Thinking of going to South America and Antarctica on Princess ?

[scubacruiserx2]

We still remembered Montevideo from our previous trip there in 2013 . We would like to share some memories from that trip before we share our most recent trip .

 

In Montevideo we found our friend from Ushuaia , the ADIA cara had already docked

 

 

 

 

We had decided to DIY in Montevideo with our friends Daniel and Sarah. We were greeted by some people on quay offering a free ride to a leather factory located at Plaza Independencia which is where we began our walking tour. This is approximately the route that we walked

 

 

 

 

After leaving the shop , we saw this statue of Artigas "the father of Uruguayan nationhood"

 

 

 

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jos%C3%A9_Gervasio_Artigas

 

 

 

At the end of the square is this beautiful building , Palacio Salvo

 

 

 

 

 

Our next stop was at the Plaza Constitution where a flea market was being set up. They had some interesting antiques with good prices , but we were very limited weight in the amount of weight that we could carry on the upcoming flights.

 

 

 

 

As we walked a little farther down the Sarandi pedestrian mall we saw a lot of excitement going on. I couldn't resist videoing this happy couple's big moment !!

 

 

 

 

[cardiffman]

On 10/7/2019 at 2:59 AM, chengkp75 said:

And, depending on when Princess' ships go into drydock over the next couple of years, there will be no Princess ships even doing "drive by" cruises to Antarctica.  The total "drop dead" date for passenger ships not Polar Classed is early in 2021, but when a ship has undergone their statutory drydocking since 2018, the ship loses its certification to operate south of 60*.

This is interesting. I was on Celebrity Eclipse down there. I think we got down *near* Paradise Harbor which is beyond 60. The Eclipse was said, by the cruise director in particular, as the largest ship to have gone down there. I have read a lot about ships going down there. What little I know about the Eclipse doesn't include its ice rating. What you're saying here implies that there could be fewer ships rated to go as far south as the Eclipse went come the end of the 2020-2021 season.

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We loved some of the colorful graffiti that we saw during the walk

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Many of the shops on the street that we walked by , and went into , had a distinctly European feel. Except for all of the Coke signs that we saw everywhere !

  

 

 

And a solo Pepsi sign at the Beatles BAR

 

 

We wandered into the Estancia del Puerto at 11:30 am , and the place was empty

 

 

And found what we really wanted - Asado on the Parrilla !!

 

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The grilling process is better appreciated in this video clip :

 

 

 

 

We found a table and ordered drinks , steak and chorizo . We were enjoying our drinks and our friend's company when we noticed that the place was filling up - Fast . Soon , our lunch arrived and the smell was incredible !! After tasting we realized that we had found meat heaven . It was more than just a lunch. It is the Quintessential dining experience of South America.

 

 

As you can see in this video - We were not alone !

 

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That was our visit in 2013 and this is our visit from 2019 .

We had a beautiful but limited view sunrise coming into Montevideo

 

 

The top deck for the big picture 

 

 

 

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A lot of ship traffic

 

 

 

 

Following the Sun

 

 

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Into Montevideo

 

 

Here comes our Uber

 

 

A graveyard of ships

 

 

Palacio Salvo

 

 

Uruguay Naval barricks

 

 

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Follow the green walkway

 

 

 

As we came ashore we thought that it would be interesting to revisit some of the places that we went to in 2013 , first the 2013 photos followed by the 2019 photos

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[scubacruiserx2]

Lunch at the Mercado

 

 

 

 

 

 

I love the name of this beer and we both wanted to try one with lunch

 

 

 

We ate at this place in 2013 at almost the same table ( It was air conditioned on a very warm day )

 

 

 

 

 

They were all out of Patricia beer so we split  a 3/4 L of this

 

 

 

I had beef tenderloin brochette with onion , pepper and bacon

 

 

And she had rack of lamb - 6 chops

 

 

So yummy ! And of course we shared .

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We stopped to pick up some water

 



 

next we tried here next for water

 

 

Street walking

 

 

 

 

 

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We had a ring side seats to watch the Sun's sail away in Montevideo

 

 

 

The video clips :

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sunless in Montevideo

 

 

 

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We  bought this 6.25 L of water  for $ 2.50 to refill our 1 L bottles that we paid $ 5.00 for on the ship . The small bottles cost 12- 1/2 times as much as the large one !

 

 

 

 

Leaving Montevideo

 

 

Navy ships

 

 

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People fishing

 

 

On the horizon 

 

 

The next stop came with a advisory from the Captain

 

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After leaving Montevideo we were treated to a nice sunset

 

 

 

 

We had entered the murky waters of the Rio dela Plata en route to Buenos Aires on a warm overcast day . The blue water was gone , replaced with brown

 

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The ferry to Montevideo was clearing it's throat

 

 

Coming in for a landing

 

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Moving out

 

 

 

 

We were docked next to these containers

 

 

 

Going in or out requires a bus ride 

 

 

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On our first day in BA we left the ship on the bus . At the terminal we met our guide  Elizabet from Tours by Locals and our driver .

 

 

There was a lot of traffic but we didn't go far . There was a photo op with perhaps Argentina's most famous soccer star Lionel Messi .

 

 

Not far away was a HUGE  Ficus tree that needed a little support with it's branches

 

 

 

We were headed to this church the Basilica Nuestra Senora del Pilar

 

 

A screen shot from Google Maps

 

 

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Our next stop was next to the church at  the famous La Recoleta Cemetery

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Recoleta_Cemetery

 

 

 

The Dorrego - Ortiz Basualdo Family

 

 

 

Admiral Guillermo Brown was considered to be the father of the Argentine Navy . He was born in Ireland and his tomb is painted green remembering his Irish roots .

 

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Another amazing structure

 

 

Most of the cemetery wasn't crowded but this is the one grave that most people come to see .

 

 

 

 

Evita Peron

 

 

 

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There are a number of interesting graves here with beautiful stained glass

 

 

 

You have to peek through the doors to see some

 

 

 

This cross was on the ceiling of a former President's grave .

 

 

 

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More from Recoleta  Cemetery

 

 

 

 

 

Pat and Elisabet were looking inside and this is what they saw

 

 

 

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More from Recoleta Cemetery

 

 

 

 

 

 

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There were a number of other interesting stories like how this man's wife quit talking to him and she made sure that their statues were facing in opposite directions after burying her husband

 

 

 

 

Boxer Luis Angel Firpo

 

 

This lady was  pronounced dead before being accidentally buried alive