Sunday, February 2, 2020

Montevideo



Wednesday January 29, 2020 Montevideo

You haven’t heard from us for a while because when we left the Falkland Islands we had a sea day and then were supposed to be in Puerto Madryn, Argentina. Well we got there and the ship was standing off the wharf where we were to dock. But the winds were up at 40 knots and gusting to 45 and predicted to worsen during the day.  The captain made the decision that it would be too dangerous to dock and if we did get docked would be in an unsafe condition to pull away from the dock. So…that port stop was cancelled and we got another sea day. And then two more to get to Montevideo and that puts us here today. 




The temperatures are up as high as 32°C today. Bright. Sunny. Hot. Gee…suddenly we’re warmer than home. Just a nice simple city tour today. I don’t usually like city tours stuck in a bus, rushing place to place, missing everything because I’m not sitting at the front. This was better. Very leisurely. Frequent stops for photos. (But quite a few out the windows anyway if you’re gonna criticize.)
It’s a very nice city. I think it would be a great place to retire to. Right outside the port gate are a couple of pieces salvaged from the Graf Spee, a German pocket battleship scuttled in WWII. Google it. Quite modern buildings. None of the obvious squalor of most of the rest of S. America. Lots and lots and lots of beaches – all publically owned. A big beachfront condo would run US$250.000.
There’s an amazing life sized sculpture of a gaucho driving a team of oxen pulling a cart. The street art (graffiti) near the legislature is all of popular artists (all deceased). Independence square has one more of many, many monuments. 

We’re quickly coming to the end. Buenos Aires tomorrow. Start the long flight home the day after.
Hope all is well.
Best
Bob and Elizabeth