Today we are in Punta del Este (
East
Point), where the
Plate River (which forms the border between
Uruguay and
Argentina)
meets up with the
Atlantic Ocean. Punta is at
the end of a long peninsula with beaches on both sides about three blocks from
each other – the Playa Brava on the
Atlantic Ocean
has more waves and more wind, and is where the surfers congregate, and the
Playa Mansa on the river side has calmer water and less wind. There is also a very
nice ‘rambla’ or walking path that goes from one coast to the other.
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| Playa Brava from the Rambla |
Punta is known for the glitterati that come here during the
very short ‘summer season’ in January and February. They come from
Argentina for the surfing, and from
Brazil for the
gambling – which is illegal in Brazil. To help these people unload
their riches, a number of large hotels and casinos line the coast, and
prices here are considerably more expensive than other areas of
Uruguay.
We are both on the lookout for famous people, but so far the only glitterati I have seen is the flash of my credit card in the machine.
Punta is also known for the very large colony of sea lions
that have taken over an island off the coast. You can take a tour out to see
them, and some tours even allow you to swim with the large creatures, but
apparently they smell terrible and I think I would get a bit freaked out by
having so many large animals swimming within biting distance. We settled for
watching them come around for scraps when the fishing boats returned to port
and the fish were prepared for the local restaurants.
 |
Local Fishing Boats,
and those of a more expensive variety in the background |
 |
| Big.... and stinky! |
Being a beach town in the off-season, we were part of a very
small crowd that spent the day at the beach. It was perfect weather for us
Canadians, though, and the sunsets were (as advertised) sublime.
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| Sunset over the Puerto |
