We heard from many people that when you are in Buenos Aires you should make sure you visit Uruguay. A short one hour ferry ride will bring you from Buenos Aires to Colonia del Sacramento. There are three major ferry companies (Buque Bus, Colonia Express, and Seacat). After comparing prices we opted for Colonia Express. We ended up purchasing our tickets at a kiosk in the Alto Palermo Mall, because we heard buying over the website was tricky. To get there we took a 30 minute Taxi ride to the terminal in Puerto Madera. We were advised to arrive 1.5 hours before our scheduled departure and we needed most of that time for check in, Argentinian and Uruguayan immigration, and customs.  It took us about an hour to cross the River Plata (which opens up into the Atlantic Ocean). We decided that this trip was not going to include devices, so the iPads stayed back in Buenos Aires. The boys were entertained on the boat with exploring the ship, looking out the windows, and playing some games with mom and dad.

Upon arrival we walked the 10 blocks or so to our hotel….The Radisson. We were happy to have a small balcony with a partial river view. After exploring the hotel, we walked down the street to find a spot for a late lunch. We ate at “The Drug Store” after eating at “La Farmacie” yesterday. The kids loved the food, mom and dad enjoyed a pitcher of Sangria, and all was good. After the meal, the boys decided to take a siesta with some dogs in the street (just kidding…..they only pretended to sleep there). The pictures below are from two different angles because we each thought that we got the better shot. 🙂 You decide.

We took advantage of the pool at our hotel and the boys got to swim and play.

The next day was our only full day in Colonia del Sacramento, but a day is about all the time that you need for this town. Historical Colonia del Sacramento is a peninsular shape that juts out into the Rio de Plata. On our walk around the city we saw el Puerto de Yates, a pier and then we headed down to the water’s edge to build piles of rocks, search for sea glass, and climb around. Although we could not climb to the top of El Faro, lighthouse, we took pictures and browsed the vendors rambles in the square. Then we went to the famous Calle de Los Suspiros. The kids played with some rocks that they pretended were boats. We continued on to the old city wall/fort with cannons and stopped for a bite of ice cream.

Colonia also has lots of old cars. With the cobblestone and old vehicles, it is as if you have stepped back in time. Meals are slow, cars stop for all pedestrians, and people greet each other in the streets.

We stopped for a late lunch and returned to the hotel for another swim. We left on a Ferry the next morning. And although our trip to Uruguay was short, we truly enjoyed the people, the town, and the food. We hope to return someday to explore more of this country.