Day 3 of the pre-conference was a really exciting and busy one. We woke up early and left our hotel in Argentina to catch a ferry to Uruguay.

After an hour and a half, we arrived in Colonia del Sacramento, a city in the province of Colonia on the same river as Buenos Aires, Río de la Plata. We walked around on the boardwalk along this river and reflected on our journey so far.

Following this, we made our way to a restaurant for lunch and ate Chivito, a delicious Uruguayan dish made of meat, eggs, cheese, lettuce, tomatoes and fries. After lunch, we met our tour guide for a walk around Colonia. She took us to the old city and told us some of Uruguay’s history before and after its independence. We also learned that there are only two traffic lights in all of Colonia! We even saw a UNESCO sight, which was part of a wall that bordered the city many years ago. In addition, we climbed up to the top of a lighthouse with 118 stairs that gave us a beautiful view of the city. Finally, we went to one of Colonia’s ports.

Afterward, we went for ice cream and into some of the stores on one of the main streets, Flores. We then went for dinner at a really cozy and authentic restaurant.

All in all, traveling to Uruguay was a great experience and it was so interesting to learn about their culture. The conference starts tomorrow and we can’t wait! – Meghan Fersten ’18