4. Punta del Este, Uruguay

Punta del Este, Uruguay

M/V Marina where we hung our hat for 20 days 

I took this photo from our tender to the wharf at Punta del Este. In post-processing I applied an effect called "surrealistic".

Why? Because it was.

Our tender (just kidding)

Our ship-to-shore tender

For some unknown reason, the ship sailed past Uruguay for our day in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The  next day we pointed north across the Rio de la Plata to Uruguay: Punta del Este, then on to Montevideo.

Punta del Este is Uruguay's seaside resort city. It attracts money, therefore, high-rise condominiums and pricey shoreside homes, marinas with expensive  yachts, good shopping and great restaurants. The year-round population of about 10,000 climbs to around 1/2 million during the summer season - end of Dec to early March.

Women's fashion store 
with an interesting name

We walked around, did some shopping, had a great seafood lunch, and of course, swam in the mild surf before catching the last tender back to the ship.

The bag I am carrying holds some really good local wine

This tiramisu was lighter than air!

The tannat grape was new to us. 

Originating in southwest France, this grape is now more common in Uruguay. It is their national grape.

This vino tinto was a very nice inexpensive tannat/merlot blend. It paired well with the osso bucco dinner that night at the Marina's Toscana Restaurant. The last glass was saved for a shared tiramisu. Wow!

Here is a map of our cruise showing the route from Rio de Janeiro to Santiago.

Large scale map of the voyage

This map jumps way ahead to when we sail through the Chilean fjords. The arrow designates our position on Day 17; the thin blue line marks the track taken; the red is the route to our destination. We are not there yet.

...ooo0ooo...

next post Montevideo

Montevideo. Plaza Independencia

www.noordinaryseaman.com for more photography and writing