Colonia del Sacramento, as I wrote earlier, is a very historic town that belies the complexity of the colonial times in this part of South America, when Portugal and Spain fought for control of the massive land expanses. Charming architecture and the old ruins of forts and walls take you back to olden times. However, there is another element present in the town that takes you back to older times, though not as far back as colonial times. Vintage cars – like, really cool classic cars. It is veritable vintage car museum without the signs and curation!

A vintage car museum that may not be intentional

I was not expecting this vintage car museum. It was neat to run into old, parked cars as we explored the town. This is the kind of thing that makes me wish I were an expert in old cars. In all likelihood, I would have greatly enjoyed naming models and years as I saw them. It was a little concerning, though, that these gems of the automobile industry are just out there. Sitting out curbside for anyone to touch, stumble onto, or perhaps hit (with another vehicle).

So, the only thing left for me to do was to capture the images and let any of you out there, via comments on this post, share your knowledge of these gems! And check out the last one – ingenious re-purposing of a vehicle!

vintage car, vintage auto, Uruguay, Colonia, Sacramento, travel, photo, Olympus, living museum

This one has been turned into a planter!

Vauxhall

Ford V8

Austin

Ford Super Deluxe

And this old geezer has been turned into… a restaurant table! Ingenious!

Creative use of an old car: restaurant table!

What to do besides admiring vintage car museum?

Colonia is perfect to stroll around. The colonial architecture is well-preserved. The town looks well maintained but done so it still feels ‘aged’. That is, everything has not been restored to a perfectly fresh look. I feel this actually lends more charm to the town. Colonia is easy to walk about exploring the old town. The town was built on a settlement first established by the Portuguese in 1680. This territory flipped flopped between Portugal and Spain (mostly being under the Portuguese). That is, until Uruguay attained independence from Brazil in the first half of the 19th century.

You can walk around the old fortifications and city walls right by the water (the main gate or Porton de Campo with its wooden drawbridge being a key sight to see – and climb), see the foundations of important colonial period buildings (like the ruins of the old convent), and climb the faro (or lighthouse).

Getting to Colonia del Sacramento

Colonia is about a two-hour drive from Montevideo (or four hours from Punta del Este). I got to Colonia from nearby Buenos Aires which connects to it via several ferries. I took the Buquebus which has a modern terminal in Buenos Aires and offers convenient fast service to Colonia. The port in Colonia is tiny and we actually just walked to the center of town – a sign at the exit of the port showed how to walk to the old town: very simple and quick. We meandered a little bit to see less historic residential and quiet streets. All a great and easy day trip from Buenos Aires – and a nice break from the hustle and bustle of the Argentine capital!

———————————————————————————————-

Pin this image to your board – and explore vintage cars and the colonial architecture and feel of this lesser known South American town and jewel of Uruguay!

———————————————————————————————-

Have you seen such an open vintage car museum anywhere in your country or travels??

When I started to plan my trip to Argentina for my trek, I thought maybe I’d arrive a couple of days early and do something other than eat and walk in Buenos Aires. Don’t get me wrong, nothing wrong with those things! Those are indeed very noble activities in my book in that great city. But I was looking to just do something different. I looked at one-day or half-day tours, and I looked at museums and other similar attractions. One thing caught my eye due to my eternal wanderlust: Uruguay was just across the river and it would be really easy to cross by boat.

I was aware of Montevideo and Punta del Este. The latter seemed to require an overnight. Montevideo seemed a tad boring but I thought, “why not? it’s the capital?” And then I ran into Colonia del Sacramento (or simply, “Colonia”). I had never heard of this place. Quick research led me to find out it was listed in “1,000 Places to See before You Die” so I had to learn more.

Funny how history runs its course…

Colonia del Sacramento was established by the Portuguese across the river from another small town called Buenos Aires in the late 17th century. The town was part of a ping-pong match in terms of who ruled it: Spain, Portugal, Spain, Portugal, …, Brazil, and then independent Uruguay. Must have been exhausting! The modern town’s old quarter is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and has a population of roughly 25,000 folks.

Colonia, Sacramento, Uruguay, colonial, UNESCO, World Heritage, Places to See, travel, photo, old map

French map dating from the 1740s made into a mural

Getting to Colonia del Sacramento

Certainly one can get there by road from Montevideo but, if you are in Buenos Aires, the Buquebus ferry leaving from Puerto Madero is quite efficient and convenient. There are fast ferries that make the crossing in one hour (the river, at that point, is really no longer a river but the sea meeting the river) and slow-poke boats that make the crossing in three hours. Needless to say, three hours on a boat when I can do it in one was a no-brainer…. The one hour ferry was at 8:30 AM so that was a bit of a sacrifice since there was a line or two to make at the port… But it was the right choice. On the way back, since we wanted to have dinner in Buenos Aires, we took the ferry that arrived around 6 PM. One thing to mind is that there IS a time zone difference between Uruguay and Argentina (crazy).

Colonia, Sacramento, Uruguay, colonial, UNESCO, World Heritage, Places to See, travel, photo, ferry, Buquebus

The walkway to the ferry in the port in Buenos Aires

Colonia, Sacramento, Uruguay, colonial, UNESCO, World Heritage, Places to See, travel, photo, ferry, arrival, port

Welcome to Uruguay!

Oh, and another thing to mind is that you MUST bring with you the reciprocity fee receipt for Argentina (if you are a U.S. citizen)… When you leave Uruguay, right at the port in Colonia, you will go through BOTH Uruguayan and Argentine immigration officers. When you get to the Argentine officer, if you do not have it, you are in a for a nervous wait to see what the officer will do with you. No, it did not happen to me, but it happened to a friend. Note: the other friend hanging with her volunteered to the officer “Oh, I don’t have mine either” – lol! Somehow, the officer did not care about her but did about the other one.

The town – ruins

The thing to see in Colonia is the old quarter. When you exit the very modern port facility, you go out of the port and go on that same street uphill and, eventually, you will hit the main street where you will make a left and walk for like five minutes before you hit the old quarter. (There is a tourism info office outside the main building of the port but I did not go in.)

Colonia, Sacramento, Uruguay, colonial, UNESCO, World Heritage, Places to See, travel, photo, map

The old quarter is on the left side of the map

The old buildings have been beautifully kept up or maintained and the quarter is easy to walk around in. The old quarter is in a peninsula so you can’t go too far without hitting the water except in one direction (as you can see in the map above). The old quarter has ruins of fortifications from those centuries when the European powers were trying to take control of the river. You can also see parts of the foundation of the former Portuguese governor’s house and ruins of the old convent. Most of these ruins are, one could say, ruins of ruins but, nevertheless, they help understand how the town was set up and defended.

Colonia, Sacramento, Uruguay, colonial, UNESCO, World Heritage, travel, photo, architecture, lighthouse

Ruins of San Francisco Convent in front of the lighthouse

Colonia, Sacramento, Uruguay, colonial, UNESCO, World Heritage, travel, photo, ruins, Bastion San Miguel

Ruins of Bastión de San Miguel

Colonia, Sacramento, Uruguay, colonial, UNESCO, World Heritage, Places to See, travel, photo, architecture, ruins

Ruins of the Portuguese Governor House in the Plaza de Armas

The town – buildings and structures

There old church, the Basilica del Sagrado Sacramento (Basilica of the Sacred Sacrament) was heavily restored starting in the 1950s. It is simple in its design and decor.

Colonia, Sacramento, Uruguay, colonial, UNESCO, World Heritage, Places to See, travel, photo, basilica, church

Basilica del Sagrado Sacramento

Inside of the basilica

The town is clearly oriented to visitors from Uruguay and abroad with many cafés, restaurants, gifts shops, and art shops.

Colonia, Sacramento, Uruguay, colonial, UNESCO, World Heritage, Places to See, travel, photo, architecture

Local shop

Colonia, Sacramento, Uruguay, colonial, UNESCO, World Heritage, Places to See, travel, photo, café

Outdoor café near the basilica

Eclectic café chair and table

But the best this charming town offers is just the simple yet beautiful architecture of the streets in or near its old quarter. A peaceful setting graced by history and architecture!

House near the lighthouse

Shop in Calle de los Suspiros

House in Calle de los Suspiros

Detail of the local architecture by the Plaza de Armas

Home

Colonia, Sacramento, Uruguay, colonial, UNESCO, World Heritage, Places to See, travel, photo, architecture, trees

A local street right outside the heart of the old quarter

Lunch time in Colonia!

Of course, we stopped at a local restaurant for lunch where I enjoyed an incredible pasta dish and we all enjoyed trying Uruguayan red wine – an unexpected treat (later followed by a cup of Freddos ice cream!)