Uruguay getting the economy tour and having a gun pointed in my face in Argentina (04/22/08)

After finally crossing the border at 12 pm the next day I was on a mission to make it to Montevideo as quickly as possible. Unfortunately my picture taking suffered greatly for this and I missed taking photos of some beautiful farms and scenic landscapes. It took 6 hours to make it to Montevideo and when I finally arrived the sun was setting so I had to do my best to take photos fast. After some procrastination I decided to call my friend Sebastian and possibly stay another day in Montevideo to explore.

BTW: (For Motorcyclists) There is a ferry from Buenos Aires to Montevideo and I recommend taking it because it is much faster and you do not have to double back (The price is $50 I think). Right now the Fray Bentos border crossing is out because they are rebuilding the bridge. If you want to drive you have to drive all the way up to Paysandu and cross there. The best option is to take the ferry from Buenos Aires to Colonia del Sacramento and than drive 2 hours to get to B.A. This is the least expensive and also will have the best scenery I think.

Sebastian was not there so I decided to camp the night in Montevideo and head back to Argentina the next day (I did not have my tourist visa for Brazil yet). Unfortunately I missed out on one of the most beautiful places in Uruguay: Punta del Este. The drive from Montevideo to Punta del Este has spectacular ocean views.

I camped for the night in Montevideo at a marina and set up my tent next to the shacks of some friendly fishermen. The next day I woke up at dawn and set off for Argentina. I made great time but hardly took a single photo. The riding was utterly painful because I was so down. I crossed the border at Salto into Argentina but I do not recommend crossing it here because the roads from Tacuarembo were very bad with many dangerous turns and sudden changes from pavement to dirt in poorly marked construction sites. It would have been faster to drive from Tacuarembo back to Paysandu and cross there.

After crossing into Argentina things were going fine until I was stopped at a police checkpoint on Ruta 14 km 341. The officer who stopped me asked to check my papers and than asked me in Spanish if I had the required fire extinguisher. I did not understand so he took me to his car and showed me a fire extinguisher in the back and than took me to the office and showed me a form that said fire extinguishers were required for motorcyclists.

I was very skeptical about whether this was real or not but I did not question him and thought there was a chance that he would just give me a warning. Five minutes later he told me that I would have to pay a fine. After arguing for 10 minutes I asked how much the fine was and he pulled out the fine paper but it did not have a price listed on it. I watched as the officer wrote 1200 pesos. I asked him where the punto  (point) was and he told me that it was 1200 pesos ($400 US). Who did this guy think I was with dirty hands, messy hair, and a beat up stitch jacket?

After hearing 1200 pesos all doubt in my mind was gone that this was a real regulation. I told the officer that I had never seen a local motorcycle with a fire extinguisher and that it would be very dangerous to carry a pressurized canister on a motorcycle. He responded by making the handcuff gesture multiple times. I asked to see his identification and he told me that I could read what his name was from a stamp that he was going to use on my fine. I told him to show me his wallet but he refused and made the handcuff gesture again. At this point I was really starting to get fed up and I asked for my passport back. The officer told me that he was going to keep it and lock me up. I told him that your passport in private property and no police or immigration official has the right to withhold it from you. He than left the room and I took it back off the desk.

When the officer returned he asked me for the 10th time how I was going to pay for the ticket. I told him the same old that I did not have any money and he made the handcuff gesture again. Having had enough of this crap I put my hands out for him to put the handcuffs on and asked to make my phone call (I am not sure if you get a phone call after being arrested in Argentina, but I figure you must). He told me that there was no phone call and than took out the handcuffs like he was going to put them on, but than told me to leave.

I walked out of the station taking note of the license plate number of the car inside and when I got back to my motorcycle I took out a pen and wrote the number on my hand. The officer had been watching me from inside and ran out and told me to go back to the bathroom to wash it off. I went to the bathroom and the officer followed me in and closed the door behind him. He took my helmet and threw it on the ground. Than he pulled out his gun and pointed it at my face. I knew that he was going to shoot me but it is still pretty scary to have a loaded gun pointed in your face. I made ducking actions and some fake cry moans. He told me that I better forget this happened.

I walked back to my motorcycle still remembering the numberS FVK364 (still remember from memory now) and left slowly doing my best to be really scared. I decided that I better wait a good while before stopping and writing the numbers again. After about 10 miles I noticed that it seemed like a suspicious truck was following me very closely for a long time, but it was hard to say whether he was a friend of the police or just a bad driver. After 2 hours of driving I finally stopped in Curuzu Cuatia and wrote the numbers down.

Comments

[http://panchitonoguer.home.services.spaces.live.com]

hey. I really dont know when this happened, but im really sor to read it. Thats because I live here on Buenos Aires, I know some English from school and TV.
This fuking country. I'm lucky to be on one of the best social and economic area(San Isidro, Capital's North area), and I know how poor it's out on the Provincias.
Just really sory to know about your story. M recomendation. You wanna know Corruption, come to Argentina, just Don`t bring money, They sure will take it wuithout permision.

[Mike Ellsworth]

Jesus man! That's a crazy story about the corrupt copper. I've run into quite a few myself but never had a gun pointed at me. Well, I have had a gun pointed at me, but not for the same reasons. The most that's ever happened to me when I was pulled over is I had to trade the cop my sunglasses for his. I got the better end of the deal.

I'm glad to see that you're doing well. My bike is still in Peru and I'll be flying back mid-June to continue my trip. Wayne is up in Brazil trying to ship his bike back. What do you plan on doing with yours, riding it back?

Mike

[Geoff Tayner]

Hey Mike, great to hear from you. My parents were asking me what Wayne and you were up to. For some reason my dad thought you were in Africa but I did not remember you saying that. What have you been up to for the last few months?

I finished my trip and flew back last Sunday from Buenos Aires. I sold the bike in Paraguay. There is a good motorcycle shop called Klein Motors in Asuncion that can do the paperwork. I got a decent price for the bike but selling it was such a PITA that I think I would have just shipped it back if I could do it over again.

That is awesome to hear that Wayne made it all the way to Brazil. He must have made a girl friend or two to slow him down.

[Chris Guzman (valdivia)]

Hey Geoff! Wow, that's a crazy story... Thank god nothing worst happened! Well, now I know you're back in the States! Away from that argentinian cop... TAKE CARE! and hope to see you someday!

ps. Next year I will travel to the U.S to work in a ski resort for like 4-5 months and then i will have like 1 month to travel around the US, hope to see you in that month!

Take care!

[Geoff Tayner]

Hey Cristian, great to hear from you! That is awesome that you are coming to the U.S. You can definitely stay with my family and I in Iowa when you start your traveling. Which ski resort are you going to be staying at? I have a friend in Colorado who works at one of the them.

Keep in touch,
Geoff