Leaving Buenos Aires

Our first trip to South America has been a great adventure and already it is time for us to leave, well almost.  We came to Ezeiza, the international airport early this afternoon.  Here we found out that our flight has been rescheduled for 9:30 PM instead of 5:30 PM, so we will have a few extra hours here in Argentina. It's just too bad we have to spend the extra time at the airport.  It's good for finishing up the blog, but it would be far nicer to be sipping coffee under an umbrella at a sidewalk cafe.  Our last full day in Buenos Aires was very pleasant.  We stayed in a lovely hotel so had a lazy breakfast and roamed the Recoleta area.  We finally saw juacaranga trees in bloom, a sure sign of spring, but the temperatures seemed more summer-like to us.  One local told us that they had skipped spring this year and gone directly into summer.  When we wandered through the craft fair by the Recoleta cemetery, everyone was taking shelter in the shade.  We returned to our most visited restaurant, Melo, for our final dinner last night.  Marcelo waited on us yet again, and we were seated in the coveted table for two right by the window.  After we had finished the meal, he presented us with two large pourings of limoncello (on the house) to wish us well on our journey.  When we arrived eight weeks ago, the Porteños were wearing winter coats and leather boots. Yesterday, shorts and sandals were everywhere.  On our drive to the airport, we noticed how leafy the streets appeared compared to our first drive into the city.  Very soon we return to the Northern hemisphere and to late fall in Nova Scotia.  

Chapel by Recoleta cemetery

Wally walks along the leafy craft market

A perfect summery Sunday

Finally, the juacaranga trees show their colour

A branch up close

Tango dancers in the shade

Table by the window and a glass of Malbec

Winter garden at our hotel - also the breakfast area 

Hotel lobby where we wait for airport taxi

Leaving our hotel

Lego Argentine flag at Ezeiza Airport - about 3 x 6 feet in size

Friday and Saturday, Punta Del Este to Buenos Aires

Friday, our last day in Punta Del Este was extremely windy.  The water was very rough at the point and the mist was heavy at times.  We walked, as usual, but there were only a handful of people on the Rambla and the beaches.  We packed up our suitcases and found a nearby pub for our evening meal.  The next morning, Wally's birthday, was beautiful and clear once again.  We had an early breakfast and took the 8:45 AM bus to Carrasco, Montevideo's airport.  I tried to take a few pictures out the window to capture a bit of the scenery en route.  Carrasco airport itself is very new and has a striking design.  Our exit from Montevideo and short flight back to Buenos Aires all went very smoothly. We took a taxi to our hotel which is back in the same neighbourhood as the apartment we had rented.  It felt like we were coming home!  The hotel is very comfortable and they upgraded us to a huge room in recognition of Wally's birthday.  We had his birthday supper at a lovely little Italian restaurant nearby.

Rough seas on Friday

The windy point

A snail is the only other creature on this street

The birthday boy boards the bus

Coastline from the bus

From the bus - largely agricultural areas

Montevideo's airport - Carrasco 

Back in Buenos Aires, passing by 1883 yacht club building en route to hotel

Huge hotel room in Recoleta

Wally and his twin at birthday supper.  Main course was venison ravioli in a Malbec sauce.

Happy Birthday to Wally!  

Leaving La Pecora Nera

Thursday on the Beaches

Everyday we go for a long walk on the beaches of Punta Del Este as well as the point where we are staying.  The photos may start to look similar because of the routine we have followed here, yet there is usually something new which catches our eye.  For example, the hibiscus and some of the other flowers we walked by yesterday, or the kite surfer on Brava Beach or yesterday's cool dip at Playa Manza.  Have you noticed how few people there are in the water on these gorgeous beaches?  We do not carry a thermometer with us, but my guess on the water temperature on Playa Manza was about 14 degrees at most.  The numbing started quickly and the only serious swimmer we saw was wearing a wet suit.  At Playa Brava, where the rough water breaks on the beach, I think it only felt slightly warmer as we were in breakers; however, the bottom was so rutted out by the waves, it felt very dangerous to us.  It is spring, not summer, and although the days can get quite warm, the water is a reminder that it is still early in the season.

Hibiscus 

Flowers in our residential neighbourhood

We like this house on the point

A tattered Uruguayan flag at the windy point

Wally approaching the Rambla 

Hang on to your hat.  It's windy!

Beach grooming taken to new levels

We notice careful dune management.

Kite surfer readies his sail.

And he's off.

Wally watches the kite surfer as he goes way off shore in the gusty wind, but skilfully sails back to the beach.

Cool waters at Manza Beach!

Wally contemplates the water temperature

Glad to be out of the water on Manza Beach

Wednesday at Punta Del Este

Our days here in Punta Del Este are very relaxing.  We do a lot of walking, probably around 6 to 10 kilometres per day, on average.  The Rambla at the point where we are staying is always quiet and a good place for spotting birds and fisherman and the beautiful endless sandy beaches are never crowded at this time of year, so perfect for long walks.  We are enjoying the food here.  There are sufficient restaurants open at this time of year to provide lots of options, although the prices are much higher here than we were used to paying in Argentina.  Only a handful of people are even wading in the water, but that hasn't kept us from getting wet.  Last night after dinner we walked to the point to view the stars and saw the Southern Cross.  Here are a few pictures from yesterday - they will be starting to look very familiar if you have been keeping up on our blog.

Photo of the area around the point taken from La Mansa Beach

Our morning stroll on La Mansa Beach

Colourful flowers by boardwalk to the beach

Cool refreshment at lunch

Snowy egret poses

I love the shadow in this photo.

After my dip in the southern Atlantic at Playa Brava

Playa Brava with island in the distance

Zooming in on the island

Beach shadows

A selfie on Playa Brava