Once again it’s been a while since I wrote. Life’s been pretty intense since arriving in Argentina 7 weeks ago, so I’m a bit behind. Better late than never though, right?
When I first went to Colombia 3 years ago I decided to spend several months in one country and resist the temptation to spread myself around South America like gringo butter. I liked the idea of getting to know one country and culture intimately rather than seeing lots, but understanding little.
In Uruguay I ended up pushing the boundaries of that concept, spending the whole week almost entirely in one neighborhood. And in fact, the majority of that time was just in someone’s house. On the second floor.
To make myself feel better about it, I’ve decided to invent the term “micro-traveling” along with a whole bunch of reasons as to why it’s a great idea.
Bear with me.
There’s nothing quite like home
I arrived in Uruguay around the 6 month mark, and it’s the 9th country I’ve visited in that time. It’s been an epic and at times fast-paced journey.
I’ve stayed in the Amazon jungle, a crumbling hostel in the Caribbean, a yoga center, a flat on the 25th floor in Sao Paolo, some amazing and some awful Airbnb places, and I can’t remember where else. Although once or twice it’s been close, nowhere has truly felt like a home. Not until Uruguay, that is.
If you read about my time in Paraguay, you’ll know I do get a little lonely sometimes on my journey. So I decided to rent a room in a local’s home for a week in Montevideo.
They seemed like a friendly couple, my age and with a laid-back feel to their profile. Being music and Pilates teachers they both worked from home, so I’d have plenty of company for a change.
I knew I’d made the right decision the moment I walked in the front door to be greeted by big smiles, the smell of home cooking, the sight of a lovingly-crafted, earthy kitchen and the hopeful sound of a developing piano song tinkling in the air.
They showed me to my cosy little room, and already knowing that I was a blogger, presented me with my own little work space in a stairway alcove, complete with a bookshelf filled with musty old books, a plant and an antique desklamp.
It was perfect.
It was home.
Winter in South America
Timing has never been one of my greatest skills, nor geography it seems. Considering the amazing climates you can find all year round in South America – if you plan it right – I still question how I ended up spending winter here.
The plan was supposed to be to have an endlessly utopian summer by switching between Europe and South America, but it looks like this year will end up being winter-summer-winter-autumn-spring-winter. Which is weird.
So yeah, Montevideo was freezing. The only good thing about the otherwise awful weather was that it reminded me of home.
On several occasions I walked along the seafront with more padding than the Michelin man as the piercing wind whipped layers of skin off my face and the rain slowly seeped into my once breathable, but now very much drownable summer shoes.
There were a couple of sunnier days, but it was generally cold and wet enough to make me stay at home, working on my main website and enjoying some creature comforts.
People are just people
I learned three lessons in Uruguay:
- People in this part of the world drink extraordinary amounts of Mate.
- South America is so much better when it’s hot and sunny.
- People are just people.
The third lesson I learned from my hosts the first day, as they explained to me that they’ve never had any problems with the many guests they’ve had from around the world.
“People are so similar.” Laura explained.
“It doesn’t matter where you come from, we have so much in common once you really get talking.”
The next Sunday evening her words came back to me in the most delightful way. She kindly invited me to her mum’s house to join the weekly family ritual of food, wine and…Game of Thrones.
England, Spain, Aruba, Brazil, Uruguay. Wherever you go, everyone loves the same characters, the same episodes, the same plot lines and the same moments.
People are just people.
A bit about Montevideo
As much as I loved spending time with Frederico and Laura, I did of course try and get out and about in the spells between the rain. My impression of Montevideo is that it’s probably amazing when the weather is better.
Capital cities on the coast are generally awesome, especially when they have some good sandy beaches to explore. There’s a well-developed coastal path which you can cycle on for miles, stopping off to collect shells you’ll never end up keeping, and eat a sandy sandwich on grassy hills overlooking the sea. It’s a fantastic shoreline.
In terms of cool architecture, Montevideo definitely beat Asuncion, but is still kind of lacking compared to other capitals. Having said that, it does have the giant camouflaged stone rocket.
On the food front it definitely has lots going for it. If you’re a meat eater. I’d heard Argentina is the king of steak, but it would have to do something pretty special to top the gain-an-instant-kilo meals I had here.
There’s a great indoor food market where you can sit at the bar of the restaurant and watch as they slowly barbecue your lunch. It doesn’t get better than that, even for a formerly militant vegetarian.
The neigbourhood I stayed in, called Pocitos, had a surprisingly alternative feel to it at times. Every other road seemed to have an interesting little independent restaurant or shop, with a distinctly artistic feel to this Bohemian little enclave.
A bit of art
Pocitos was also home to possibly my favorite image in weeks. I know it doesn’t exactly show the city at its best, but I love it for its juxtaposition of innocence and rebellion. Oooh…I almost sound like I know what I’m talking about!
And as if that wasn’t colorful enough, the mural facing any parent brave enough to hypnotize their child in the dystopian swings is pretty special too.
It’s tempting to think that the legalisation of marijuana was responsible for this kind of artwork. But despite what I expected, you don’t see stoners on every street corner.
Sure, sometimes you walk along and the smell of the sea changes to the smell of the grass, but it’s very low key on the whole. I think people just like graffiti. And mushrooms with hearts…
Just to balance things out though, in a nearby park there’s also the fantastic museum of contemporary art. Here are some of my favorites from there and a random little gallery I stumbled across one day. I apologise for the wonky photos. I must be the only blogger taking photos with a broken iPhone.
You can’t judge a country by a neighborhood
South Americans are generally very curious about Europe, and I’ve had countless conversations comparing Latinos and Europeans. Despite saying that people are just people, the reality is more complex than that when trying to understand entire cultures.
There’s a big difference culturally between the English and Lithuanians for example, just as there is between the Argentinians and Colombians.
The same issue then filters down to the level of trying to understand a country, culture and people based on such short exposure to them. So as much as I’d love to tell you what Uruguay and its people are like, I feel woefully unqualified to do so.
All I can say is that the places I visited in Montevideo seemed pretty safe for a South American capital and had a unique charm. And the people I met were friendly, welcoming and drink gallons of Mate…
Argentina
I’ve been in the north of Argentina for some time now, reunited with Laura and supporting her through her cancer treatment. As you’d expect, it’s been tough at times and there’s more to come.
But despite that, we’ve managed to enjoy ourselves and explore some of the magnificent landscape and folklore culture that the city of Salta and the surrounding areas have to offer. It truly feels like the heart of South America here and a fascinating step back in time.
I’ll be writing about it soon!
Jellyfish Rock 