Three ports of Call  Uruguay and Brazil

After our fun filled adventure in Montevideo, we sailed overnight to Punta Del Este – the final port for Uruguay.  Punta del Este is a seaside city and peninsula that started as a small town, it later became internationally known as a resort for the Latin and North American jet set and tourists. The city has been referred to as “the Monaco of the South”, “The Pearl of the Atlantic”, “the Hamptons of South America”, “the Miami Beach of South America”, or “the St. Tropez of South America”.  Surrounded by mountains, the city is built along the coastline with many tall buildings.

The beaches are said to be some of the best in the world with lovely sand and gentle breezes.  Generally, a resort town, it has several film festivals, wonderful restaurants and a growing art colony.   

We didn’t make it ashore here – way too much relaxing happening on board the ship.

Itajaí was our first port of call in Brazil. The city was founded on June 15, 1860, but the colonization of Itajaí had started in 1658 when the Paulista João Dias D’Arzão arrived in the region. In 1750, Portuguese colonists coming from Madeira and the Azores made this region their home. By 1823 it became a prominent region for Portuguese settlers and, at the end of the 19th century, received a great number of German immigrants.   Unfortunately, the seas were rough (I could certainly agree, as sleeping was less than wonderful due to the conditions) and as we had to use the tenders to go to shore ,the decision was made by the Captain that there would be no shore excursions.  A little disappointing as I had been looking forward to visiting the Bavarian Biergaten Pavillion where the biggest annual beer festival outside Germany happens every year.  

However, we had to stick around for several hours as everyone’s passports had to be checked and stamped.  After getting all the required clearances, the ship continued on to our next port – São Francisco do Sul.

São Francisco do Sul is another village founded by the Portuguese (1658) and has become quite an important part of the Brazilian infrastructure. It provides large bulk shipping facilities and is served by the major container shipping lines connecting with the South American east and west coasts, Africa, Asia, North and Central America, the Caribbean and Europe.  However, as we arrived on a Sunday there wasn’t much happening and we had not signed on for any excursions.  The 30 minute tender ride was the most exciting excursion of the day.