South America Round-up

We spent 2 wonderful months in Argentina, with brief detours into Chile and Uruguay. Now that we've fled to Europe, here's a quick roundup of our impressions of our time in a small slice of South America:

Best Food
Rachel: The asado we made one night in El Chalten. But really, the lamb and beef all throughout the country were awesome.
Tom: Parilla La Cabrera in Buenos Aires. Amazing steak, made even better by the 40% discount if you dine at the absurdly early hour of 7PM.

Best Ice Cream
Rachel: Jauja's, El Bolson. Specifically the Tiramisu or Coco flavors.
Tom: McDonald's Oreo cone.

Chill little El Bolsón

Favorite Town/City
Rachel: El Bolsón. It was so chill and we met some really friendly people. Colonia de Sacramento in Uruguay comes in at a close 2nd.
Tom: La Colonia, Uruguay. Cobblestones everywhere, beaches, and great biking.

Best Hike
Rachel: For views, the hike up to El Pitriquitrón was the best. For the full experience, I preferred the W trek in the Torres del Paine.
Tom: Fitz Roy Range, El Chalten.

Favorite Quirk
Rachel: Everything is served with dulce de leche.
Tom: Empanadas are everywhere--breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Least Favorite Quirk
Rachel: The siesta's ever-changing hours. In some places, the siesta was from 2 - 5, but in others, it was from 1 - 4, or 3 - 6... and some places didn't observe it at all! It made running errands incredibly difficult.
Tom: See Rachel's favorite quirk.

Favorite Wildlife
Rachel and Tom: Penguins, hands down. There's no kind of wildlife that can beat the little penguins we saw at Punto Tombo.

Best hostel/hotel
Rachel and Tom: La Barraca Suites in Bariloche. It was small but cozy, with great views of the national park. The owners were awesome and it was such a great value.

View from our hostel in Bariloche

Worst hostel/hotel
Rachel and Tom: We stayed one night at a very odd hostel in Puerto Natales, Chile. It smelled pretty bad there and we're not sure if the eggs at breakfast were really eggs. We left very quickly the next morning.

Next time in South America, I will...
Rachel: Stay on an estancia and spend a week riding horses with some gauchos. And improve my Spanish!
Tom: Hike the Lost City route in Colombia. And Machu Pichu in Peru.

If you could change one thing about Argentina, it would be...
Rachel: Making the roads more pedestrian friendly. Or somehow shrinking the country so as to avoid 25-hour bus rides.
Tom: I'd ban instant coffee.

If you could take something from Argentina and bring it to the U.S. it would be...
Rachel: A penguin. Amazing views. Or, the general laid-back vibe around the country.
Tom: The glacial water of Torres del Paine... nothing beats drinking from a stream without the need for iodine tablets or filters.

A Week in Uruguay

Fed up with long bus rides, we decided to visit Uruguay-- a much smaller country-- for a few days. We figured that we could see a few towns and cities without having to travel such a long distances.

We hopped on a ferry from Buenos Aires, and then took a short bus ride to Montevideo, Uruguay.

As soon as we got off the bus, we were made aware of some of the differences between Buenos Aires and Montevideo. The bus terminal was shiny and new and not covered in graffiti. The drivers didn't seem to want to whack us with their car. Money in Uruguay is logical and straightforward-- much unlike Argentina. People give you change without complaining. [Side story-- One day, I ordered some fries from McDonald's in Bariloche so I could use their Wi-Fi. I gave them a few bills and the poor cashier whined and pleaded with me to scrounge up some change instead so that she didn't have to give me four 1-peso coins. Coins are precious here.] All in all, Montevideo seemed to be much more mellow, and slow-paced than Buenos Aires, which is just a few hours away.

We spent most of our time in Montevideo just wandering around the streets, looking at the beautiful architecture and admiring the neat parks. We took a long run along the beach and spent many afternoons getting lost in the pedestrian-only area. 

Delicious ice cream soda

After we got our fill of (smaller) city life, we took a short bus ride to Colonia de Sacramento, an old colonial town on a river. Colonia is a wonderful little town filled with cobblestone streets lined with big shade trees. We biked around the entire town, and spent a morning reading near the beach. One night, we went to dinner at a restaurant hidden away in an old building from 1790. The stone walls made us feel like we were living in a different time, and we feasted on cheese and smoked meats and bread. On our last day in town, we climbed the steps of a tall lighthouse and watched a storm slowly make it's way into town. 

Just hanging out in some barrels

Dogs admiring the views

Windy...

If we'd had a bit more time before our flight out of South America-- or if the weather was better-- we would've spent a few more days exploring some of the beach towns on the east coast of Uruguay, or traveling inland to gaucho country. Perhaps next trip.

So, farewell for now, Uruguay! We'll be back!

-R