My Spanish skills has increased a lot since the start of my travel in South America. Perhaps not the biggest of achievements since it was pretty much limited to: «Hola! Una cerveza, por favor.» Even though my vocabulary has grown a lot, there is a big difference in knowing the meaning of a word – and to know what it actually means. Compare it to hearing someone speak – and listening to someone speak. You get me? Anyway, there is this one word the Latin-Americans use a lot: tranquilo. The meaning is easy to find in Google Translate, but the real meaning of it I first understood when I arrived to this place.
Punta del Diablo means «Tip of the Devil» – a dramatic name I must say and not describing the place at all. Tranquilo means peaceful and I would say that the devil has a pretty peaceful holiday resort here in Uruguay. Punta del Diablo is a small fishing and surfing village along the coast of Uruguay. When I write small, I really mean it – about 300 people living here. Only dirt roads and not even a ATM / cash machine. Having spent the last week in Buenos Aires and Montevideo (both big capitals) the contrast of coming here was huge. As big as the contrast was, as good it felt.
It’s still low season here, so there are almost no tourists. I was lucky sharing hostel with a guy from Hungary on the same age as me. We spent the days relaxing, exploring some of the ( what seemed like) endless beaches and I finally also got to surf a little. Seven months since last time on a board I was a little rusty and the waves were a little too fast for me, but it felt good being back in the water again and I can’t wait to have some more surf in Brazil in a few weeks.
Growing up in a really small place myself, I definitely know how it is to have stressless surroundings. But living the last 11 years in Oslo, you get a different kind of life and I must say I prefer living in a city – but I also prefer leaving as often as possible. In search of what I found in this particular spot; tranquilo.