24. & 25.03.: MONTEVIDEO!!!

24.03.:

This morning I still had a breakfast companion. He comes from Texas and is traveling alone with his bicycle. He tells gruesome stories about the road conditions in Bolivia, but otherwise he is a South America fan who has also traveled on the Ruta 40 by bike. How many liters of water did he always have with him? In Bolivia 10, otherwise 6 to 7, which he needed daily.

He is 54 and says of himself that he is a loner. No - he doesn't have any friends or family. The friends he has are scattered around the globe. He prefers to travel alone and has had similar experiences to mine when I was cycling in Ireland or cycling from South to North Germany. He had great encounters and spontaneous invitations to eat or stay overnight. Now he is on his way to Montevideo and then wants to fly back home via Buenos Aires. He still has 14 days.

For the vespas and me, this is the last stage in South America! We will go 200 km along the coast to Montevideo. The wind comes with strong force from the water into the land and reminds me of the gusts of wind from the Pacific.

The landscape is just like in East Frisia and Schleswig-Holstein. Even black and white cattle are bred here!
I'm glad I filled up the two reserve canisters. The area is very sparsely populated. With only 3 or 4 million inhabitants in the whole country, that's no wonder. Everything seems very lonely. Hardly any traffic, no trucks, and the weather is cooperating. The hot days and weeks are probably over here too. I'm wearing my jacket again and can do without my balaclava when I take a break and take off my helmet. I enjoy the pleasant warmth from above.

After three hours, I leave the department of San Jose and reach the department of Montevideo. Both are separated from each other by the Rio Santa Lucia. A long bridge spans the marshy areas. The crosswind picks up even more and enjoys playing with us. But we don't enjoy it. I press the vespas against the wind and ride with a lean over the sparsely traveled bridge. The sun said goodbye an hour ago. It's cold and unfriendly. But then the bushes and trees appear again, and riding becomes more fun.

There's definitely more of that

The city lords of Montevideo prefer it more drastic. The fashionable skyline of Buenos Aires is not found here. Instead, the newcomer's view falls on rusty freighters leaning diagonally on their keel in the Montevideo Bay. It all seems almost shabby and run-down. There are no tree-lined coastal roads, the green strip in the middle is only haphazardly designed. Uruguay - as Wikipedia writes - is the country on the South American continent that is doing economically best. But the guest doesn't notice that at first. If I think of Iquique in Chile. The magnificent promenade lined with palm trees along the coast.

Tristesse

And then the smartphone is black.

The last information was that I have to turn left right away.... is the power socket defective or the charging cable? The right answer to this question wouldn't help me right now either. The shops are closed. Or is the smartphone simply broken?

All of a sudden, I realize that I am completely helpless. I didn't write down the name of the neighborhood and the address. I haven't done that during my whole tour. A city map wouldn't help me now either.

So I hope that only the battery is empty. I have a spare one that is always (!) charged.
Great relief when the Samsung logo lights up white on a black background and the smartphone comes back to life.

A BIG MOMENT: WE HAVE REACHED OUR DESTINATION MONTEVIDEO!

ROUGHLY ESTIMATED, WE HAVE TRAVELED ABOUT 30,000 KM ON THIS CONTINENT.

FROM CHILE THROUGH PERU, ECUADOR, THE ANDES CHAIN, THE AMAZON BASIN, AND BRAZIL TO ARGENTINA AND URUGUAY

I reactivate the navigation system and am soon at the hotel. It is perfectly centrally located. The Plaza de Independencia and Av. 18 de Julio are just a few steps away from me. The street is lined with plane trees, beautiful houses with balconies and elongated shutters stand in front of my window. Otherwise, the street seems lonely on a Sunday with metal shutters pulled down in front of the shop windows. It already has something morbid here. There are no cafes, and only a few people are on the street. Degenhard: Sundays in a small town...

I'm pretty spoiled by Buenos Aires and Concordia

When I come to a stop in front of the hotel, a Brazilian couple comes towards me with a smile. They saw me on Ruta 1 and waved to me. His father used to have Lambrettas, and he shows me a picture of him sitting on a Lambretta when he was 7 years old, proudly looking into the camera.
And he has already crossed South America as well. He would have been on the road again with his motorcycle, but he had an accident. He has to take care of his back and so his wife came from Sao Paulo to Montevideo by plane so that they could spend a few days here together. Brave!, I think. But he looks confident.

The weather invites more to a siesta than to walk through the stormy city.

I hope that cafes and restaurants will be open for dinner time. Even on Av. 18 de Julio, there are only pizzerias and fast food providers.

What is it that makes me feel unsure here? The street lighting in my street doesn't work. And there is a lot of poverty. I am approached by 3 people in a short time. Allegedly, almost a quarter of the population in Uruguay lives below the poverty line. Finally, I find a restaurant called La Pasivo. It's more of a makeshift solution than a joyful decision. It's loud, modern, and the waiters are exhausted. But the beer - freshly tapped - tastes good!

25.03.:

Paying with a credit card is not a problem here. This has the advantage for us as tourists that we, who are exempt from value-added tax, will not be charged on this payment method. A whopping 22%!
A small consolation, as the prices here are similar to those in Germany. After Argentina, Brazil, and Peru, that's quite a change!

The heavily used Uruguayan flag on the public building

Today, a big surprise awaits me when I wake up: the shipping company writes that I have to report to the port agent tomorrow. The Grande San Paolo is expected today and will leave again tomorrow evening! I should be at the Buquebus car park at 9:30, ready with my passport, vehicle documents, customs document, and travel voucher.

I'm not sad about this news, but I would have liked to have more time until Sunday. I would have liked to see the beautiful places in Montevideo with the freewalkers and generally prepared for the 4-week voyage.

Now everything has to happen one after the other. The hotel credits me the already booked nights, I don't have to negotiate with the parking garage guy who charges 6 dollars per day, I quickly stick the Uruguayan flag on my windshield, and then I take a nap. The weather is gray and rainy. It's good that I had a dry ride here yesterday.

I just came back from a very good dinner. There is a bar and restaurant around the corner. I order a salad - for the first time in a long time - and I'm surprised. With apples and nuts, tomatoes, a bit of feta cheese, onions, chives, and fennel. The risotto afterwards is also very delicious.

I'm sure there would have been very nice sides to Montevideo as well. It's always the case that I have to conquer the cities first.

The day tomorrow will be interesting. After the departure formalities, I will only be allowed to stay in the port. The port agent doesn't know if my cabin will be ready by then. If the sun shines again tomorrow, I will find a place somewhere on the quay...

In the next four weeks, there will be no WiFi. Maybe in the ports we visit. Maybe the purser has SIM cards for us so that we can contact our loved ones. The currency on board is Euro. I still have 100. It will be exciting to see if they accept credit cards and dollars as well. I won't starve, but a good red wine in the evening...

There's a table tennis table and a fitness room and hopefully no equator baptism!

30 days at sea.

If everything goes smoothly, the vespas and I will touch the European continent with our front tire on April 26 in Hamburg.

https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:275431/mmsi:247091500/vessel:GRANDE%20SAN%20PAOLO