Buenos Aires & Montevideo
They were described to us as a big sister and a little sister, but Buenos Aires, Argentina and Montevideo, Uruguay seemed to be more like distant cousins to us. One maybe had a better upbringing, with support for most all of its interests, while the latter one possibly was neglected, overlooked, and underestimated. Regardless, they both have aspects to them that are one-of-a-kind and plenty vibrant.
Recoleta Cemetery
It took longer than we had expected...
We got to the airport in Miami to catch a 10:30 pm flight only to board, almost take off, stop, turn around, and then be told that our flight would be delayed until 10:30 the next morning. We found ourselves overcome by slap-happy, hysterical giggles as we tried to get comfortable on the cold Miami International Airport tile and fall asleep before our flight the next day. We had expected to have many moments like this throughout our travels, but for it to be the very first was simply hilarious to us.
After landing in Buenos Aires, (a day later than expected) we caught a cab to the Palermo Viejo neighborhood and buzzed into the door at the Chillhouse Hostel. We were greeted by Antoine, a French caretaker of the place who was incredibly accommodating and kind. He immediately grabbed a highlighter and a map and marked the city up for us, circling every single must-see. Being exhausted and ready for an actual meal, we headed over to the cutest corner joint by the name of Musetta Cafe and chowed some bruschetta and a bottle of wine (the bottle was $10US, and most of their bottles were priced that way.) After full bellys and starry eyes, sleep was an order.
Dinner at Musetta Caffe
Chillin at Chillhouse
Chillhouse Rooftop
We spent the next 2.5 days (a total of 35 miles) walking, running, and trekking across the entire city. We hit up every single highlighter mark Antoine made for us including free art museums, huge parks being circled by runners and rollerbladers, the Recoleta cemetery, five level shopping malls, colonial style government buildings, and the port (which was the only time we started to walk down an alley and a policia stopped us to tell us that it was peligroso, or dangerous).
La Recoleta
Recoleta Cemetery
Recoleta Church
Recoleta Cemetery
The one "Peligroso" calle.
All in all, Buenos Aires is big city buzzing with all sorts of people: Women in platform shoes with their backpacks strapped to the front, young men escorting their abuelas to the market, and, in our neighborhood, Hasidic Jewish families holding hands on the sidewalks. It's a city full of people, life, and movement yet, we seemed to be searching for a bit more. Perhaps it is because our taste is more geared towards the outdoors, or perhaps it is because we are on a strict budget, we simply found ourselves desiring something that would make our jaws drop, and that thing, was not showing itself. So, although the city was a colorful, historic, beautiful one, we were ready very soon to move on.
Pedestrian Bridge
Looking out at the city
Traffic heading towards the Microcenter
Getting to Montevideo, Uruguay was incredibly simple. We purchased tickets online for BuqueBus, which included an approximate one hour boat ride and then a two hour bus ride to Uruguay's main city.
Once we arrived, we decided to walk the two and a half miles to our hotel from the bus station with our big packs. Montevideo is a city covered with businesses, pizza restaurants, and trendy clothing shops, yet most were closed and the streets were fairly quiet. It was not until later, once we were out of the city, that we were told it was the "holiday" and the majority of the town had left.
So again, we spent two days walking and running throughout the ghost city, eating chorizo from food stands, and watching sunsets on "La Rambla". We loved observing the locals as they sipped and shared their mate (a highly concentrated tea that they drink through a metal straw that is loaded with caffeine and suppresses appetite), and we explored the port area where the town came alive for the half-day while the cruise ships came in. The absolute best discovery of ours was the Mercado Del Puerto, where the entire market was filled with huge, firey parrillas (a type of grill) and all kinds of interesting meats.
Empty streets of Montevideo
We were told by locals to keep our backpacks in front to prevent theft.
Entertainment in Mercado del Puerto
Meat on La Parrilla
Mercado Del Puerto
We loved experiencing both cities, but it seemed that our hearts were yearning for some space, for something closer to nature, so on we went! Feel free to ask any questions you have in the comment section, and do not forget to follow our Instagram for daily updates!
Until next time!
-Bree and Trevor
