Montevideo, Uruguay

Sept 28-29

My quick summary of Montevideo: dull and expensive. 

Montevideo was a disappointing start to Uruguay. Arriving early in the morning, I thought I should take full advantage of the day. So off I went to find the free walking tour... Unfortunately, I was the only person who showed up wanting a tour in English (a hint at how jam-packed full of tourists Montevideo is...) Instead, the guide gave me some tips for how to entertain myself the day. Meanwhile, circus acts were prancing around all over the place, for no apparent reason.

First I went to City Hall, up to the 22nd floor to get a panoramic view of the city. Shame it's not a very pretty city... On the plus side, it was free!

I then hired a bike and cycled down the promenade, about 9km along the coast. There were two beaches and some nice little photo spots, combining beach and city skyline. 

At the end of the path there was a big 'Montevideo' sign begging to be photographed. 

Back at the hostel I was informed about a jazz band playing at the local Irish pub, and found a few people to go with. After ordering drinks at the bar it became apparent that we would need to pay for the privilege of sitting at a table. Apparently common in Uruguay. So, the cheap travellers that we are, we stood at the bar in defiance. Eventually we got frustrated with hovering by the bar and went off in search of another bar. But of course there were no other bars open. Disappointed, we called it a night.

I dragged Eduardo (a Brazilian friend from my hostel) along with me to attempt the walking tour again the following day. A whopping 9 people rocked up this time, so we were in luck! We learnt that the most recent former president legalised gay marriage, abortion and marijuana all in one year. We also learnt that no one in Uruguay is "truly Uruguayan" because when the Spanish took over they killed every single native person. We started in the main square, home to 1927's tallest building in South America. It's really not very tall at all, so it got quickly overtaken.

We roamed around the 'Old Town' admiring various plazas churches and other buildings. Apparently Uruguay in (I think) 2002 had 40% of it's residents under the poverty line, making it one of the poorest countries in South America. However that has now gone down to less than 10% - the lowest in all of South America! Pretty impressive recovery.

The tour ended at the market, a beautiful building..but not exactly what you might expect for a market. Apparently the silly English architect got confused; he thought he was meant to be designing a train station! So it's unique. The market is full of Uruguayan BBQs where we treated ourselves to a huge meaty meal. I'm fairly certain we are every single part of the cow...ear included. Eek!

Let's hope Colonia offers more excitement than Montevideo!