Punta del Este, The Southernmost point in Uruguay.

When we started going on cruises 10 years ago we always wanted to be first off the ship and last back on at any port of call. The problem is that at tender ports the “Four and Five Star” mariners (it is their loyalty program) got tender priority and we had to wait. I never thought we would cruise enough to earn four, let alone five stars but we have, and now that we have tender priority we are not so anxious to get off the ship first thing. We enjoy a quiet breakfast after many people are off and wait until there is an “open call” for tenders, meaning we do not have to get tickets and wait. Perhaps it is 10 years of aging.

So at Punta del Este we got off the ship after breakfast and after “open call” has been announced. Punta del Este is the southern most point in Uruguay. So why is it called Punta del Este? No idea.

It is a boardwalk beach town on a peninsula with calm sheltered beaches on one side and pounding surf beaches on the other. It is a resort town of 15,000 that grows to more than 45,000 in the summer. Since we were last here 10 years ago rows of high-rise condos have risen along the spine of the peninsula.
Getting off the tender we see lines of sea lions along the pier, heads out of the water, begging like dogs. They are at the fish cleaning station, and they are getting lots of scraps. I have seen well-fed sea lions before but have never actually seen them begging, at least that is what it looks like, and people respond. This is not a good idea. I’ve seen sea lions jump on docks to steal fish and perhaps take a bite out of a fisherman who tries to prevent it.

After watching the sea lion show we walked along the to the gazebo, then to the town square for a coke. In the town square we saw a heart made from mesh and originally thought it was one of those places for people to place their “love locks.” But it turns out that it is three quarters full of pop bottle caps. No, I don’t understand it. In Mexico crafters make “Bottle Cap Sacred Hearts.” But this does not look like those.
From the town square we walked down the peninsula, through the arts district with murals and sculptures to the lighthouse and the chapel getting ready to host a wedding and then back to the ship on a sunny day in the mid 70s. School has started and the vacationers are mostly gone and Volendam has the town to itself.

Here is a gallery of photos.