Campeche, Brazil

After five weeks of intense traveling through six countries and predominately cooler weather Campeche, Brazil brought us some much needed relaxation under warm blue skies. Situated on the east coast of Ilha de Santa Catarina and near the vibrant coastal city of Florianopolis, Brazil, the town of Campeche is part of a larger resort area that covers the entire island. It is also one of the premier surfing destinations in South America and ranked as one of the best places to live in the country. Thanks to booking.com and traveling during low-season we scored a private apartment-style room complete with two rooms and two balconies at a ridiculously low rate and took the time there to recharge our weary bodies while enjoying the nearby beach and resort amenities.

The resort was quite beautiful with countless tropical plants, gardens and outdoor pool. There were banana and lime trees bearing fruit and much to our delight a family of 12 or so very tiny monkeys living in a nearby tree. We spotted them from our balcony and rushed down to greet their curious smiling faces. They appeared to be aware of our presence but not intimidated by us so we watched from a distance as they playfully chased one another across the interconnected tree branches and trunks. It was great!

On our first day we put on some summer clothing (finally) and headed down to the beach. The beach stretched for kilometres in both directions with soft white wind-blown sand. There were sand dunes protecting the shoreline and offshore was the smaller island of Ilha do Campeche. The water was cold but still being enjoyed by three kite surfers who were regaling in the large waves and strong winds. We strolled for a good kilometre watching the kite surfers and basking in the warm sun. We did not venture deep into the water to go swimming or try surfing because of the cold water and strong waves but nonetheless enjoyed our first taste of “summer.”

Our second day in Campeche was very relaxing as we caught up on sleep, blog and journal entries, laundry and Olympic TV coverage. We tried a Brazilian lunch buffet, sampled some Brazilian Skol beer, and played a few games of foosball and gin rummy with each of us excelling in one of the disciplines (Carolyn with rummy; Tom with foosball).

On our final day in the area we toured downtown Florianopolis and stumbled across a great little park where there was a Capoeira demonstration taking place. It was awesome to watch the group of twenty or so participants take turns battling one another in mixed martial arts all the while to the sounds of beating drums and chanting singers. There were high leg kicks, handstands and flips but never any contact between the fighters. It was like a simulated fight mixed with a dance and we loved every minute of it. When it unfortunately ended we headed back to the main bus terminal where we waited for the bus to our next destination: one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the South America – Iguaçu Falls.  

Uruguay Travel Tips

With our travels through Uruguay now behind us we thought it would be fun to share some tips we learned along the way.

Tip #1:

“If a hostel has ten out of ten reviews on booking.com it is for a reason.” (Montevideo)

Tip #2:

“If you want a hostel or city all to yourself travel during the offseason (winter).” (Montevideo & Punta del Este)

Tip #3:

“Lonely Planet Guidebook needs to update the “danger and annoyance” section for Uruguay as it claims it to be the safest South American country yet we saw one robbery and one attempted pick-pocketing in one day.” (Montevideo)

Tip #4:

“When every restaurant menu is crazy expensive in a tourist trap town go to the grocery store and be creative. “ (Punta del Este)

Tip #5:

“Before entering a new town do some online research when you have no map or information and you are arriving after dark. It is even helpful to draw your own map.” (Chuy)

Punta del Este & Chuy, Uruguay

After escaping Montevideo and its urban “charms” we traveled by bus along the southern shore of Uruguay to the resort town of Punta del Este. It is a mid-sized city located on a peninsula of land jutting out to the Rio de La Plata/Atlantic Ocean and is surrounded by kilometres of beautiful wind-swept white sand beaches. In the summer the town supposedly bustles with tourists and surfers but as we discovered during our visit, in the winter season the town is absolutely dead. Prior to arriving we had researched online where we wanted to stay for the night but much to our dismay everything was closed for the season when we arrived. So with our heavy backpacks we trudged around town looking for lodging and after being turned away either by locked doors or exorbitant prices we found ourselves a reasonably priced room at a hotel straight out of the 1970’s. There was green shag carpeting, parquet hardwood flooring, pin-ball machines and for some odd reason, leather lounge chairs in the narrow upper floor hallways. Our guess was that some people must prefer to sit and stare at a white painted wall only a few feet away in a depressing hallway rather than looking at the ocean from their room. Strange indeed.

Our first evening in town was rather non-descript except for a visit to a cool half-buried hand sculpture on the beach and then an exhaustive hunt for an open restaurant. Our hunt yielded few appetizing choices so we headed to a local supermarket and proceeded to make our own dinner without the aid of a microwave or stove or any utensils. The results weren’t pretty but our modified hot dogs (French baguette, breaded chicken cutlet, cheese slices and mustard) tasted good enough to keep us satisfied until the morning. The litre of beer also helped to some degree.

After sleeping in the next morning we spent the day exploring the nearly deserted town, snapping photographs of the sea, and watching what we presumed to be a very large sea lion chasing birds out in the water. Once again we were joined by a furry friend for the duration of our walk until he was distracted by a curious smell along the way. The city itself was quite nice with many wealthy summer homes and condos facing the sea.

That same evening we boarded a bus for the Uruguayan border town of Chuy. Fortunately we had done some research online about crossing into Brazil at this particular city because the events of that night and the next morning were even stranger than the leather lounge chairs in our Punta del Este hotel. The town of Chuy, Uruguay shares its main street with the Brazilian border town of Chui. One side of the street speaks Spanish the other Portuguese. One uses the Peso the other the Real. And there are no official border crossings between the two sides. Anyone can freely cross from one side to the other with no documents and no intervention from police or authorities. This concept works quite well for local Uruguayans and Brazilians but not so well for foreign tourists who need official exit and entrance stamps in their passports from each country so as to not be denied boarding a plane when leaving the country.

What we learned in Punta del Este is that the official border and immigration control stations for both towns is 2km outside the city centres. So in our limited Spanish we convinced a very nice tourist information guide at the bus station to write us a note in Spanish asking the bus driver to please stop the bus when coming into Chuy, Uruguay and wait while we quickly hopped off to get the required exit stamps before continuing into the city centre. Our plan worked to perfection with both the bus waiting for us and immigration providing the stamps in our passports in record speed. Arriving in the city centre we made our way to a pre-booked hostel by foot before retiring for the night.

The next morning we awoke early and headed by foot to the Brazilian border where we simply walked across the demarcation line as if it was a crosswalk. After finding the bus station we inquired about the next bus out of town to Porto Alegre, Brazil, the cost in Brazilian Reals, and where the nearest bank might be. The bank directions turned out to be somewhat suspect as soon enough we found ourselves back in Uruguay before crossing back into Brazil two minutes later. It was officially the shortest stay in a country for each of us in our different travels. After finally getting some local currency and dodging numerous horse and wagons (which we also saw many of throughout Uruguay) we hired a taxi driver to take us to the official Brazilian border and immigration control station a few kilometres outside of Chui, Brazil. This quick trip was also successful and now with all the proper stamps in our passports we booked our ticket out of town. The entire process of exiting and entering the two countries was another strange experience made all the more odd by the fact that we officially did not belong in either country for about twelve hours. Fortunately, the relaxing beaches and warmer weather of Campeche, Brazil our next destination (near Florianopolis on Ilha de Santa Catarina) was waiting for us only 22 hours to the north.

Montevideo, Uruguay

After a rather disappointing time in Buenos Aires, Argentina we took a 3-hour ferry and then 3-hour bus ride to Montevideo, the capital city of Uruguay. We had high expectations for our visit to the city and the small country, mostly on account of reading about Uruguay in our Lonely Planet Guidebook. Boy did they drop the ball on this one. The guidebook painted a very different picture than the one we experienced and needless to say we were quite happy to get out of Montevideo after 3 days of travel.

Our visit started out great aboard the ferry where we were treated to a mid-cruise tango show by two professional dancers. It was a treat to watch them twist and turn all the while they kept a serious and passionate gaze into each other’s eyes. Disembarking in Colonia, Uruguay we then boarded a very comfortable bus to Montevideo and traveled through flat pampa landscapes with periodic views out to the water. Arriving in Montevideo under heavy grey skies we then took a taxi to Live MVD Hostel, which would be our home base for the next two nights and turn out to be the best spot we have stayed in thus far. We have booked a lot of our hostels/hotel rooms online through www.booking.com and have been very happy with the selection of rooms and discounted rates.  What caught our eye for this particular hostel were the perfect 10.0 reviews it had received from all of its visitors. The online reviews didn’t lie as this quaint homey hostel run by two helpful and friendly girls was a perfect 10. We relaxed in the evening on their comfy couch while watching the Olympics and drinking Uruguayan “Pilsner” beer (which is fantastic) and awoke to breakfast served beside a warm fire. It felt as close to a home away from home as one could get.

On our first full day in the city we went and visited an open-air Sunday market. There was a strange assortment of vendors selling everything from food and antiques, to pirated movies and pets. There were also a lot of people strolling through the market which unfortunately led to the first of our negative experiences in the city. Just as we were walking past a stall where a man was trying to scam people to guess which of the three upside down cups had a ball below it, a man brushed up against Carolyn’s right side and tried to pickpocket her. He unzipped her jacket pocket and was grabbing her camera string when she turned to see what was going on and caught him in the act. He pulled out his hand immediately and sped away into the crowd as if nothing had happened. We quickly turned in the opposite direction and got out of the congested market safely but nonetheless feeling quite vulnerable as foreign tourists.

Freed of this area we headed for the waterfront which was safer and had more vantage points to see any would-be thieves. It was a nice walk along the coast as the grey sky finally lifted and the sun made its first appearance in four days. We stopped to try out some outdoor fitness equipment and slowly made our way towards the old part of Montevideo a couple of kilometres away.

The old city was a curious blend of beautiful old eclectic buildings decorated with sculptures and wrought iron balconies and modern box-like skyscrapers covered in air conditioners. There was graffiti over everything at street level but at least looking up was a treat so long as you didn’t step in one of the countless piles of dog droppings on the sidewalk. Ambling along a very deserted pedestrian street we unfortunately witnessed the second incident of the day. We had just passed a group of three girls and commented that they looked like tourists (which we haven’t seen much of since Bolivia) when we heard a scream a block later and looked back to see two men robbing one of the girls of her purse and fleeing. Two locals went running after the men but it was probably too late as everything was closed up as it was a Sunday afternoon and there was no one around including police. Having witnessed this second brazen attack of the day we quickly turned around and headed back to the open waterfront where we high-tailed it back to the hostel safely.

The fact that these two incidents occurred on the same day really left a bad impression of the city. We no longer felt safe walking its streets and while the hostel was great and the hostess extremely nice we couldn’t wait to get out of town. After a quick detour to the city centre the next morning to pick up a Uruguayan souvenir we left via bus to the beach town of Punta del Este, Uruguay about two hours east up the coast.

P.S. Family at home: please don’t worry as we are fine and weren’t hurt or robbed of any of our belongings. These events happened 6 days ago and while we are now in Brazil nothing of this sort has happened since. We intend to avoid congested open-air markets for the remainder of the trip and if streets are deserted on Sundays, we will do as the locals do and take a day of rest at our hostel or make it a long distance travel day. Tom will also keep his beard for the remainder of the trip as it makes him look tougher to would-be thieves even though he desperately wants to shave it off.

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Buenos Aires is the capital city of Argentina and home to close to 13 million people. It is a large city and one often characterized as the Paris of South America but with a Latino heart. It is a city of glamour and style bustling with tall skyscrapers and the world’s widest street at 20 lanes. But it also has a dark and gritty core. It is a city of contrasts and unfortunately one that we were all too happy to leave after a brief 2 days in the city.

Arriving 3 hours late but at least safely by plane from Santiago under heavy rain clouds we made our way into the city centre by shared taxi. We had met a very friendly family of 5 from Tasmania, Australia while disembarking the plane and they offered to split a cab into Buenos Aires. We happily agreed and had a great ride as we shared travel tips and stories from home. Checking into our pre-booked hotel we faced one of the not-too-pleasant sides of being foreign travelers. Our room was reserved at $92 US for two nights stay or $421 Argentinean pesos at the current exchange rate of 4.58%. The staff said that if we paid in US dollars than the total would be $92 but if we paid in pesos it would be at their 5.8% exchange rate; clearly contradicting our reservation which stated that the rate was to be converted at the official daily exchange. There was no way we were paying what amounted to an extra $25 US for the two nights so we went hunting for an ATM that dispensed US dollars. It was a miserable hour spent searching in vain that somewhat appropriately finished with a 3-block sprint under torrential rain and thunder overhead.

The next morning and still with no US dollars in hand we marched up to the front desk and demanded that we pay in pesos at the 4.58% rate. They hummed and hawed but eventually balked and agreed; our threats to write negative reviews about the hotel on the reservation website surely helped. Buoyed by our victory we set off on foot to explore the city for the day under grey skies but at least with no rain at the time – that would unfortunately come later. After learning to dance the tango from some cool sidewalk art we stopped at the famous Recoleta cemetery in Buenos Aires, the resting place of some of Argentina’s most famous citizens including Eva “Evita” Peron. It was a sombre gray landscape of above-ground tombs and mausoleums but extremely interesting both historically and architecturally. Each tomb was a unique grand monument to the deceased person or family and often with statues and marble finishes. Unfortunately many of the tombs had been broken into over the years, possibly by grave robbers, and they were left in a sad state of disrepair.

After our walk through the cemetery we got absolutely soaked by a sudden downpour of rain. Fortunately it didn’t last long and we had rain jackets on but we got chilled very quickly. To combat the cold we sat in a warm travel agent’s office where we booked our ferry and bus tickets for the next morning to Montevideo, Uruguay, and then settled in for a 2-hour lunch and wi-fi internet session at a great cafe overlooking the world’s widest street. Sufficiently dried and warmed we then toured the cities busy pedestrian avenues looking for Argentinean souvenirs and then Plaza Mayo, which is anchored by the presidential “Pink” House (just like Washington’s White House but actually illuminated in fluorescent pink and blue lights).

Seeing the city cleansed by the day’s heavy rain and bathed in night time accent lighting it was very beautiful as we finished the evening strolling hand-in-hand. If only our experiences with the hotel staff and ATM machines had gone better, or the people and weather of Buenos Aires had been more pleasant, then we might have enjoyed our visit more. Regardless we were happy to have visited the city and equally happy to be continuing on our way to Uruguay the next day.

Chile Travel Tips

With our travels through Chile now behind us we thought it would be fun to share some tips we learned along the way.

Tip #1:

“When traveling make sure that you carry extra credit cards, debit cards, and American dollars just in case the cards get blocked and you can’t take out any money.” (Orsono)

Tip #2:

“If you show a stray dog any type of affection (including eye contact) be prepared for it to follow you for a part of the day. Once one follows also be prepared for all his stray friends to join in as well.” (Pucon and the rest of South America)

Tip #3:

“Lonely Planet is an excellent travel resource.” (all of South America)

Tip #4:

“Eating at a restaurant with a set lunch-time menu is the way to go – you each get a three course meal and glass of wine for $10 US.” (Pucon)

Tip #5:

“When hiking for 7 hours make sure to bring a banana to help combat lactic acid build-up in the legs.” (Volcan Villarrica)

Tip #6:

“Crampons are a necessity when climbing a steeply sloped icy volcano/glacier.” (Volcan Villarrica)

Tip #7:

“You may want to train or even stretch prior to climbing a massive volcano in the middle of winter.” (Volcan Villarrica)

Tip #8:

“When ordering 2 scoops of gelato ice cream ask to see the scoop size first as it may be a lot larger than expected.” (Santiago)

Tip #9:

“When you can’t find the museum that you are looking for ask 5 people in your best Spanish until you find it (even if it is closed for renovation).” (Santiago)

Tip #10:

“Visit Chile as the people are amazing and the landscape is beautiful.” (Chile)

Algarrobo, Chile

As a break from the frenzied pace of travel we decided to take a day trip to the Pacific coast and the resort town of Aglarrobo. It is also home to the world’s largest outdoor pool stretching over a kilometre in length, which made the town equally interesting to visit. Only 1 1/2 hours from Santiago by bus the trip was enjoyable as we passed through Chilean vineyards and mountainous terrain. At two points along the way we entered the longest mountain tunnels that we have ever seen, which was a nice change from the countless switchback roads that we have encountered on the trip so far.

In Algarrobo we immediately headed downhill to the ocean and sandy beach. The tide was out leaving large boulders exposed where the pelicans preened themselves while the beach was littered with shells and beach glass amongst the soft white sand. We were joined by a group of friendly stray dogs along the way until they decided to chase after an unassuming flock of pigeons. After hiking Volcan Villarrica in sub-zero temperatures and under a blanket of snow and ice it was refreshing to be in the sand and surf basking in the sun. We walked the length of the beach until we reached the San Alfonso del Mar resort and the world’s largest pool a couple of kilometres away.

When we first read about the world’s largest pool online before leaving for South America it sounded very interesting and excitedly we packed our bathing suits and towels for the day trip. Our muscles were still extremely sore from the volcano hike and the idea of a soothing dip into one of their outdoor hot tubs sounded too good to be true. Unfortunately it was too good to be true. To our surprise the world’s largest outdoor pool and other attractions were part of an exclusive gated resort community only accessible to those who owned units in one of the dozen large ship-like multi-storey buildings. Even worse, no visitors were permitted on the premises and photos of the pool were strictly forbidden. Somewhat dismayed we convinced a security guard and administration staffer to let us walk the grounds for a few minutes where we discreetly snapped a few photos when no one was looking.

The pool was indeed the world’s largest as it stretched the length of the kilometre long beach and could even accommodate sailing activities. After talking with administration and walking the beach it became obvious that the strong rip tide and large waves necessitated the separate swimming area for the resort.  It was definitely interesting to see but we left somewhat dismayed by the resorts strict security policies and the fact that this massive seawater pool didn’t have a single swimmer in its waters when we visited nor did it even offer day passes to the curious; talk about a missed opportunity. Regardless of the circumstances however, we really enjoyed our day in Algarrobo strolling hand-in-hand along the beach as the waves crashed along the shoreline. It was a beautiful scene and a welcomed break from the winter-like conditions we have been encountering for the last few weeks. All that was missing was some of Ontario’s record heat. J