The more we studied the ship's map of Punta del Este, Uruguay, we began remembering some of the highlights there. That's when we realized we had visited here back in 2003, when we circumnavigated South America with Radisson Cruise Line, now Regent. It was the iconic monument of the concrete fingers emerging from the sands on one of the beaches that jogged our memories. At that time, our stop was brief, and we had taken a site-seeing bus tour. So today, we will see everything up close and personal while we hike the town.
The Amsterdam dropped her anchors nice and early, around 7am, at which time tender tickets were handed out in the Ocean Bar. Although we knew that most shops and restaurants did not open up until 10am, we decided to skip breakfast, and get on the first tender boat. Today, both platforms on the port side were being used, and we would have three of our boats, and also two of the local tender boats. Not three as stated yesterday. Loading from the aft platform, we had the luck to get on the first local boat, which was very easy to access. They were designed for other uses, as we had bench seats with some tables. In the forward section, there was a mini-bar, refrigerator, and even a microwave. Above our heads, were a few fishing poles. So the amount of passengers they could transport for the 20 minute ride was limited, although they were able to accommodate several walkers and even scooters.
Coming into the seaport of the town, we saw a most beautiful yacht harbor, filled with some pretty nice boats of many sizes. As we neared the end of this marina, we could see the fish market and at least one of the sea lions swimming around the boats. There is one famous resident sea lion by the name of Ronaldo, who hangs around this market for free handouts. In fact, there is an island called Isla de Lobos, 6 miles off of the coast, where the largest non-migratory sea lions reside. It was said that it is the largest colony in the Americas.
Here is a bit of info on this city in Uruguay. It is an area full of sparkling white sandy beaches with exclusive shopping and culinary delights. The population is 14,000 residents, but during the summer season, that number increases to 140,000. Vacationers called holiday-makers, families, and beautiful people come from neighboring countries like Argentina, Brazil, and Chile. The coastline is full of modern towers of condos and apartments and upscale resorts. And there are more being constructed. Of course, along with that, comes the restaurants, casinos, bars, and nightclubs. As for the beaches, there are many on the Atlantic side, but also miles of beach lines the Rio de la Plata River on the opposite side. Every water sport you can imagine is available here too.
And it is not cheap here. It is reported that Punta del Este is one of the most expensive cities in South America. The rate of exchange was 37 Uruguayan pesos to $1 USD. And once again, the ship did not sell the money, stating that many places would accept US dollars and credit cards naturally.
So once we got off of the tender boat, we discovered that the information center folks were not there to hand out local maps. The ship's port guide was quite limited, and not exactly correct. So we headed right, as did many other walkers we know, to walk around the perimeter of the peninsula to the Atlantic Ocean side. It was a long hike, but the scenery was beautiful. The skies were blue, with few traces of clouds, and the breeze was strong, keeping us cool for a while. Many locals were walking their dogs, or biking, and jogging on this pedestrian walkway. We noticed it was clean as a whistle……no garbage anywhere. And the bonus was numerous sightings of sea birds.
Spotting the lighthouse close to the port, we decided to hike up there on the way back. Passing two monuments of an anchor, and a sculpture of a shrine of Senora de la Candelaria, we finally came upon the Paseo de las Americas and the giant hand sculpture called La Mano, created in 1982. Truthfully, all you can see are the fingers coming out of the sand. It is dedicated to those who had drowned in these waters on this Atlantic beach over the years. We read that there are similar pieces of art like this in Madrid, Venice, and of all places, the Atacama Desert in Chile. Bus after bus of tourists arrived as we were taking photos. Lucky for us, Ron and his daughter came over to talk to us, and they had an extra map that had been handed to them at the pier. They offered to give us one, and we kindly thanked them, as now, we will know what path to follow to see all of the icons.
Did we mention there was another ship that sailed in right after we dropped anchor? It was another MSC ship by the name of Fantasia. She is a big one, or at least much larger than us, with 133,500 gross tons. It debuted in 2008 and holds about 3274 passengers, with a crew of 1600. A sister ship came out in 2009 and is named Splendida. We believe we have seen that ship last year while in Europe. They were tendering to another pier, about a mile up the beach.
Crossing the street, we followed the map to another sculpture called Tribute to the 100 years of Punta del Este. A totem pole was also erected nearby, which was different for this area. More interesting was a small museum with sculptures created with metal parts and pieces, such as nuts and bolts. The large pieces outside were a horse, a "terminator" and a motorcycle skeleton. Modern art we think.
Even though it was only 10:30am, we went in search of an early lunch in the nearby main avenue with shopping, restaurants, banks, casinos, bars and galleries. Dozens of suitable cafes advertised pizza and beer, as well as burgers and steaks. Most would not open until noontime, but we did find one opened by the name of Il Mondo delle Pizza. The nicest waiter, who spoke mainly Spanish, welcomed us, and handed us menus. There were over 20 types of pizza made here, and we settled on a medium Napolitano with parma ham, cheese, and garlic. The Spanish word for garlic was not one we had seen before, and trying to ask what it meant was rather funny. Since out waiter spoke no English, he motioned that it was something "hot", pointing to his tongue. Not wanting to chance something odd, we said no to the hot stuff. He left the table, and came back with the word "garlic". And we said yes to that. And we said yes to two Corona beers. Beer at 10:30am? You bet, and since we missed breakfast, we were both hungry and thirsty. And it was soooo good. They really know how to make pizza here. Being that we missed our fruit and yogurt for breakfast, we substituted a banana split to share…..pretty close to the same ingredients, right? Our waiter was happy to see we were taking photos of each course, and even shook our hands before we left. See, we don't need a common language to communicate do we?
Needless to say, it was hard to leave this nice spot, but the last tender was 2:30pm, and we did not want to be stuck in a long line. On the way back across this peninsula, we checked out the Plaza General Artigas, an artisan market with handmade crafts and souvenirs. But we only found two vendors in there, since it really is a weekend event. Many folks were doing some shopping in the department stores and boutiques, but we saw nothing we really needed. Much of the merchandise was geared to beach things, as this is their big activity here.
Walking the waterfront on the river side, we made our way back towards the pier. But before we went back, we wanted to visit the Lighthouse, which was erected in 1860 with the parts brought from France, and assembled here. On the way uphill, we ran into Greg and Heo, who were also going there. It is 45 meters high, works on electricity, and has guided navigation in the Atlantic Ocean and The River Plate for many years.
Situated near the lighthouse was the parish church by the name of lglesia de la Candelara, a pretty Catholic Church built in 1911. Many locals as well as several busloads of ship guests were busy snapping photos of this picturesque sight.
Back down to the busy port and marina area, we boarded a waiting local tender for the ride back to the Amsterdam. Last to board, we were invited to sit on the bow of the boat, which we loved. The driver was careful not to get us splashed with water as he carefully navigated the long ride back. Probably would have felt good.
Off-loading was taking longer, and holding up the process were the large number of walkers and scooters that were on the back of the tender. These local boats were much better suited for the handicapped guests. There must have been one dozen of these contraptions, which took longer for all to disembark. The good news was that there was minimal swell, and the transfer was easy.
The sail away festivities were on time at 2:30pm, however, due to late tours, we did not leave the area until an hour or more later. A powerful wind was blowing by then, as the Captain and pilot took the ship 20 miles out from shore to maneuver it into the deeper channel of the river. While we were at anchor, the depth of the water was a mere 6 to 7 feet, made apparent when the azipods kicked up the mud on the bottom.
We will be heading up the River Plate during the evening all the way to Buenos Aires, our next port, a most famous one for sure.
Our tablemates had been busy while in Punta del Este. Barb and Susie had a lunch date with Ellen, while Woody held down the fort onboard. Greg and Heo had explored the town like we did, and for sure, everyone was worn out, except Woody. Our entrees were one barramundi, a fresh water fish, commonly served in Australia. Very, very good. But the thinly sliced lamb chops were OK, but barely there. Best to save this popular dish for the Pinnacle Grill.
Looking forward to Buenos Aires tomorrow. It has been eight years since we were here last, but always a challenge to explore.
Bill & Mary Ann
