Montevideo - Uruguay

Unfortunately, the need to not look like a tourist in a big city means that it is difficult to capture the vibe you get from different urban settings. Luckily, there are still words!

My overall sense, having now made the circuit of BA to MVD to Punta del Diablo and back, is that Montevideo is a wonderful place. More or less like the mythical barrio we hope to find here in BA.

The streets seem wider (especially off the main thoroughfares..) - children play soccer in the side streets - meanwhile buses, cars, and horse drawn carts scuttle around with purpose (but not the incessant honking and impatience that is Buenos Aires).

The main drag in Montevideo is Avenida 18 de Julio. All the shops and monuments congregate around this major artery that connects the "Old City" with center city.


This is.. some "Palace" - I´m not sure if we knew the name, we certainly didn´t know its purpose. Though there are no signs are markers to explain it, there are postcards. Interesting none-the-less.


Plaza Independencia - Montevideo, Uruguay
Loudest ice cream vendors this side of the Rio del Plata!
On the far end of the plaze is the "Gateway to the Old City" - which basically means you are about to enter ten solid blocks of tourist trinkets..until you reach the still old city - which is where we ended up.


Not much to "do" in the Old City - so we sat down for a meal at what looked to be a cozy and affordable parrilla. Though pictures exist of the entre - it is best to only post the picture of the bread and beer - as not to give anyone a visual heart attack. Let´s just say, the service was much better than the food!

In fact, the gentleman that served us was very friendly. We talked for a good while about the then upcoming elections - as well as the upcoming superclasico (massive soccer derby) between Uruguayan giants Nacional and Peñarol.

The man explained in detail the flags we had seen around the city (Frente Amplio). That Frente was a coalition group and had a strong hold in MVD (they went on to win the election).
He also said that there is not much difference between Nacional and Peñarol. That perhaps Nacional is more of a posh club, but that they were more similar in being the largest clubs - unlike the social stigma that separates Boca and River in Argentina. Thus, he also debunked the notion that either club was affiliated with a political party. We could have talked much longer on this topic, but we were paying for the food rather than the conversation. I was gracious for the little insight into the soccer scene in Uruguay - food for thought!

We eventually made our way back to the hostel. Then later made an attempt to hit the beach that was just a few blocks from our place, but being the homebodies that we are - we did not last too long. We made our way back, again, and spent the rest of the evening engaged in conversation with a Pan-South American group of travelers at the hostel. This very interesting crowd included a journalist from Ecuador who was covering the elections as a foreign correspondent - he more or less hates soccer, but loves baseball and wishes to one day get a visa to visit the States so he can go to a Yankees game, a Chilean who is studying to become a doctor and speaks better German than I do Spanish - a Bolivian who had just moved to Uruguay and offered me a spot on his club soccer team - and so on...

That is enough to chew on for now.. There are maaaany pictures from Punta del Diablo..and much to say yet to come. But later.. now I have to go find someone to tutor me in Spanish so I can give Kaitlin a break!

Here are some glimpses from our first few days in Buenos Aires that we didn´t have the time to get online earlier..


"La Bombonera" - Estadio Alberto J. Armando - Home of Club Atlético Boca Juniors
Considerably smaller than River Plate´s stadium, but word is because of this the atmosphere is much more intense/better. Might have to see for myself as Boca Juniors (sitting 11th in the table) plays Independiente (6th) this weekend.




No shortage of time pieces in the Plaza de Mayo. Quite the panoramic from the water fountain in the plaza center.




The "Casa Rosada" or "Pink House" which connects the east end of Avenida de Mayo with the west end and the Congreso de la Nación Argentina.


Congreso de la Nación Argentina


Some pretty stellar graffiti outside the art school on the corner of Maipú and Lavalle..


..a closer look.


Unfortunately, this facility (totalling about five courts, all underneath a freeway) is part of a local high school. No gringos allowed - actually the courts are open one day a week, but not the right day for me!

From Devil´s Point

We have been here in Punta del Diablo for four days now.

The five hour bus ride east from Montevideo has provided a perspective that has been much needed since I began. Though it seems there is no such thing as a deserted sandy paradise in Uruguay (which in retrospect makes sense because of the countries location between travelers from the population centers of Buenos Aires in Argentina and Rio in Brazil) - we have stumbled upon this cabaña riddled little village in the off season - which might as well make it Mars.

Our cabaña is probably a half mile from the focal point of the village (a cove where the fishing boats dock), but less than a five minute walk from a mini-market that has a decent supply of produce and honey flavored snacks that we have become very fond of (best when combined with fig jam).

I am not quite disillusioned, on the contrary, my eyes have been opened. Punta del Diablo makes no excuses for what it is. The locals spend the day mysteriously buzzing back and forth across town on their scooters - sometimes with propane tanks, sometimes with a liter of Fanta in hand, most always with their maté gourd and a thermos. They are mostly a dishevled, but happy community. Despite all the pontificating and surmising - they have shown me who they are. Our first day here we happened upon a group of about twenty (mostly) young men playing soccer on the beach. I spotted who I correctly assumed was the best player and asked him, "Puedo jugar?" - "Can I play?" - the result was an almost esoteric experience that I will one day spend a good bit of time dictating. However, the spackled structure that functions as an internet cafe (but looks more like a post industrial garage) will be closing shortly and I have a pizza to make tonight.

For now, a list of developments.

My "cold" appears to have actually been allergies.
We have booked our return to Buenos Aires for this Wednesday.
We will stay there for a week so I can participate in some Spanish tutoring (for about $50 US).
Then we will finally head south.

Best.

We have arrived in Uruguay!

It was a lot easier to leave the hostel in Buenos Aires than I was anticipating. I had begun to feel rather comfortable with the staff, as well as the city itself. However, with our bags packed - the mobile spirit returned.

We spent most of the morning in a café on de Mayo. Marvelling at the porteño obsession with media lunas (croissants) as well as the general activity of the city center on a Monday. We stayed for some time, reading and writing, relishing the custom that you pay when you are ready to leave.

Back at the hostel we scheduled a taxi ride to the ferry and then waited about thirty minutes. Getting into the cab I was hit with that exhilirating sense of the unknown that had more or less faded after our second day in Buenos Aires. Yet again, we were at the mercy of strangers..

The taxi ride was fairly uneventful - as was the check-in for the ferry (though I was more reluctant this time to hand over my backpack). We had our passports stamped while still in Buenos Aires with a thirty minute wait for the bags to be loaded and everyone to be boarded.

During that wait we encountered only our second and third Americans of the trip (the first being a sixty year old California man named Terry {whom we met only two nights ago} who has spent the last five months driving with his son from Sacramento - through Mexico and Central America - through Colombia, Ecuador, Chile, up through the Patagonia, and is now on the last leg of the journey in Buenos Aires - truly impressive!). These other Americans though, were disappointing. They talked boistrously about their unwillingness to partake in the custom of sharing a mate because they are "germophobes" and "it tastes like dirt anyway."

It was a bit of a reality check. Everyone we had encountered previously had been so open-minded and excited to learn about new things, that I think I had constructed this happy little "The World is One" bubble around myself.

Fortunately, once we made it to Colonia (a harrowing hour on a ferry that was driven more like a speedboat) - these young gentlemen made their way towards the tourist trap/destination town - while we boarded the bus for Montevideo.

It was as the bus was pulling away from the harbor that I remembered again what we were doing. I had not seen so much green vegetation since our taxi ride from the airport nearly two weeks prior. It was pretty amazing how the verdant landscape lifted me and though I was in need of a nap - I kept my eyes on the molehill farmland, the cows, the tiny little sheep, the tidy little modern bungalows that lined the highway, the locals out for an afternoon joyride on their scooters or motorcycles (sometimes a family of three on one modest Yamaha dirt bike), just to see people in the sun again was nice - rather than watching them scramble across busy intersections.

Eventually, we approached the outskirts of Montevideo. As we made our way through about a mile or two of thoroughly distressed shanty towns we began to see these flags everywhere:




My initial suspicion was that these flags were in support of one of Uruguay´s two biggest futbol clubs who have the same colors, Club Nacional de Football. However, some Google research has turned up "Frente Amplio" - a "left wing" party with ties to trade unions and a cooperative housing movement (according to Wiki). Of course, it is very possible that there is a correlation between the two as futbol and politics are never too far removed, especially in SA (the socialist/anarchist songs at River Plate come to mind). Perhaps conversation with locals will shed more light on any relationship..

Ultimately, we arrived at the bus depot, received some very good information from the tourism representative there (who even knew where South Carolina is and the capital of Colorado!). Before leaving the depot we purchased our 7am bus ticket for Punta del Diablo and took out about 2,000 Uruguayo pesos (about $100 US). Just when we were starting to feel comfortable with the exchange rate in Argentina..everything gets thrown out the window.

From there we caught the city bus which lucky us had three attendants to help make sure we did not miss our stop. One to drive the bus, one to doll out tickets and change (a machine did this in BA), and one gentleman who went around checking ticket stubs to make sure we all paid - a pretty impressive display of beaurocracy if you ask me.

That brought us to the streets of Montevideo´s Palermo barrio. A neighborhood that we wished to have found in Buenos Aires. Not as scary as La Boca, but still possessing that gritty flavor. There are two other reasons why I am already looking at this city with more fondness than Buenos Aires - people were playing futbol everywhere here, in private and public parks, and in the streets (that´s more like it!) and the ocean. Montevideo sticks out into the ocean (whereas BA is situated within the delta of the Rio de la Plata) - the water is visible from our hostel door..and from the incredibly comfortable terrace on the roof (complete with hammocks and a grill).

I am feeling well rested (despite still being rather congested) and am more than ready for a hard day of walking down the ocean front boulevard and then up through the old city.

We are able to access the USB port on the computers here, so it is likely that I will be able to upload some pictures from our excursion today.

We are considering spending a week or two somewhere (either here or Buenos Aires) before we head south so that I can get some tutoring in the language. Before we left BA I was pretty set on returning, but now I would be very interested to find a school here so I can enjoy the sea breeze while I toil. Hard life!

More later..and hopefully pictures!

Today is our last day in Buenos Aires - for now.

Tomorrow we leave for Montevideo - Uruguay.

The plan is to rent a cabaña in Punta del Diablo, which is supposed to be a slow little surfer town. I´m hoping the reports are accurate. I came down with a bit of a head cold two days ago. Though I am feeling better, the crowded hostel is hampering my much needed rest and at half speed exploration of the city becomes a chore.

On a brighter note.. Kaitlin and I continue to find people to enjoy our time with. We are fortunate to maintain a steady supply of well balanced and earnest day trip companions. However, now it is our turn to leave..

Sergio to Mar del Plata.
Rik to Cordoba.
Mikk back to Vancouver.
James off to Mar del Plata.
Jessica to Montevideo.

..and now we too are off to Montevideo and ultimately the "end of the devil."

I am not sure what sort of internet access we will have in Uruguay. I am willing to bet the hostel in Montevideo will be equipt, but there is no telling how much contact we will have access to during our week at the beach.

Till then..

The "Special American"

The last few days have been rather slow (compared to the ridiculous pace we set upon arrival).

Yesterday Kaitlin and I ventured out to the Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires, but everyone just says, MALBA. Right now the MALBA is featuring an Andy Warhol collection entitled, "Mr. America" - which I find strange considering the sentiment out there that people from the USA should not refer to themselves as "Americans" due to the fact that there are many nations and two continents consisting of "Americans." Still, I have heard no plausible alternative - though when people ask where I am from, I just say, "The States" or "Estados Unidos."

Anyway, I much enjoyed the MALBA - in particular, I found Fabian Burgos to be quite accessible. Of course there were some other artists that stretched the boundaries a bit more - which I quite enjoyed {insert artists}. Of course, it being modern art, I felt there were also some rather repetitious pieces with little substance..but they did "look cool."

The evening consisted of what was supposed to be a "dub" show at this venue "La Cigale" on Ave. Cordoba. The first group "La Golden Acapulco" was pretty rad - bonafide dub. The next group (not even sure of their name) sounded more like a ska-punk band (and not a good one) rather than dub.

What I really wanted to take a moment to talk about is something that happened this morning..as a result of yesterday.

Yesterday was a big day for world football. The last five spots for the World Cup were being played for between France-Ireland, Portugal-Bosnia, Russia-Slovenia, Greece-Ukraine, and Uruguay-Costa Rica. Suffice it to say, much of yesterday was spent watching these matches with a crowd of fans from all over the world (Australia, Spain, Scotland, Morocco, England, Israel, etc...).
Over the course of the day, I had some opportunities to talk about football and ultimately the USA. The specifics of the conversations are not too important, but it is safe to say most were surprised that my knowledge of the modern game rivaled their own and that my political sentiments did not lie completely to the left or right.
This morning, I asked the Spainard and Israeli who have family in Uruguay for their advice about where to go and what to do once we get there. They gave me some pointers on Punta del Diablo and what to do in Montevideo and I shared with them what I knew of the cemetery in Recoleta and the markets of San Telmo. Eventually they left, never having exchanged names or much personal information, but as he was walking out the door the Israeli said, "Bye, special American."

It really struck me, for many reasons. Staying in the hostel, we have been surrounded by such incredible diversity. An Irish Scottsman with Italian heritage. A Jewish Spainard of Uruguayan decent. And so on..

I wonder why that guy chose to say "special" - because of my soccer knowledge, because I recognized they spoke Hebrew and could say good-bye in their language, was it something about me that is truly special compared to my fellow Americans (United Staters!) or was it something about him..
My experiences in football here have led me to believe that we(humans) are less and less and one thing in particular, aside from just that - human. Cultural constructions can be overcome..language, recreation, cuisine, they are easily maliable. The hardest thing to bend and change is our mind - but I feel it happening everyday - in myself and in those I meet.

I am less and less self-conscious about how I am being perceived and more and more excited to just be with people. If anything, I hope this is what my Israeli friend took from his experience with me. That he goes home and takes a second glance at someone he has a preconceived notion about. That he allows himself to be pleasantly surprised.

PHOTOS - FINALLY!

..just a few highlights to hit so that you all know I´m not just making this stuff up.


Reading on the roof..
The roof of the Lime House hostel on 11 Lima in Buenos Aires served as a refuge in what could be a rather active hostel. After the first few days, construction began on expansion of the terrace to cover nearly half of the roof and add more green to a city/skyline that could really use it.


One of the numerous demonstrations..
Nearly half our time in Buenos Aires there was a demonstration of some sort. Only one that I would call "massive" - though there were two others that stopped traffic. On the whole, they are peaceful, well organized, and rather redundant.


View of the Paraiso and Avenue de Nueva Julio from the hostel lobby´s balcony..


You are now on Boca´s turf..

Which is not a problem, as long as there is respect..


The softer side of La Boca (with Rik from Holland)..


And so mom knows I´m eating well. This meal cost the equivalent of around $15 US for pasta, steak, and wine..

Cheers..