Our flight out of Puerto Iguazu was delayed nearly 4 1/2 hours due to fog. Thankfully, we had booked the first flight out of town that morning, and I had a six hour layover scheduled in Buenos Aires. My layover ended up being about an hour, and I flew from Buenos Aires to Montevideo solo. Mandie left the Jorge Newberry Airport in Buenos Aires (as planned) to pick up her suitcase and head to Ezeiza for her overnight flight back to the US. We both cut it much closer than we were anticipating, but we both made it to where we were trying to go.
I'm very thankful that we had spent a few days in Montevideo before I landed there again, this time alone...it made my life about a million times easier than it otherwise would have been. I landed in Montevideo expecting to take the same charter bus back to Tres Cruces, the main bus terminal) that I had taken to get to the airport on the way to Puerto Iguazu. When I went to go buy a ticket, the woman working told me I'd be better off waiting for a city bus and that it would only cost me 33 pesos ($1.50) instead of $120 ($6). I thought she was kidding, and I'm still not sure why she told me about this option when I was standing there trying to pay her, but whatever. The city bus WAS actually only 33 pesos and took only about 10 minutes longer than the charter bus had. Once I got back to the bus terminal, I made my way to the same hostel we had stayed at before. If only the rest of my solo journey goes this smoothly :D
Both times I took a city bus in Montevideo, I got on and told the bus driver where I was going (I'm really not sure how busses work in the US, but in this part of the world, they tend to charge you based on where you're going), and both drivers called out to tell me when we were at the stop I had requested. I probably could have figured it out on my own in both cases, but it was VERY much appreciated! If nothing else, it's nice to have a little confirmation that I actually am where I think I am. This goes on the list of things I love about Uruguay! Even though the trip from the airport back to the hostel had gone very smoothly, I decided to book myself a charter bus back to the airport for the morning so I could be sure to have a seat and so that I wouldn't have to stand on a street corner wondering when the next city bus would pass. Turns out it was a good decision to buy my ticket ahead of time -- the first time we took this bus to the Montevideo airport, Mandie and I were literally the only ones on the bus for much of the trip. This time, the bus was nearly full. I'm pretty confident I still could have gotten a seat had I waited till morning to purchase my ticket, but why stress?
This time around, I was lucky enough to get a 4-bed room at the hostel ALL TO MYSELF! This was the first time I slept in a room by myself for SIX WEEKS, and it was AMAZING. After several days of flights filled with screaming children, hostel-mates snoring or coming home at 4 in the morning, and spending two days in national parks that were as packed as Disney World, I very much appreciated a quiet, relaxing night all by myself. Just to clarify, I *am* super bummed that Mandie had to leave so soon, and my comments are not in regards to her :)
When I got back to the airport, the agent told me that "it" (I'm still not sure whether she was referring to the company that was supposed to operate the original flight or if she was talking about the actual flight. super confused...) was closed and the current flight was full. I was originally supposed to fly out at 11:15 but got pushed to a different flight at 1:15, which I was definitely okay with, because I got to go for a run this morning and get ready at a semi-relaxed pace. I think the whole change of flight schedule thing threw them off, but I *did* get on the plane I was expecting to. Confusing. I had to check my backpack (at no fee, as this is an international flight) because it was over the 5kg carry-on limit. Last summer, I went on trips of 2 to 5 weeks using a 65-liter bag. This time around, I'm in the midst of 19 days living out of a 35-liter bag, and this time I've added my computer to my luggage load. I attribute this to two main things: 1) REI's compression sacks -- I have all of my clothes stuffed into one compression sack -- I just cinch the straps down and my entire wardrobe is about the size of the soccer ball, and 2) It's cold here -- When it's cold, I can wear multiple layers and need fewer items of clothing since I can layer different pieces in different ways. Also, I realize this sounds gross, but when it's cooler, I sweat less than when I'm in humid Nicaragua in May or sizzling hot Italy in July, so I can get away with wearing things more than once, whereas that did NOT fly in hot, humid conditions. Either way, it makes traveling substantially easier, and I really don't feel that I'm lacking anything! I have everything I need with me: clothes (including 3 pairs of long pants, a fleece, two sweaters, and a rain jacket), 4 pairs of shoes, an umbrella, a towel, my computer, my kindle, my camera, all of my electronic cords/chargers, a jumprope and some exercise bands, my journal, makeup, shower supplies, vitamins, first aid supplies, my souvenirs that I've picked up along the way, and I'm sure quite a few other things that I've forgotten about at the moment. I wouldn't have thought I'd be traveling so comfortably with such a small pack. Lesson learned: less is more.
Anyway, I got to from Montevideo to Sao Paulo with no problem. This time, I'm *officially* in the country (I didn't get my passport/visa checked/stamped when I did my day trip to Foz do Iguacu to see the Brazilian park). I went straight to the same wing where I flew out of last August when I flew from Sao Paulo to Salvador, only this time en route to Florianopolis. I emailed my hostel last weekend to see if they could tell me which local bus would be the best to take. I had tried searching online and found that the local bus option would cost about 3 reals as opposed to 45-50 for a taxi, but I wasn't finding solid information about WHICH bus would get me where I needed to be. The excellent news: the hostel replied saying that since I had booked six nights there, they would throw in a free airport pickup service for me!! Never in my life have I had a driver standing at the arrivals area holding a sign with my name, and I've been on a my fair share of planes.
Submarino Hostel is located right on the big lagoon here, and there are kayaks sitting outside calling my name! There are several other solo travelers staying here, and there are only five rooms in the hostel, so everyone here acts as a big family. When I first arrived, there were a few people cooking dinner and making their own caipirinhas, so I joined right in. The hostel is run by a family, and the son also DJs. He invited us all to the bar up the street where he was playing, so I got to practice lots of Portuguese! :D
Regarding nightlife in Brazil -- When you enter a bar, they check your ID and give you a drink card. When you order throughout the night, they mark what you order on your card, and then you submit your card at the end of the night to pay off your tab. Here's the kicker -- if you lose your card, you get charged the equivalent of about $150 US. I didn't have an ID on me when I got there (didn't want to carry a purse), so I got a big fat "SEM CONSUMO" written across my ticket.
My plan for the rest of the week is to run, kayak, practice my Portuguese, and get most of my reading done for my class that starts next weekend in Buenos Aires.
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