Category Archives: observations

October 14, 2012

Pasar un Viernes por la Noche en el Verano en un Supermercado!

By simply three cents

Title translation: Spending a Friday night in the Summer in the Supermarket.

The bus pulled into the terminal at Punta del Este late afternoon. I had booked a hostel before I left Colonia and took a taxi from the terminal to the hostel.

I checked into a room with three bunks and a single bed. I looked around and saw bags everywhere. I took the last bed, which basically meant, I dropped my bag next to said bed.

No one was at the hostel aside from the owners and I had a few hours left of daylight and headed out. The supermarket was on my list and I figured I’d make my way there.

Supermarkets always provide me with entertainment. I actually underestimated how much entertainment.

It was just before 6 on a Friday night, in a beach town, in the summer.

It was the biggest chain in town and the supermarket was packed with South Americans on vacation. Remember, Punta is only a few hours from Montevideo so plenty of people were down for the weekend. Dinner wouldn’t start for at least five hours, so they could very well be getting the essentials for dinner later that night, as well as stocking up for the weekend.

I did a fair amount of looking in people’s carts. Various meats, snacks and alcohol overflowed the carts. Not so different from supermarkets at the Jersey shore on a summer weekend, right?

As for me, I wasn’t picking up steaks for the night. I knew I was heading to more basic towns after this one, so I wanted to wander to see if I needed anything I hadn’t already thought of. And dinner. I wanted to grab something to bring back to the hostel for dinner.

And this is where I discovered drinkable yogurt. I know they have it in the States but something just tasted different. It was actually good.

Leave a comment   |  tags: | posted in career break, just silly, observations

October 8, 2012

Two Lines, No McD’s for Me

By simply three cents
I had some time before my bus departed so I thought I’d grab something quick to eat and test out the currency exchange.Of course there was a McDonald’s. With an insanely long line.I had decided McDonald’s was not in my immediate future, but I took a few seconds to observe since it looked like organized chaos. McDonald’s took up a rather large part of the terminal yet have two completely separate operations going on. I’m not even sure if it was totally effective but again, it was very calm. Maybe this is what Laura was referring to about how Uruguayans are never in a rush.

This is what I gathered from the situation in front of me. If you wanted food or soda, you stand in line at one of the five registers. Then just to the side, there’s an offshoot McDonald’s that only serves ice cream, dessert or milkshakes. Because the line at the main McDonald’s was so long, they basically intertwined.Needless to say, I went to a little vendor in the bus terminal and grabbed a bag of chips and an apple juice. Not so healthy but technically I did get a fruit and a vegetable. My version of ‘fast food.’

1 Comment   |  tags: | posted in food, observations

August 27, 2012

Estas Aqui!

By simply three cents

After hours of wandering around town around 8 I made my way back to the BuqueBus Terminal to meet Laura for our scheduled meeting time.

I settled into a seat in the arrivals terminal and took a look around and for the first time that day, realized, with loads of excitement and butterflies in my stomach that I WAS ACTUALLY IN URUGUAY!!

I must have been sitting in the terminal with a dumb smile on my face.

Soon after coming to the realization that I was in Uruguay, I saw a girl about my age with two other women, look over and walk towards me. I stood up and we introduced ourselves.

I guess I wasn’t hard to find. I am pretty certain that I was the only gringa in the arrivals area of the terminal.

Laura came with her mom and her friend. I quickly learned that Laura’s mom didn’t speak more than a few words of English, which would prove to be a great, and very quick, immersion back into speaking Spanish. I didn’t want to alienate her in the conversation, but it took a while to get my grammar straightened out but Laura did a fine job of translating.

We learned that it wasn’t user error at the cash machine at the terminal. It didn’t work. We would sort it out later and we got into her car and dropped her friend off at her car just a few blocks away.

Laura was eager to show me around and I was eager to start seeing!

Leave a comment   |  tags: | posted in career break, observations

August 24, 2012

The Car That Followed Me Around Town

By simply three cents

The title of this is much more interesting than the story behind this post.

As I explored Colonia on my first day in town, I saw this car at least five times. I don’t know if it was the same car, or if there are many, but it kept popping up all day and finally I just took a photo.

I’m not sure why but this photo makes me smile and I just wanted to share.

Leave a comment   |  tags: | posted in career break, just silly, observations, things that make me smile

August 21, 2012

Stumbling (Figuratively) and Hopefully Not Literally

By simply three cents

After a refreshing shower, I had left my (ok, really Fred’s) apartment and wandered around Colonia alone for a few hours before I was scheduled to meet Laura.

As I explored Colonia on my own, I turned a corner and stumbled (figuratively) onto this gorgeous pier.

Here’s a wider shot of the pier. I didn’t want to get this close because I was nervous I would fall (literally) so excuse the people in the photo.

I laughed when I saw this Ravens jersey in Uruguay – the brother-in-law and his family, and by association, my sister, are huge, huge, huge Ravens fans.

After taking in the views, I realized something was missing. Can you guess?

Here’s another shot.

Did you figure it out yet?

Well, I will tell you. GUARDRAILS.

Not only were there no guardrails but as you can see in the fourth photo, the boards were pretty far apart. I lost my flip flop in between those boards more than once.

I am not good with numbers but this had to be close to, if not more, a ten foot drop into the water below. With no guardrails. Anywhere.

I took in the views for a little while, took a few photos to record my disbelief and then I headed back towards solid land to continue my exploration of this historic city.

Leave a comment   |  tags: | posted in career break, observations

July 31, 2012

The (Impossible) Search for Change

By simply three cents

The ferry to Uruguay was a quite enjoyable ride. You may ask if I knew I wanted to start my journey in Uruguay, why didn’t I fly into Montevideo?

Here’s why. I can sleep well on flights, and there are no direct flights to Montevideo from New York. I chose to fly into Buenos Aires on a direct flight and start in Colonia. I highly suggest this option as the ferry was quite nice as was the (nearly) uninterrupted sleep.

I also suggest getting small change prior to boarding so you can get something to eat or drink on the ride over because…

Once aboard the boat to Colonia, all I wanted was an apple juice. Remember, I had basically just taken an overnight flight, raced to the ferry and finally collapsed in my seat.

Back at the airport I had been so focused on getting Argentine Pesos for the taxi that I never thought to break them into smaller bills.

I also knew I was going to Uruguay so there would be no need for Argentine Pesos until I returned sometime the following week. So I had taken out only what I knew that I needed for the taxi fare. I was left with only 100 Argentine pesos, which is about $25USD.

On board, while the concession stand took both Argentine and Uruguayan Pesos, I couldn’t get change of 100 Argentine Pesos for such a small purchase. I even offered to add a bag of chips and a banana (my standard travel fare), still no luck.

The man at the register told me to check in with the duty-free shop on board to see if they could change my bill.

I walked into the shop, which had two floors, and it was like Black Friday in there.

How much chocolate, perfume and alcohol do people need?

As soon as the announcement had come on that duty-free was open, people rushed to the doors and I didn’t think much of it. Until I had to go in and try to change money.

I could hardly get to the register because of the number of people jammed between myself and the register, I was nauseated by the overdose of perfume in the air and I was overwhelmed by the number of people who wanted to shop. I wish I took photos because I had to laugh. It was crazy in there!

I quickly gave up on mission: apple juice and went back to my seat to enjoy the view of my river crossing from Argentina into Uruguay.

Leave a comment   |  tags: , | posted in boat travel, career break, just silly, observations

June 25, 2012

I’ve Arrived!

By simply three cents

Upon arriving into Buenos Aires, I was one of the first from my flight to arrive in immigration. Thank you Business Class.

As you get into immigration, a representative asks where you are from. Because I have a US passport I was directed to the line for US citizens; however, I had already paid the reciprocity fee* when the boyfriend and I visited Argentina last year. When I showed the page in my passport confirming this, I was swiftly directed to a different line where I was quickly and efficiently stamped into the country (unlike in Miami upon my return into the States, but I digress).

The events that follow I can best describe as a clusterf#ck brought on by yours truly.

After immigration, I spotted a duty-free shop and asked where the American Airlines Business Class Lounge was. The woman working there did not know where the lounge was and directed me to another man, who worked for a different airline. I got nothing. I went through Customs and asked at a taxi stand. Nothing. Made my way to the to the American Airlines departures desk. Closed. The woman at the shared LAN counter told me I could only use the lounge if I was departing that day. Kind of defeats the purpose of having a shower upon arrival, no?

Hot (I was still wearing my fleece from the airplane) and eager to shower and put on weather-appropriate clothing, I continued to ask various people working at the airport where the lounge was. Nearly an hour later I decided to give up on that shower I had been dreaming of.

A smart girl would have asked on the plane, or would have referred to the map in the magazine – which I normally do look at. I blame this on my distraction with all things Business Class and thus neglected to figure out the lounge access situation prior to my arrival. Note to self: make this a priority before getting off the plane. Next time…

* Reciprocity fee is the equivalent to what Argentine citizens pay to enter the US. The entry visa is good for US citizens for ten years. Argentina charges reciprocity fees to citizens of Canada and Australia. The costs and validity vary. You can avoid the fees by traveling overland. Note: Chile also has reciprocity fees; however, I did avoid those by entering the country by bus.

Leave a comment   |  tags: | posted in air travel, observations

June 12, 2012

Chasing My Wanderlust

By simply three cents

I hope you enjoy the chronicles of my adventure, my stories and my observations.

More importantly I hope it encourages you to chase your wanderlust. No matter where it takes you, or for how long.

***

I finished packing mere hours before the car service was to pick me up and take me to New York’s JFK airport. I had time for a pedicure and some last-minute phone calls.

The first chance I had to catch my breath was as I readied myself to walk out the door of my apartment on 24 January. I was full of emotions and had some semblance of dual-personality disorder.

What was I doing? I can’t wait to land in Buenos Aires. I miss the boyfriend already. Do I have my passport? Is this the right thing to do? I can’t wait to be in summertime. Holy crap, I am really doing this! I still don’t know where I am sleeping tomorrow night. What in the world awaits me? Did I get to say ‘see you later’ to everyone?

Too late. The car service called to let me know the driver was downstairs. I called the boyfriend one last time, shut off my cell phone, shut the door sans keys and set off for an adventure!

I hope you join me as I relive it through stories and photos here on my blog!

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , | posted in career break, observations

January 6, 2012

Nomadic Matt: Why It’s Never the Perfect Time to Travel

By simply three cents

This article couldn’t have come from Nomadic Matt at a better time.

Take a read.

Leave a comment | posted in observations, reality check

January 5, 2012

Edith and Carolyn

By simply three cents

Google ‘Edith and Carolyn’ now.

I don’t want to write about politics on this blog but these ladies and the CNN team kept me up past two am the other night, the night of the Iowa Caucuses.

Hilarious.

Leave a comment | posted in news, observations