The voyage from the Falklands to Montevideo was often in heavy seas, but gradually the winds lessened and the temperature warmed. By the time we docked in the capital city of Uruguay on Monday, February 8, we feel like we are in "South America" again, in contrast to the chill, white, barren and magnificent wilds to the south.
We take a tour of Montevideo for several hours, followed by a trip into the countryside for wine-tasting and a lunch. At first glance, the city center appears to be down-at-the-heels. From the port, we ride by apartments above street-level businesses where, without air conditioning, residents have left their windows open and we can see unmade beds and tattered curtains billowing over the sidewalks. Yet as we progress a few blocks, we realize that many of the older buildings are in the distinguished French architectural style of the turn of the last century. The main square features several outstanding buildings in that style as well as some older historic ones and a couple of nondescript modern highrises. We note that there's not much trash around, a welcome change to some cities we've seen.
Our enthusiastic guide is very proud of her relatively small country--its population is just over 2 million, with about 1.2 million in the Montevideo environs. Uruguay has the lowest population density and lowest birth rate in South America. Our guide extolls the country's longtime democracy, its universal healthcare system (bare bones, though people can pay extra for private insurance), and its free education through university. Interestingly, Uruguay requires that university graduates repay the cost of their educations once they surpass a certain income threshold. The repayments currently start at $20 a month, and will continue, presumably with increases pegged to inflation, throughout one's career, so long as the income level remains above a certain level. We're told that taxes are relatively high in order to pay for social programs and infrastructure. For example, the value added tax is 22%, and cars are very expensive because they're subject to a luxury tax that nearly doubles their cost. Despite that high tax, we note a number of newer cars on the streets. We pass a large hospital that looks like a dreary prison, but later see a much nicer-looking one, called the Italian Hospital, that serves private patients. The large soccer stadium, of bare-bones concrete, is festooned with the ever-present Latin American graffiti.
We quickly move through the dense downtown, with its historic buildings cheek-to-jowl with modern and/or boring newer structures, arriving at close-in residential neighborhoods bordering Montevideo's outstanding white sand beaches. As far as the eye can see, these beaches front a wide expanse of the Rio de la Plata as it moves toward the Atlantic Ocean, overlooked by numerous imaginatively designed high-rise condominiums. It is a holiday today, and our guide says residents who haven't gone to the ocean beaches (a favorite Uruguayan holiday destination, especially the resort called Punte del Este) are probably sleeping late. Still, we see many people strolling or jogging in the parks and along the beach, using provided exercise equipment along the edges of public spaces, or sitting in groups on the grass having coffee or picnics. As we drive along the waterfront parkway, we see a yellow stucco building that looks like a mosque, but we're told it's their natural history museum. "It's a museum of dead animals," the guide said rather dismissively, to Alice's consternation. Sumner wisecracked that minerals are dead too!
We notice that, unlike in other countries we've visited north of the Patagonia region, there doesn't seem to be a fear of theft in Montevideo; throughout our visit, we rarely notice windows covered with bars.
Our guide tells us that Uruguay is striving to be environmentally responsible, and shows us the sand dunes they're constructing along the beaches, using organic matter like palm tree fronds to plump out the barriers to erosion and flooding. She says Uruguay's economy is primarily based on agriculture, tourism, financial services and mining. Its main trading partners are Brazil and China. It's been importing oil and gas from Venezuela but is working toward energy independence by harnessing wind power.
We move through the "Gold Coast" of waterfront into the Uruguayan countryside, en route to a winery. On the way, we see groups of slum dwellings that appeared to have been around long enough to have a sense of organization, with dirt roads and street layouts. Sometimes you could tell that the residents of these settlements were gradually improving their very modest properties. Still, the poverty we saw was disappointing. Our guide assures us that all Uruguayans, regardless of status, know that their laws protect everybody.
We reach the winery and we are in another world--an upper-class world, as opposed to the poor, middle and upper-middle class worlds we have seen so far. The winery, an outgrowth of a family bakery business started by Italian immigrants over a century ago, is beautifully designed and maintained. Our visit includes a tour of the owner's private museum of antique cars and motorcycles, a visit to the winery and the vineyards, a tasting of four wine varieties, and a lunch that includes sautéed vegetables, beef, lamb, wonderful breads, and dulce de leche (caramel) flan for dessert. Delicioso! The meal is accompanied by live music and tango dancing--we learn that Uruguayans and Argentinians share this lively tradition. Throughout our time at the winery we are able to observe Uruguayan and other South American visitors as they spend a day off in the beautiful countryside enjoying the music, sipping wine and dining on the region's simple but extraordinary cuisine.
We purchase 2 bottles of wine - including a Merlo Tannat - which has notes of berry, tobacco, and chocolate - one of the wines from the tasting. The ship has a policy that they will wave the "corkage fee" if you have been on a sponsored visit to a vineyard. The ship makes money by selling drinks, and if you bring in your own liquor, they charge you a service charge. Still, that's better than their holding the wine until the end of the trip. The vineyard is "Bouza". You may be able to find it in the US.
Alas, no wifi was available during our tour. We look forward to two days in Buenos Aires, coming up next, expecting that such a large city would surely be more connected to the outside world.
No comments:
Post a Comment