The first part of my Uruguayan adventure took me to the pleasant little town of Colonia, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This city, founded by the Portuguese in 1680, played a major strategic role in the struggle against the Spanish conquistadors. Its well- preserved architecture perfectly illustrates the fusion between Portuguese, Spanish and post-colonial styles. Rather like Paraty this town is filled with old colonial buildings and cobblestone streets. It is a place of immense beauty and despite its UNESCO status doesn´t appear to be overpopulated with tourists, something which adds to the places´s charm.
After a relaxing afternoon in this delightful town I took a short 2 hour bus journey to Montevideo, the nation´s capital. Here I visited Estadio Centenario, the city´s main football stadium. This isn´t just any sports ground however, it is the birthplace of the Football World Cup, playing host to the first ever World Cup Final in 1930 when Uruguay defeated their bitter rivals Argentina by a score of 4−2. Eighty years on this stadium is showing its age a lot. Much of the exterior of the ground is decorated with graffiti, many of the seats in the stands are adequate at best and a far cry from what you would witness at Croke Park or Wembley Stadium. A few of the nosebleed seats are so dilapidated they are actually a health hazard, designed in the form of stone benches, with the spectators feet dangling over a ten foot drop. In addition almost the entire stadium is completely exposed to the elements with just a tiny section of the ground with roof cover. But these deficiencies only add to the historical significance of the place. It gives one a sense of what it must have felt like all those years ago when footballing history was made.
The Centenario also has a very impressive museum dedicated to the history of Uruguayan football, with a significant section in honour of the 1930 World Cup held in this very city. I got a glimpse of the 1930 and 1950 replicas of the famous Jules Rimet Trophy won by Uruguay on both occasions. Sadly the original trophy no longer exists, stolen from Brazil in 1981 and rumoured to have been melted down.
Football aside, this city is a bit of a mixed bag. On the plus side there is the Chivito, a sandwich style national dish of Uruguay. The contents to this little piece of food heaven are: steak, bacon, egg, ham, cheese, served in a bun. Other ingredients such as grilled onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, along with almost any type of sauce can be added if requested. It is literally a steak sandwich with anything and everything to accompany it, and is so filling all you want to do afterwards is pass out.
A disappointing aspect of the city however is that it offers very little in the way of picturesque architecture. There is an ´Old Town´ district in this city, however it is very unremarkable and at times the buildings can be a bit of an eyesore. Certainly a far cry from the spectacular ´Gamla Stan´ in Stockholm.
The lack of beautiful buildings however did bring about a humorous piece of dialogue between myself and a local woman, in her mid to late 40´s:
Me: Where can I find the old town
Woman: This is the old town, you are here
Me: Really??
Woman: What are you looking for?
Me: Nice, beautiful buildings
Woman (Pointing at unattractive building currently being redeveloped): Beautiful old buildings all around, see?
Me (Confused): eh???
Woman: What you expect, this Montevideo, not New York!
Me: Is there anywhere around here that resembles the nice buildings in Colonia?
Woman (clearly getting her words mixed up): No, it very difficult. Colonia yes, nice buildings. Here it not possible.
In spite of the dour architecture my overall experience of Uruguay has been very positive. Good food and very welcoming and helpful people. If every country provides that then I will be one happy man.
Tonight I take a night bus and boat combo and arrive in Buenos Aires at 7.30am, to begin 3 weeks of tango, steak and wine.
Chau
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