Sights in Eastern Uruguay
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La Mano en la Arena
Punta del Este's most famous landmark is the monster-sized hand emerging from the sands of Playa Brava. La Mano en la Arena, sculpted in iron and cement by Chilean artist Mario Irarrazabal in 1982, won first prize in a monumental art contest that year and has been a Punta fixture ever since. The hand exerts a magnetic attraction over visitors to Punta, who climb and jump off its digits and pose for thousands of photos with it every year.
Up close, the hand is starting to show its age. There's graffiti scrawled all over it, and its ungraceful cement base often gets exposed by shifting sands. But watch out - the hand's still likely to reach out and grab you!
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SOS Rescate de Fauna Marina
Ten kilometers south of Piriápolis is Uruguay’s premier marine-animal rescue and rehabilitation center, SOS Rescate de Fauna Marina. Run entirely by volunteers, its emphasis is on educating schoolchildren, who can assist with daily feedings and observe penguins, sea lions, turtles and other rescued wildlife. Visitors willing to support the center’s mission with the requested UR$50 donation (or more) are welcome with advance notice.
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Bosque de Ombúes
The Ombu is native to the Pampas, a hardy, fast-growing tree able to survive on very little water. A tour through Bosque de Ombúes (Ombu Forest) takes an hour by jeep or tractor, or two hours by foot. Your guide will point out unique forest flora, fascinating birdlife, and carpinchos - large rodents used traditionally to cure influenza and the common cold.
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Punta's Beaches
From Playa Mansa, west along Rambla Williman, the main beach areas are La Pastora, Marconi, Cantegril, Las Delicias, Pinares, La Gruta at Punta Ballena, and Portezuelo. Eastward, along Rambla Lorenzo Batlle Pacheco, the prime beaches are La Chiverta, San Rafael, La Draga and Punta de la Barra. In summer, all have paradores (small restaurants) with beach service.
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Playa Mansa
Beaches are the big daytime draw in sunny Punta, and there are plenty to choose from. On the west side of town, Rambla Artigas snakes along the calm Playa Mansa on the Río de la Plata, then passes the busy yacht harbor, overflowing with boats, restaurants, nightclubs and beautiful people, before circling around the peninsula to the open Atlantic Ocean.
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Casa Pueblo
Casa Pueblo is an astonishing Mediterranean villa and art gallery at scenic Punta Ballena, a short trip from Punta del Este. The villa was built by Carlos Páez Vilaró entirely without right angles and boasts jaw-dropping views. Visitors can tour five rooms, view a film on the artist's life and the building's creation, or have a drink at the bar.
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El Faro
El Faro (the lighthouse), on the southern tip of Punta del Este, is the tallest structure in the area due to the city's old laws, which state that no building may exceed a height of 43m (141ft). Though not open to the public, the surrounding area offers a change in pace from beach-hopping, and is in the least developed, most attractive part of the city.
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Centro de Tortugas Marinas
While Uruguay has no nesting beaches for sea turtles, the area from Barra del Chuy to Punta del Diablo is an important foraging area. The Center for Marine Turtles provides information on when to see these cute creatures, as well as running a volunteer program and educating visitors on environmental factors threatening the turtles and their habitat.
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Museo Didáctico Artiguista
A colonial relic, the Cuartel de Dragones is a block of military fortifications with stone walls and iron gates, built between 1771 and 1797. Inside, the Museo Didáctico Artiguista displays colorful maps tracing the peripatetic military campaigns of Uruguay’s independence hero.
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Punta Del Diablo Village
Fabulously remote, seriously underdeveloped and stunningly picturesque, this little fishing-surfing village of wooden cabins and winding dirt streets attracts a nature-oriented crowd. Parque Nacional Santa Teresa is within easy hiking distance. Horse riding can be arranged; ask in town for Sr José Vega.
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Isla de los Lobos
This small island boasts large colonies of southern fur seals and sea lions. A welcome break in your beach-lazing routine, be sure to make reservations in advance as this popular destination often books out. Tours to the island leave daily in the high season, and on weekends in the low season.
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Laguna Negra
Located in Parque Nacional de Santa Teresa, and a popular destination with Uruguayan and Brazilian visitors, the enormous Laguna Negra and surrounding marshes support abundant bird life, as well as some highly venomous snakes. You can also take a scenic boat ride on the lake.
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Yacht Harbor
On the west side of town, Rambla Artigas snakes along the calm Playa Mansa on the Río de la Plata, then passes the busy yacht harbor, overflowing with boats, restaurants, nightclubs and beautiful people, before circling around the peninsula to the open Atlantic Ocean.
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Bikini
Punta's main attraction is its beaches. The most popular and fashionable is Bikini - north along the rugged Playa Brava. With more golden tans than a crowded solarium, it's a great place to surf or swim, depending on local conditions and the general level of action.
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Playa Brava
On the eastern side of the peninsula the water is rougher, as reflected in the name Playa Brava; the waves and currents here have claimed several lives. Also on the Atlantic side, you'll find surfer-friendly beaches like Playa de los Ingleses and Playa El Emir.
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Laguna de Rocha
Laguna de Rocha, an ecological reserve protected under Uruguay's SNAP program, is a vast wetland 10km west of La Paloma with populations of black-necked swans, storks, spoonbills and other waterfowl. Local guide Cecilia Olivet offers tours in Spanish.
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Estación Biológica Potrerillo de Santa Teresa
On the shores of Laguna Negra, 10km northwest of town, the Estación Biológica Potrerillo de Santa Teresa harbors a rich variety of bird and plant life and several 3000-year-old indigenous burial mounds. Three-hour tours can be arranged.
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NaturCiencia
The NaturCiencia science museum north of town grew from the owner's sizable personal collection of animal skulls and now incorporates dozens of brainteasing hands-on exhibits inspired by San Francisco's Exploratorium.
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Plaza de la Torre del Vigía
On Rafael Pérez del Puerto, the Plaza de la Torre del Vigía features a colonial watchtower built with peepholes for viewing the approach of hostile forces.
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Cerro San Antonio
For a great view of Piriápolis, take the chairlift to the summit of Cerro San Antonio at the east end of town.
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