Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay
(Saturday, 13 November 2010) Written by Keith Rhoades
Hello friends and family....a lot has happened in the last 24 hours!  After I wrote last evening....I went to find some food at a street stand.  Nothing too exciting last night. I met a new traveller from Australia who was finishing up in Montevideo and was doing the same trip I´m doing but in the opposite direction so he was able to give me some advice on Buenos Aires and El Calafate.
 
I woke up early this morning and packed and had breakfast and had to get to the main bus terminal by 9:30.  I just get so nervous on these "transition" days because I alway worry if I am getting on the right bus, at the right terminal, getting off at the right stop, have all my luggage, stay alert to pickpockets, etc.  I think because in the past when bad things have happened its been because I got on the wrong bus or got off on the wrong stop.  At any rate, I am grateful I speak enough spanish because everything went smoothly and the bus was nice. No chicken bus.  It was comfortable, clean and efficient.
 
It was sort of a melancholy 2 1-2 hour drive.  We passed a small cemetery out in the middle of the nowhere and I thought about my own mortality.  I thought about how there is only my mom and I and I have no significant other and will never have children and began to question what my legacy was?  Has my life mattered to anyone?  Have I positively effected the people I have come accross?  Have I made a difference in anyone's life?  Realizing my life is half over....what does the future hold?  What is my purpose?  What will become of me.  Very deep and at times troubling thoughts that I so often block from my head.  When these thoughts enter my mind I usually do something to escapse...run, exercise, text, anything to keep busy.  But being trapped on a bus with only myself it forces me to look at these questions.  Alas, I didn't come up with any answers which is unnerving...but I am glad I had the chance to ponder these thoughts and questions as we sped through the Uruguayan Pampas!
 
We finally arrived in Colonia...and I had no idea where to go or what to do.  I realized travelling is like a microcosm of life..everything you need to learn in life you can learn travelling.  You must be self reliant and resourceful...but you also must know when to rely on others and ask for help.  The main necessities of life is food, lodging, water, air...all the rest is luxury.  I wandered with my packs from hostel to hostel feeling like Mary and Joseph at the Nativity. Each place I encountered said ¨we have no room at the inn¨.  Finally...I found a place with a private room but shared bathroom...at this point I didnt care and ceased the opportunity.  It actually is very nice place and centrally located.
 
Now on each trip...I fall in love with some village or town...Copacabana, Bolivia, Siem Reap, Cambodia, Granada, Nicaragua, Panajachel, Guatemala, Guanajuato, Mexico, Cuzco Peru, Volterra, Italy, etc....I think on this trip I found my jewel..Colonia, Uruguay. It is absolutely wonderful....cobble stoned streets, Spanish Portugues Colonial Architecture, a good vide, laid back, bars and cafes with music flowing into the streets.  I hit the town walking around the rio de la plata...you could actually see the skyline of Buenos Aires accross the way...its about 30 miles accross.  I climbed the old lighthouse, went to the old cathedral, the forts and bastions, and stopped and had cheese empenadas for late afternoon snack.  Words just cant describe how much this town has captivated me.  I visited some old Portuguese and Spanish Ruins.  Colonia was originally Portugues in the 1600s then was part of Spain until the 1700s when it finally gained its own independence.  
 
The day is nearly done and I¨m taking a brief break.    I was able to wear shorts and tshirt today..it was hot.  But as the sun sets, the chill is in the air and I need to go put on some warmer clothes. I will definitely wander around tonight and grab a bite to eat and it looks like there is lots of live music-bands here in the evening.  It promises to be a very relaxing and chilled evening.  Tomorrow...I have a ticket for noon on the ferry to country 39...Argentina.  I should be in Buenos Aires by tomorrow afternoon and God willing that is where I will be sending my next email from.
 
Thanks for "listening" and letting me take you along not only the journey...but also my own emotional travels as well!
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