River Plate – looks as big as the ocean

Our first port of call since boarding the Emerald Princess was to Montevideo on 2 March.  We chose to take a tour around the city and then on a scenic drive through the seaside villages of Portezuelo and Punta Ballena.  We stopped to see Casapueblo, the cliff-hugging home of one of Uruguay’s most famous artists and then continued to Punta del Este for lunch in one of the most popular seaside resorts in South America.  Lots of large apartments close to the beach each with glass balconies, looking very similar to back home in Australia.

Our last stop was to the Ralli Museum featuring an impressive collection of contemporary Latin-American art consisting of sculptures and paintings, including works by Salvador Dali.  We had time to explore the different rooms, patios and gardens.  Very interesting.

Montevideo is also known for its proximity to the first naval battle of WWII, the Battle of the River Plate, between the German ship Graf Spee and two British cruisers named Exeter and Ajax.

All in all, we thought that this excursion, with its’ mix of modern and traditional, was quite a nice overview of Montevideo.