Uruguay

I went to Uruguay specifically to visit my friend, Dora Farell, but as it turned out she was in Minnesota when I was in Uruguay. Her brother and sister-in-law took very good care of me while I was there, however. We visited a fabulous art museum, Ralli, with modern Latin American art, and also the Sculpture Park of Pablo Atchugarry, a famous Uruguayan who spends much of his time in Italy. He displays some of his work and huge sculptures of others in an outdoor sculpture garden. We arrived at sunset and stayed until dark when the sculptures were dramatically lit up. It is in a lovely rural setting with rolling green hills, some large trees and ponds.

We spent about a week in Punte del Este, the lovely and elegant resort town on both the Rio de la Plata and the Atlantic Ocean. It is a peninsula with the crashing waves of the Atlantic on one side and relatively calm water on the river's side. There are old homes, especially on the tip of the peninsula where the lighthouse and church are, but mostly there are towering apartment buildings and hotels. Further out of town there are new mansions. Besides Uruguayans, Argentines and Brazilians invade during the months of January and February.

The apartment we stayed in overlooks the harbor with many yachts and sailboards. Cruise ships also anchor further out - one day there were five! As we were driving from the airport in Montevideo we drove along the southern coast of the country along the Rio de la Plata where there is one beach town after another. The light fine sand, sand dunes, and thatched-roofed houses reminded me of Denmark.

The weather was mostly pleasant, in the 80's, but often windy. I enjoyed walking on the endless beaches, swimming in calm waters, eating healthy food and tasting Uruguayan wine (one red is called Tannat). I also spoke Spanish all the time. We always ate late at night; 10:30 was the normal time for dinner. The people in Punte del Este then spend most of the night out with their friends. I am told the young people go out at 2 am and stay out all night.

I went on a tour one day where we explored other beach towns along the east coast on the way to Brazil. The busiest month is January, so by mid February, it was relatively quiet. The most fascinating town was Cabo Polonia which consists of beaches with beautiful sand dunes and is a national park. People have small houses ( a limited number) and it looks very much like a hippy community. There is no running water or electricity. One parks near the highway, and then large 4-wheel drive trucks transport people into the town. The atmosphere is very laid-back.

After Punta del Este, I spent a day in Montevideo where it was grey and blustery. I explored the town and it's many plazas and walked by the beaches. In the evening I met up with a young man who had been at Harding High School helping out in the Spanish department as an Amity Aide several years ago. I spent a pleasant evening with Juanpa and his girlfriend, Ornela.

I spent another part of a day in Colonia, a lovely Portuguese colonial town. From there I returned to Buenos Aires by ferry, crossing the Rio de la Plata in about an hour. I spent one more day in Buenos Aires meeting up with German and Nelly again for a delicious lunch, and then home to Minnesota.

When I was in Chile we felt a slight tremor and it reminded me of others that I had felt before when I lived in Chile. I had only been home a few days when the terrible earthquake occurred. Now I see pictures of the Pan American Highway we traveled on all broken up and bridges and buildings destroyed. What devastation! My heart goes out to the Chilean people.