Day two, and time to get a new stamp in my passport. I got a late start, and we had to really move it to get to the Buquebus terminal on time. We got up to buy our ferry tickets, only to find to my dismay that I had left my passport back at the hostel! Took a taxi back and retrieved it. Semi-relieved that the fery didn't leave until 0900 (not 0800, as we'd thought). When we finally boarded, it was to find that the interior resembled a very large bus ... loads of chairs that reclined. Exceptions were the gambling machines and the louge deck for VIP's, not for us plebians. Anyway, we grabbed a stand alone chair to stretch our legs out onto, reclined, and fell asleep. Arrived in Colonia three hours later.
One of the first things we saw in Colonia were billboards proclaiming, "Colonia - no es poco." I found this incredibly ironic, since it is incredibly small! Colonia del Sacramento, was the only Portuguese settlement along the Rio de la Plata. It was founded in 1680 by Manuel de Lobo, and was the focus of struggle between the Spanish, who founded the settlement at Montevideo, and the Portuguese over control of the area. For years it operated as a contraband port, evading the strictures imposed on trade by the Spanish crown. The Barrio Historico (historic quarter) was named a UNESCO heritage site in 1995.
We walked over to the Puerto de Campo to start th walking tour. Fabulous old fortification walls, rocky remains of a convent, a lighthouse. There were a bunch of museums we'd planned on seeing, but they were all closed today, in straight defiance of my Lonely Planet guide book. The only one that was even slightly accomodating was the tile museum, whose glass doors allowed us glimpses of the wares inside.
Had lunch on the open-air second story of a restaurant with a good view of the cafe au lait sea. Janet ordered chivitas, which is a typical Uruguayan dish. Typical in this case meant very unexciting ... grilled hamburger patty with fried eggs on top of french fries. Rather deflating experience. However, there was a singer/guitarist who played live music downstairs that was quite good, and made up for the unexciting fare.
Other things of note ... school children running around the yard with white frock coats and large blue bows on front ... an iron grail with a vine artfully twisted around it ... peaceful, cobbled streets ... quick gander at the fruit market. And really, that was it. Made our way back to the ferry office and waited for it to reopen so we could buy our return tickets. Found out that we'd waited by the wrong office. Made our way to the rapid foil ferry office and were back on our way to Argentina.
Back at the hostel, we cleaned up a bit and walked over to an intimate trattoria nearby, Abril. Good food. Particularly enjoyed the butternut squash ravioli and the creme brulee sampler. Got back to the hostel and packed to leave for Iguazu in the morning.
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