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  • Richard Watts
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  • Richard Watts

Latin America

An open-ended adventure by Richard Read more
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  • Richard WattsLatin AmericaTraveler

    Mission to Florianopolis

    March 7, 2019 in Uruguay ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    I need to get from Punta del Diablo, in Uruguay, to Florianópolis in Brazil. Here we go! Up at 7:30, waiting for a bus at 9am, realised by 9:45 I could have got on an earlier mini-bus to get me to the bus station, but arrived just in time to get the big bus to Chuy. Then, cross the boarder and find the next bus station in Brazil!
    Found the bus station, got the last ticket! An hour to wait, so I thought I get some money. I’ve been queuing now for 20 minutes. Theres 20m queues at both cash points. I’m hungry!! Time check, 11:32. No money. So...
    I’ve bought two bananas and a can of coke (emergency) to last me for the next 7 hours. This could be interesting!
    Not as unfortunate as the Israeli guy in front of me putting my bag on he bus. He didn’t know to get a leaving Uruguay stamp, so he has to go back to the boarder and get one. Hopefully he can get in he next bus!! 😬
    I’ve been having seat 33 a lot, and by coincidence! My two tickets today so far 32 and 34! I’m on the bus! 12:22. Just need a stamp into Brazil.
    12:40, over the boarder! I didn’t even need to use my fake flight confirmation. The GB passport is good!
    16:40, for some reason, we’ve swapped buses, same seats, more people, but they do have free water, which tastes like arse. It does make up a little for the second banana i bought turning out to be a plantain 😖 bitter!
    18:10 and stopped for some food, finally! Ive eaten two bananas all day, I just hope they take cards, I have no cash!
    20:50, I got to he bus station, found a place t buy a ticket, card didn’t work. I have no cash and the atm won’t give me any! 😞 Luckily I have a second card, it worked, I have cash and a bus ticket
    21:20, time for some lunch! Had this weird chicken with veg, salad and tropical fruit?! Was good! The most vegetables I’ve had in ages, and was in a bus station?!
    00:03 Finally sat on bus number 4. This should only be about 6 hours until the next one, too short for a proper night bus.
    I’ve arrived at the big bus station! Wheeeeey! 6:10am, only two more buses to go, but are they running yet?
    6:55 and bus number 5! A short walk to the other bus station, another travel card, and I’m heading to the next bus station. Nearly to the beach, nearly, good job too cos it’s humid!
    07:45 only one more bus to go! The last one went through the city and up over the hill. Florianópolis is almost an island with the city between it and the land. It’s not an island, but you get the idea
    8:25 and I’m here! What a crap place! 😆
    And a rubbish view...    Read more

  • Richard WattsLatin AmericaTraveler

    El Chalten

    February 12, 2019 in Argentina ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    Well, what can I say?! El Chalten is the home of the most famous piece of rock in Patagonia. Fitz Roy! I saw a climbing film a few years ago about the first travers across all 7 peaks of the range and I was intrigued ever since.
    The town itself is pure here because of the mountain, so it’s a climbing and trekking Mecca. With loads of walking tails for day hike and beyond, it’s a very cool place and I scored the weather!!
    I only stayed two nights, but the first full day i had here, I did two day hikes back to back, around 45km and 10 hours with a stop to take the views! Fitz Roy was amazing, truly unbelievable when I first saw it properly just after 7am. I think I laughed for an hour! There’s a big old lake up under the range which was a great place to chill for an hour and get some photos. I got up the 4/5 hour hike in 2.5 hours, so I was feeling very smug coming down meeting the people is past on the way up!
    Once I was down form the lake, I was heading home to see what else I could do, but then I saw a sign for Lago Torre, checked the map and went with it! Another 10km later, I found myself at another lake, this time with a glacier at one end and a Hugh tower of rock next to it. I did not expect that! I chilled for a bit more then headed back into town for a well deserved local beer!
    Next day, I got up a little later, but then headed out to another view point. I realised that when I got there, there was another peak to climb, so I did, it was steep! Especially with a bit of leg ache from the day before. I’m glad I did though as it was an awesome 360 view of the area, peaks and lakes! I was leaving later in the day, so I got myself down in quick time.
    Both days had millions of caterpillars on the trail, and I mean millions! I’d lobe to see the place in a week or so as there would be millions of butterflies. It was like a plague! Walking through the forest, it took me a while to figure out the the sound I could hear, which sounded like rain through trees, was in fact far caterpillars falling from the trees onto the floor. I really can’t explain how many there were, but maybe like looking at the stars on a really clear night. Caterpillars!! Everywhere!!!!
    I left at 6pm to go to El Cafaete    Read more

  • Richard WattsLatin AmericaTraveler

    Mendoza

    January 11, 2019 in Argentina ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    Two weeks later, and I’m leaving Mendoza! I need to detox I think. Lots of amazing red wine, steak and generally not doing too much...apart from eating, and there was a fair amount of walking too...and some swimming.
    I arrived thinking Mendoza would be a good place to hang out while my debit cards made their way from England. I was kinda right, but it took a lot long than expected!
    In a town famous for its wines, there’s a lot of wine to be drunk, and that’s what it does to you! The amazing thing about wines from northern Argentina is that they don’t have sulphides, so you don’t get any bad red wine hangover, so drink as much as you like and it doesn’t hurt! Well, your wallet and liver maybe.
    Anyway, so in my time here, I did a wine tour on a bike, which could have been more dangerous if we hadn’t found a stray puppy on the road. I did get the info on how to do the poncey tasting things, so now I can act like i know what I’m doing! I also went to a vineyard, small production, and had a banging lunch of fillet minion (yep that yellow cartoon thing) and had a proper tour of a boutique wine makers. Even met the owner and shook his hand!
    After three hostels, I finally found one which was sociable, which was great, but I ended up being a city guide to everyone as o knew the place, not a bad thing ☺️
    I did see the funniest bing of my trip here too. A plaza dog, basically steet dogs, with one eye, scoop up a pigeon and parade around our tour with it in his mouth. So funny. It was still alive until I told him to go away and eat it, which he did! Pest control! There were no pigeons inside the plaza!!
    I finally got my cards buffered off across the boarder to Santiago!    Read more

  • Richard WattsLatin AmericaTraveler

    Salta

    December 27, 2018 in Argentina ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    Salta for Christmas! We all managed to get into Argentina despite me having to get a new tourist visa in Chile. Spending one night a hostel, we had an air bnb booked for the three nights over Christmas. The Airbnb turned out to be right across the road from the hostel we were staying at. That was not planned, but worked out well!Read more

  • Richard WattsLatin AmericaTraveler

    San Pedro de Atacama

    December 17, 2018 in Chile

    What to say about San Pedro. It’s expensive, but kinda understandable. It sits on the edge of he Atacama desert, the second driest place on Earth after the Antarctic, and it has big salty pools and geysers and hot springs. It’s also the first stop for people coming from Bolivia over the salt flats.
    When I arrived here, I only planned to stay one night before moving o to Salta in north Argentina. While walking down the road I bumped in to someone I knew, Fabian, and he convinced me to stay another night or two to have a beer. That night, the beer didnt happen, but the idea of hiring a 4x4 for a couple of days with some people I didn’t make was presented. Of course I said yes!
    I checked out of my hostel, took all my stuff into town and met the other people. Rosie, a kiwi, Tyler, a seppo, and Lina from Finland. We had very little idea of what we were going to do apart from cruise around and see the tourist sites.    Read more

  • Richard WattsLatin AmericaTraveler

    Uyuni and beyond

    December 14, 2018 in Bolivia

    Not really much to say about Uyuni. It’s the jump off point for all of the 4x4 tours leaving across the salt flats and on to Chile. It’s a dusty wide open desert town that’s quite over priced for tourists. They must get a 1000 back packers and travellers through here a day, some staying one night, a lot getting off night buses at 8:30am, finding a tour and then heading off across the salt towards Chile.Read more

  • Richard WattsLatin AmericaTraveler

    Potosi

    December 12, 2018 in Bolivia

    The mine! The biggest silver mine in the world. Over 8 millions slaves and indigenous people died in and around this place. Who knows how many more. It’s crazy!
    I stopped off here for a night so that I could check out the underground craziness, which you can do a tour of. It’s steeped in history, as you’d imagine, with generations of locals dying in and around this place. The average life expectancy is around 40 if you work in the mine, and it’s basic!Read more

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