Punta del Este, Uruguay: I love this place! If I had to describe it, I would say, crowds like Pacific Beach on the fourth of July, vibe like Miami´s South Beach, and lots of Brazilians! If I didnt know any better, I would think I was in Brazil. I was fortunate enough to room with four Brazilians, so I was in the loop. In total they were a group of 8.

We were at a concert the other night and the singer was yelling out countries. Well, really just three. You know, the whole, ¨is Argentina in the house?¨ And parts of the crowd erupts, and is Uruguay in the house (and we´re in Uruguay), and another small part of the crowd erupts, then she gets to Brazil, and what seemed like over 70 percent of the crowd starts cheering. Its like that in the hostel as well.

The guys I am rooming with also have a car, or a mini pick up truck, so they allow me and my friend to go with them everywhere. And a car is essential out here, because there seem to be no taxi´s. The beaches are amazing, the whole atmosphere is fun, you can definitely tell New Years is approaching.

A little catch up on my whereabouts. I arrived in Uruguay on the 26th of December, a day after Christmas. I spent Christmas in Buenos Aires. Its like the 4th of July out there. At midnight, fireworks go off for about an hour. Its fun. Its a huge city and lots of people got to BA for Christmas, so there was plenty open on Christmas day, and plenty to do.

I took a boat from Buenos Aires to Montevideo, Uruguay. It was nice. Like the Love Boat on TV. I guess like a mini cruise ship, but i´ve never been on a cruise, so I can´t say for sure. From Montevideo, we headed straight for Punta del Este. And here we are. This place is great, definitely a great place to end the year. Very ritzy, with yachts, and expensive cars crusing the beaches, but still affordable for folks like me if you stay at a hostel. Although I am paying 50 bucks a night for the 30th and 31st. Thats more than double my daily budget for countries like Bolivia, and Nicaragua. A lot more expensive here, but its to be expected.

The Brazilian guys I met sometimes cook, and always invite me to join them, so I save some money there. I´m actually pretty lucky to have met them; sometimes we go to beaches that are about half an hour away from our hostel, and there is no way my friend and I could have gotten there without a ride.

I feel like the backpacking portion of my trip is over. From here it is all much more expensive. Iguazu falls, and Brazil after the New Years, then my South American part of the trip is over. The trip has been fantastic. I guess at the end of the year its time to reflect, and when I stop to think about how great this year has been, I wish it wouldnt end. But I guess ill just carry it over to next year.

Its also the end of a decade. And a great decade for me. Graduated college, law school, passed the bar, started work. All sorts of great things. Of course, not without adversity, but with Gods help always overcame it. I´m really looking forward to this next year, and the next ten years! Life is good. Really good. God is good. And I am so grateful for all I have. I think in the next blog i´ll reflect on the last ten years. The thing about traveling, it allows you the time to do that sort of the thing. lol.

Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas, and hope everyone has a Happy New Year. Out here there is a tradition where people throw trash out their window, well really white paper, so the streets are littered with white. Its supposed to represent getting rid of the old, and in with the new. So I hope if anyone had a crummy year, you let it all go and start fresh. You got to love new beginings. And if things are going well, let´s continue to build on them. I have a few prayers and goals for the next year, maybe ill share in the next blog. I think its always good to set goals.

Hope all is well at home. Love you mom, love you family and friends.

Michael