out at the beach which is surrounded by rock structures which reminded me of Torres but there aren't hills/mountains in PD. The sea is strong and there were many surfers braving the somewhat cold water to catch a good wave. Duda ran back and forth from our little spot on the beach to the water and played in the sand while I took in some much needed sun and relaxation. After leaving the beach, we found an apartment to rent that faced the water and included a kitchen. It wasn't too fancy but very cozy and also about half the price of the hotel we stayed in the night before. We ended up spending Friday and Saturday night at those apartments, Casablanca. After settling in, we prepared mate and took our chimarrao down to the beach. I love the sound of the ocean, the waves crashing on the rocks is so soothing. 
View from the Casablanca!For dinner, we popped a pizza in the oven and then went out for a stroll through the town. PD is very calm, tranquil even. The only paved street is the one going in and out of town, and there's a heavy hippie/rasta feel that is young and hip. I bought some gifts at the little shops and enjoyed browsing through the arts and crafts. I also quickly realized that my Spanish has almost been completely replaced with Portuguese, and even when I tried to use it, the Portuguese tended to override. The Spanish in PD had a very different cadence and sound than what I am used to hearing in Texas and from what I heard while in Spain and I thoroughly enjoyed hearing people talk. I understood much of what people asked and said to me in those little shops as well as in the restaurants which I was very pleased about. 
Saturday morning was overcast and chilly, so we waited until the afternoon to hit the sand for some fun in the sun. We had asada, french fries, and salad for lunch at one of the local restaurants and then walked out onto the rocks to get a closer look at the small lighthouse structure that we had seen blinking the night before to warn ships and boats. Afterwards, we hung out on the beach for a couple of hours then headed back to the apartment to get cleaned up and head back into town (all of this by foot) just to look around some more. We stopped at a little stand&nbsp;where 2 women were making churros and filling them with a variety of things. I ordered a churro filled with dulce de leche which was absolutely delicious! Later that night, walking back to the apartment, I turned around to look at the ocean and saw an incredible moon-rise over the water, a faint orange glow. It was spectacular and in that moment my belief in a Creator was renewed. 
Sunday morning, we packed up and headed out; after a great weekend of site-seeing and speaking nothing but Portuguese with my travelling partners (Ana and Duda), I was ready to get back to start the work week on Monday. I got to drive most of the way back to Pelotas, listening to my favorite Texas country artists thanks to the CDs Lindsey burned! All in all, I can say that I loved our trip and would like very much to take another road trip to Uruguay; next on my list is Punta del Este and maybe Montevideo!