South America Travel: Is It Safe?

from: http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/ipad/doc-holiday-advises-on-your-travel-dilemma…

I am going to Uruguay (Colonia del Sacramento) and Argentine (Buenos Aires only) next month for two weeks, and will be staying in each place for one week.

While my husband is attending a conference, I will have time to explore the places by myself. I am a bit worried as I hear lots of horror stories about South America and it doesn’t sound like a very safe place. Could you please give me some suggestions about these places?

The Australia-based South America travel expert Ted Dziadkiewicz from Contours Travel (contourstravel.com.au) has been taking tours to the continent for nearly 40 years and says that in terms of security, staying safe in South America is as much about commonsense as is it in any other destination.

He recommends that you book your introduction tours in Australia and then get to know a local tour operator whom you can rely upon to book you other trips. There are daily return ferries from Colonia to Buenos Aires which take just an hour over the River Plate.

“In Buenos Aires I would recommend doing a full-day Estancia (farm) and San Antonio de Areco tour, which is Gaucho country and the homeland of Don Segundo Sombra, the immortal character of the novel written by Ricardo GadiRiraldes,” says Dziadkiewicz.

“Definitely take a full or half-day tour to the Tigre Delta cruise (which takes you past a variety of islands with a lunch option). Other tours to book include the full-day Evita Tour, full-day Jewish tour of Malba (Latin American Museum, the National Gallery and the Collection Fortabat, which boasts works by Dali, Klimt, Brueghel, Chagall, Rodin and Warhol amongst others.

There is great shopping including local designers in Palermo, international brand in Palermo and Recoleta and you must do a cooking lesson and a tango lesson with a tango dinner and show.” Dziadkiewicz also recommends a walking tour of BA’s fashionable Palermo district as well as a visit to the San Telmo Flea Markets on a Sunday.

In Colonia, don’t miss out on some of the great wineries such as Ariano Hermanos, Bodega Bouza and the Castillo Viejo. You can also take a full-day tour to the capital, Montevideo, which is 2½ hours from Colonia.

In Montevideo, visit the World War II German cruiser Graf Spee in the harbour, take a city tour and visit Estancia.
For more info, go here http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/ipad/doc-holiday-advises-on-your-travel-dilemma…