Christine and Ed Retirement Travels

The area now known as the country of Uruguay and, specifically around the city of Montevideo, was occupied only by the native Charrua Indians prior to colonization by Europeans in 1680.  In 1726, the Spanish constructed fortifications at Montevideo as a response to conflict with Portugal, and to prevent the Portuguese from claiming ownership of the area. Montevideo lies on Uruguay’s most southern point, on the north shore of the Rio de la Plata, between Argentina and Brazil. The city is quite compact and has a population of around 1.4 million, around half of the total population of the whole country. The city is also visually pleasing and has a variety of historical buildings, is easy to navigate around the square grid layout of cobbled streets and is mostly flat, or only gently inclined.  Temperatures here, at this time of the year, are in the high 20s Celsius with high humidity - very uncomfortable and clammy - and to take advantage of it being slightly cooler in th...

We were up early to make the most of our second day in Buenos Aires and, after a quick breakfast, we were off to board the Hop on, Hop off bus, to depart on a city tour at 9:00am. We chose this unique bus option, and combined two of its route choices, to ensure we could visit several different places which would otherwise be unachievable in the time available to us. We had our water bottles, big hats and sunscreen, and were fully prepared to comfortably enjoy the three to four hours on the top deck of the open bus. We were provided with head phones, plugged them into the seat back console, selected the English narrative and settled in for our trip. Very good value for $35 US equivalent. Soon we were off, and headed towards Plaza SanMartin, skirted the park area and saw the English Clock to our right side. We then entered the Retiro neighbourhood and passed by the rail and bus stations. Along a few streets,  and around a couple of corners, the Floralis Generica came into sight...

Lots to do and lots to see! We are very fortunate to have visited Buenos Aires, the capital city of Argentina, a couple of times previously and this allowed us to make the most of our recent two day visit. We were out and about on our first day, as soon as our ship had been given clearance, in the early afternoon, by the customs and immigration authorities and on the second day were were on the go by 8:30am. We had two busy days of walking, and busing, in 30C temperatures and high humidity, while covering almost 18km by foot. Buenos Aires is a large city which has a population of close to 3 million people, in the central area, and almost 13 million for the greater metro district. It is a very busy city and, in some areas, has quite large crowds which hinder easy pedestrian progress.  In general terms, I would describe this city as one which has a variety of architectural styles, very wide boulevards bounding areas of very narrow streets, many mature and leafy trees, lots of ...

Puerto Madryn, is located near the northern limit of Patagonia, on the Atlantic coast of Argentina, has a population of around 80,000 people and was established by Welsh settlers in 1865. The original settlers were lured here by an Argentine Government offer of 100 square miles of land, along the banks of the Chubut River. The Welsh influence is still very evident in the area, and the Welsh ‘towns’ have maintained ties to their ancestral home in Wales, UK, by retaining their Celtic language, religion, and culture, while also speaking Spanish. Puerto Madryn sits on the shores of Golfo Nuevo, a large deepwater bay of the Atlantic Ocean, has a climate classed as a semi dessert zone and ‘enjoys’, year round average temperatures of 12C. This city is currently the second largest fishing port in Argentina and is also experiencing the fastest population growth in the nation. The town is also a portal for many outdoor activities and adventures. Scuba diving and sport fishing is very popul...