Montevideo

Monday, Feb. 21

The official name of the country is Republica Oriental del Uruguay. I wonder why "oriental" is in the name?

Today is a travel day, but the bus doesn´t leave until 1:00 p.m. I slowly organized things in my room this morning. then I stopped at a cyber cafe for an hour on my way to the bus station. I arrived here at 11:50 and have just finished eating a hot Italian sandwich (ham, mozzarella, oregano, tomatoes, and olives on ciabatta bread). Now I have to wait about 30 minutes before the bus will be loaded. Then it will be a 6-hour trip to Montevideo where I will stay for about 5 days. Of course, ahead of me today is the stress of getting from the bustation there to the area with hotels and finding ahotel before it gets dark. There is a tourist office at the bus station and I have already marked my top 3 choices for a hotel.
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The trip went well, but I was concerned about rain clouds as we approached Montevideo. Fortunately, they were in the area but not in town when I arrived.

The tourist office was very helpful. Both employees spoke English well. One gave me a map and a general orientation. the other provided hotel information and made a reservation for me.
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I walked the 3 km (2 miles) into town from the station. A cool breeze was blowing indicating the rain was near, but I made it to the hotel while still dry.

I explored briefly. My hotel is only 1 block from one of the two main squares in the city. I found a store and bought water. Then I got two empanadas to go (cheese and onion in one and chicken in the other). I returned to the room to eat, but I noticed that the streets seem rather dark at night.

Walking: 12,835 steps (9543 aerobic steps), 534 calories, 8.72 km (5 1/4 miles)

Tuesday, Feb. 22

I had American biscuits for breakfast. I couldn´t belive it. My plate had two biscuits, a croissant, and a muffin topped with dulce con leche and whipped cream. Along with it came a pat of butter, jam, orange juice (at least part of it real), and coffee.

Montevideo has been a pleasant surprise. Walking from the bus station yesterday, I was disappointed. I kept wondering if they had torn down most of their old buildings, since most of what I saw had to come from 1940-1970. This morning, however, I have discovered wonderful buildings. The city began on a point. The last 8-10 blocks from that point (and the streets to the sides) represent the old town. There are many old buildings from the 1700s to the late 1800s. It has the feel of a partially revitalized old quarter. Banks, antique shops, galleries, etc., occupy most buildings. But many more have shops, offices, or warehouse services that seem to have been there forever. Some buildings are magnificently restored. Others have aged well, but could use a little more maintenance. And still others are in a decrepid state and in need of massive work. Put them all together, and you get an old, old neighborhood with character. It includes the port (where a huge cruise ship is docked today) and an old Eiffel-style market building which now houses upscale restaurants. There was a big street market for fruits, vegetables, meats, and fish, just a few blocks south in a more run-down looking part of this section of town.

The next section inland from the point has many massive and ornate structures from the late 1800s through the 1930s. These are the buildings with stained glass, domes, cupolas topped with metal globes, tall windows outlined with ornate stone carvings, rich woodwork, heavy wrough iron, etc. It is the kind of architecture that excites the heart and makes one want to see what great features are inside. This section represents the next 20 blocks after the old section continuing back from the point.

Of course, there are plain, modern buildings mixed among the others in both of these older sections of town. They have not aged well and tend to look like dirty, ugly buildings. They just make me wonder what was lost when the previous building was demolished for building them.
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Aftrer exploring the old town for hours, I went to San Antonio for lunch. It is a small restaurant I found. I had one of their daily specials--asado, fried potatoes, glass of wine, and bread. The asado was 7 medium-sized cuts of beef about 1/4 inch (5 mm) thickand charcobroiled. The glass of wine was 8 oz (250 ml) of a cheap but drinkable wine. All-in-all, it was a decent meal for the cost--60 pesos ($2.50 U.S.)!
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There was a Danish film on TV here this evening. It was on a channel called Europa. Unfortunately, it was a horrible film--an attempt to make an action film. I am sure the Danish Film Institute paid for it. Private enterprise would never support making such a poor film with such a weak storyline. I guess it represents the excesses of liberalism.

Walking: 23,703 steps (321,033 aerobic steps), 951 calories, 16.11 km (9 2/3 miles)