MONTEVIDEO URUGUAY

Wednesday 9th January

Day 313

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18.95 U Pesos = 1 AUD
MONTEVIDEO Is pronounced..mon tay vid ee oh!
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Montevideo, Uruguay

We´re here in gorgeous Uruguay!!!

We arrived last night..and although our guards were down with our taxi experience we arrived in our WONDERFUL hotel and are loving it!!!

It´s only half an hour by flight from Buenos Aires...but has such a different feel. Very relaxed from what we gather. The pace is slow..and sunny..and breezy and beachy.

Regarding the taxi...

This is the place we KNEW we had to watch. We were told the taxi driver´s pick you up at the airport...and say the meter is on..so you watch it and see the pesos tick over (and here it´s uraquayan pesos which are rounded off..about 20 Uruguayan pesos to the aussie dollar) so..you see the 207 U Pesos on the meter...

THEN..when you stop..they say 580 pesos! And you say...but the meter says 207..and then they get out their chart...and next to the chart is a number, 207! And corresponding to that number is 580! He points to where it says ´friscas¨ which means units. But next to that..is a $ sign. When i pointed out the $ sign..he said..arrghh. (Of course, he no longer speaks english!) I wonder if the local´s pay the frisca price and we pay the chart price!

But..we have to pay the 580! No more english spoken..just the sound of 580 ringing in your ears!!!! Talk about a round about way to organise a taxi fare..and you feel a bit ripped off..even thought it´s not that much in comparison to what we´re used to paying..it´s a lot in their books..and they´re overcharging tourists. And in this case, when we checked it out with the lady at the hotel, asking her what the charge is to to go the airport from this hotel and it was a 100 Uruguayan Pesos less than what he charged.

But the thing is..we knew about it..were told about it..and still got caught.

We´re just gringo tourists i guess! But usually very aware ones..i hate not noticiing and checking but when you´re tired after being at airports and flying all day..you get careless.

Aside from that..this hotel is beautiful. It´s half the price as the one in EL Calafate...and it´s so nice. The lady at the reception took us to our room..we have a beautiful double bed with nice sheets and pillows...and a lovely bathroom...tv that has cable..a table with a white tablecloth..

And in the room downstairs where i am now..is free internet!

We´re going on a tour this afternoon..that the hotel organises..and tomorrow we´re off to a remote town with the same tour company.

I´ll tell you more once we´ve seen more of the place..but so far, so good!

Oh..and the beaches here are gorgeous! We´re close..and on the way here..at 10pm at night..people were still out..because it was 34 degrees!!!!

Gorgeous place..like Salvador! We´re going to enjoy it here i can see...

xxx

OFF TO URUGUAY!

Tuesday, 8th January

Day 312

Off to Montevideo, Uruguay - THANK GOODNESS!

We´re sitting in the airport in Buenos Aires waiting for our flight.....

It was our last day in El Calafate today..and i won´t be missing the hostel we´ve been staying at that´s for sure!

There´s no bathroom or even a sink in the room, no mirror, the bathroom below the long dangerous narrow stairs which has no toilet paper and no soap, piddly breakfast, has these jutting out shelves that i constantly hit my head on..and to make the matters worse, this morning i woke up with bites all over me..bed bugs?

The list goes on and on...

Ohh..it´s just a awful and very expensive hostel! I definitely won´t be recomending this to even my worst enemy! I think the only hotel that compares with this standard is the dingy hostel we had in Paris..but at least we were able to move to alternative accomodation..here we were stuck as the whole town is overbooked as it is!!!!

Accomodation really does make a difference to an experience. But it´s not everything of course..but it can alter the mood of a person i tell you!!!!

But it´s been an amazing experience, and one of the most memorable of our trip..and nothing can take that away..even crummy accomodation..

The ice trekking and seeing the spectacular Perito Moreno Glaciar is a chance of a lifetime! ANd one we are glad we came and saw!

The taxi came and picked us up for the airport at 10am...in readiness for our noon flight to Buenos Aires via Bariloche...and here we sit..and wait at Buenos Aires Airport..in the computer lounge...until 6.15 when we take off to Montevideo in Uraquay....

Just as well we´ve got gripping books to read - especially after i had to suffer reading one of Danielle Steele´s books at the last airport...(she went on and on and didn´t get to the main theme for ages..book called HRH..don´t read it..the only thing good about it was the fact that i learnt that Róyals don´t have have a surname on passports!!!)

Anyway..my book now is called , Vanish by Tess Gerritsen...it´s GOOD! And Greg´s reading yet another saga of Wilbur Smith´s!

More adventures await us..will let you know if we make it....hehe