Colonia Uruguay

At the time of this initial photography adventure, I live in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Fortunately, Uruguay is relatively easy to access with a little public transport and a ferry ride. Colonia del Sacramento is a straight shot in a northeastern direction from Bs. As. Buenos Aires, La Plata, Colonia, Montevideo and others are located on the coasts of “Río de la Plata.” To me, it’s similar to an inlet; however, from my understanding, it is more of a large river fed by the Uruguay River and the Paraná River that then flows into the Atlantic Ocean.

At only an hour’s worth of ferry travel, it’s much quicker to visit than Montevideo. In reality, this trip still takes about three hours, going through check-in and immigration, etc.

Fortunately, I came across someone online writing of a Buquebus ferry office location near my apartment in Palermo. This was super convenient to purchase my ticket in cash. It cost about 30,000 pesos for a two-way. Interestingly, my ticket price was reduced by about 15,000 pesos for returning on the same day as opposed to spreading over two or more days. Local ticketing websites are not always the easiest to purchase these ferry tickets. Cash is king, so no complaints from me. For my schedule and budget, a one-day trip seemed most reasonable.

Colonia del Sacramento is most frequently visited by internationals living in Bs. As. renewing their visas. Colonia is not very big; you can navigate all the main parts in an hour or two of walking. In contrast to the city I was coming from, it was extremely quiet and more friendly. Banking is better, withdrawing US cash is doable, their economy is less volatile, and importing is much easier. You can find products in Uruguay that you won’t in Argentina. Their cash currency reminded me of Canada’s colourful plastic bills.