La Cuckoo Rocha...

Off we go in the Justo’s magic elastic Renault with Juan Pablo for a two week tour of the coast. Week one is done in the normally sleepy beach town of La Paloma, where thousands seek sun and fun filling every room and rental in town. We discover amazing treasures and pleasures in the nearby areas of La Pedrera, Cabo Palonio, Rocha, and Monte Grande.

The road is a rolling green rural world similar to Oregon. Cows (vacas) casually command the land, while Juan Pablo teaches us numbers (numeros).

In Rocha, the Renault’s load grows with Gustavo, who guides us to our La Paloma home—a cozy cabin catering to the crush of summer comers.

With kitchen, dining room, cable TV, two bedrooms, barbeque hut, patio and a “mi casa su casa” attitude , several friends visit including Lourdes, Pedro, and Jong Ah. We spend our days relaxing and laughing, eating outside or out on the town, or strolling the crawling streets of town and sprawling beaches just down from our front door…



Here a some of the wonderful and simple scenes we captured...



















...when we were not practicing our Spanish.

Our first excursion was to La Padrera—another popular getaway located on a rocky outcropping overlooking the Atlantic, famous for its history of shipwrecks. One unfortunate boat still rests on the beach.





Juan Pablo re-enacted the disaster and displayed his amazing gift for international humor. “Justo, we have a problem!”, he exclaimed.

Back home we learn the way of mate—it’s good, like a strong tea. You should try it!





Cabo Polonia is an amazing bohemian fantasy—hidden on a cape, bordered by beautiful beaches, overseen by a lighthouse surrounded by sea lions. Hundreds of hunkering hideaways ranging from shanties to mansions dot the land connected by sand avenues whose troughs are carved by foot, hoof and knobby four wheelers. Surviving with no running water or electricity—other than one lone wire to the lighthouse—people arrive by an industry of giant sand dune climbing monster-mobiles that look like mechanical elephant skeletons...













That same day Jong Ah arrived and asked us if we knew Uruguay’s Oscar Award winning guitarist, Jorge Drexler, who sang the theme song for Motorcylcle Diaries. We had seen the movie but never heard of him. In an unbelievable conincidence, that night in a restaurant Jong Ah whispers to me, “That’s him! That’s Jorge!”, pointing at a very normal looking table of patrons. So, I casually approach saying, “Jorge! I’m a huge fan of yours! Please may I have your autograph?". Ta da!

In La Paloma, summer loving students dance all night and giggle home after sunrise. One night included a huge outdoor concert near Rocha called VoxPop. Four stages, three dance tents, and dozens of activities raged from ten until dawn. So...so did we.





Thanks to continental drift, South America shares some natural history with Africa.

One common botanical oddity is the Ombu--a cousin of the Baobab tree (arbol). We visited, via boat, a rare grove at Monte Grande.
This forest (arboles) rests next to a nature preserve filled with fluttering birds and butterflies (mariposas).

Look for Cucaracha, our one-eye (uno ojo) canine guide named after the musically famous bug (bicho)!














Adios Cucaracha!
Our last night in La Paloma we celebrated with...what else?...asado!




After tonight, we pack our bags for Punta del Este--the favorite getaway for South America's rich and famous...