Papermag photographer Diggy Lloyd was recently in South America, traveling to Colombia, Buenos Aries and Uruguay. Here, she shares photos and a little diary entry about her favorite place she visited -- a tiny Uruguayan hamlet called Cabo Polonio that's surrounded by sand dunes and lit entirely by candles at night. Sounds lovely. Take it away Diggy!
Cabo Polonio is an extremely small beach town with a year-round population of 30 people. There is no running water, and, with the exception of the light house, the town has no electricity. Every house has a water tank that is filled with water brought in from a lake two hours away. When the sun sets around 9:30 p.m., everything is illuminated by candles. January is the height of summer, and is also the busy tourist season, attracting lots of people from Argentina and other parts of Uruguay. Cabo is located on a small tip of land that is surrounded by the Atlantic on either side. The beaches are surrounded by huge sand dunes! When you stand on top of the dunes, you feel like you're on the edge of the earth. Cabo also has the largest population of sea lions (more sea lions then people). I went under the impression that I would only stay for a weekend, but I ended up staying for 10 days. I'm in love.
The truck ride to the center of town The center of town- The grocery store and bus station (all in one!) Typical Houses in Cabo
Sunset walk through the dunes.
A house built in the dunes.
The horse I named England...
Walking up the hill...
The town of Cabo Polonio
We rented a room from a man named Marcelo who spends his summers in Cabo, and the rest of his time in Italy making documentary films. This is his house.
View from my room at Marcelo's.
Cabo Polonio Lighthouse.
Houses on the coast.
Accommodations by the Lighthouse.
A view of the town.
Cabo Polonio is an extremely small beach town with a year-round population of 30 people. There is no running water, and, with the exception of the light house, the town has no electricity. Every house has a water tank that is filled with water brought in from a lake two hours away. When the sun sets around 9:30 p.m., everything is illuminated by candles. January is the height of summer, and is also the busy tourist season, attracting lots of people from Argentina and other parts of Uruguay. Cabo is located on a small tip of land that is surrounded by the Atlantic on either side. The beaches are surrounded by huge sand dunes! When you stand on top of the dunes, you feel like you're on the edge of the earth. Cabo also has the largest population of sea lions (more sea lions then people). I went under the impression that I would only stay for a weekend, but I ended up staying for 10 days. I'm in love.
The truck ride to the center of town The center of town- The grocery store and bus station (all in one!) Typical Houses in Cabo
Sunset walk through the dunes.
A house built in the dunes.
The horse I named England...
Walking up the hill...
The town of Cabo Polonio
We rented a room from a man named Marcelo who spends his summers in Cabo, and the rest of his time in Italy making documentary films. This is his house.
View from my room at Marcelo's.
Cabo Polonio Lighthouse.
Houses on the coast.
Accommodations by the Lighthouse.
A view of the town.
The best place on earth...Cabo Polonio!