Time is beginning to run out on us and we are trying to pack a few visits in. Lunch is booked for 12.30 at La Heulla in Jose Ignacio. It seems to be THE place to go and be seen! Ha ha, not sure we will be seen! This tiny gathering of trendy houses is just thirty minutes drive up the coast from Punta. The weather has turned cold and grey and we arrive in plenty of time – the place seemed pretty deserted and it seemed pretty daft to have bothered to book! We decided to eat inside and sat at a table in a completely empty dining room. Within fifteen minutes the whole restaurant had filled up with some very attractive and wealthy looking families – were they Uruguayans or Argentinians? Plus all the staff must have been recruited for their attractiveness! We chatted to one of them and he has moved from Buenos Aires to work at La Huella – pronounced La Wayshe! The food was excellent – four starters rather than two mains – still far too much but we still managed to squeeze a pud in and two cortados!
We couldn’t linger too long as Tom had to get back in time to go to a meeting at 4pm. We had plenty of time but got caught up in a political rally – with hundreds of cars with horns honking and flags waving. As we still had the hire car we made a quick trip to Casapuebla at about 7pmish. The hotel was first started as a summer house and workshop for the artist Carlos Paez Vilara. Although it was built in the style of the houses on Santorini, the idea behind the tiers of staggered white terraces was the nest of the Urugauyan bird – the Hornero. The light had almost gone completely – no sunset but we could still see the outline of the hotel. I found it all a little disappointing – but maybe that’s because it is out of season – it smelt a little stale and was chilly! But I was really pleased we went! I can’t remember that we went out for dinner in the evening – we just had a couple of cheese and biscuits in the flat and went to sleep early.