One hour to the north of Buenos Aires by high-speed boat lies Colonia de Sacramento, the oldest town in Uruguay and a popular spot for day-trippers from the Argentine capital. The two towns are seperated by the tea-coloured Rio de la Plata.
Whilst the high-tech new port terminal in Buenos Aires is overlooked by giant glass skyscrapers, in contrast the port in Colonia consists of an old, rusty jetty surrounded by quiet beaches and woods. The neighbouring streets are full of brightly painted houses, all of which have their front doors open in sharp contrast to Buenos Aires, where all of the doors are firmly closed and covered by iron security bars!
As with small towns almost everywhere, the people are very friendly. It was a great place for us to practise our Spanish, because almost everyone had the time (and patience) to have a chat. Strangely enough, almost all of the locals carry a thermos around with them, containing hot water, together with a cup made out of either wood or pumpkin skin. They use a metal straw to drink a brew called 'Mate' (pronounced ma-tày). Mate consists of herbal leaves mixed with hot water. It's so typical of Uruguay that in Buenos Aires they say that you can tell a Uruguayan because they'll have a thermos under one arm and a hot cup of mate in the other hand. Having said that, the Argentinians drink a lot of it, too.
Mate drinking was taught to the Spanish settlers by the South American Indios, especially the Incas. Daniela laughs at me because I've bought some mate, together with a distinctive wooden cup and metal straw. I drink mate from time to time. She says it's disguisting. I think it's all a bit of fun. I'm not intending on 'going native', but you know what they say....when in Rome....
Anyway, back to our weekend. After several hours pushing Sophia's pram around the historic cobbled streets of Colonia, we were surprised to bump into a street band and dancers, who did a circuit of the whole town in the evening. The star of the show was an elderly woman in a white dress, carrying a walking stick who danced for hours on end. The locals say that she's over 90-if so she's a great advert for dancing as a form of fitness!
Then, all too soon it was time to head back to Buenos Aires. After this taste of Uruguay we're planning a trip along the coast to Brazil in the car, stopping off at different places on the way.
You can view more photos of our weekend in Uruguay, including a short film of the elderly woman dancing in the parade, by clicking on the following link:
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