Going through security at the terminal was kind of confusing. After getting my passport stamped, I followed some of the other passengers in what I thought was the direction I was meant to be going. I was asked to show my ticket and was then directed through a tunnel. Before I knew it, I was on an amazing boat! It honestly looked like something out of a film.
However, all the staff on the boat and at the port in Montevideo were really helpful and completely sorted out my situation. After I arrived at the port, I was told to come back in half an hour, so I had a little bit of time to see some of the old city.
Then I was put on a bus that went to another part of Montevideo, where there was a big shopping mall and bus terminal. There I was given a bus ticket to Colonia, but first I had an hour or two to look around the mall and the surrounding area.
I spent the following two and a half hours on a bus travelling across the Uruguayan countryside. It's a really beautiful country, with lots of green fields and rolling hills. It looks like England but with added palm trees!
We arrived in Colonia at around half-past three. Luckily, I had been given special permission to use my five o'clock ferry ticket at nine o'clock, so I had plenty of time to explore! As the name suggests, Colonia is an old colonial town. It's filled with riverside beaches and quaint little buildings. It was such a picturesque place to visit and I had an amazing time there.
As you can see, it's a very photogenic place!
The boat back to Buenos Aires was much more crowded and much less glamorous than the boat to Montevideo, and trying to get an Uber at eleven pm from the terminal car park was a chaotic experience! But I arrived back at my hostel feeling very happy after having spent a day in a beautiful country I'd never been to before. I'm really grateful to everyone who helped me after my mistake, and I'm left with many great memories of Uruguay.
