MONTEVIDEO, URUGUAY (DAY TWO)
…I had hoped a good nights sleep would make me feel better… it didn’t.
I feel worse than yesterday. At least we don’t have any tours today.
Despite feeling grotty (the concentration of overall snottyness has moved from my right nostril to my left), we were determined to see what Montevideo had to offer, having seen very little of it yesterday because of having been out on an eight-hour excursion.
We really liked it.
There’s a relaxed, slightly melancholic easiness to the place, which is such a relief after the busy-busy mad streets of Rio and Buenos Aires. There was more than a vague smilarity to Havanna (which is another place that we instantly loved); the people are friendly, and the pace is unhurried.
There are three things Uruguaians are passionate about; football, Tango (the dance, not the fizzy drink) and Mate (pronounced matt-ey). Oscar, my guide yesterday, explained that people in Uruguay will often be seen carrying a small round pot with a metallic straw-type contraption and a flask of hot water, usually, but not always, carried around in a specially designed pouch to hold both. Mate is a fusion of herbs and leaves similar to tea or coffee, which also has high levels of caffeine. It is ground down into a fine grey-looking powder and placed inside the small round pot. Hot water is poured over it, and then the resulting drink is supped through the metal straw (usually made of silver), which has small holes at the bottom end to filter out the leaves.
Walking around Montevideo, we saw people carrying mate pots around with them everywhere, usually with the pot and straw held in one hand, and the flask held in the other, or tucked under the arm.
Fascinated by all this, and after Googling the ingredients to check that it doesn’t include Marijuana, we just had to purchase one of the pots and a straw for ourselves, from one of the many shops in the Downtown district, almost all of which were selling them. We’ve yet to try it out yet, but I will, of course, report on our findings just as soon as we’ve had the opportunity (I need to feel a lot better before we do that).
Many of the buildings featured old, ornate iron balconies that had seen better days, and our walking route took us to several small squares, which were full of green trees and bustling with interesting craft stalls. There were buskers playing guitars and violins, and I was even approached in the largest square by a poet. I knew he was a poet because as he approached me, he told me so, and then started reciting a poem to me. I thanked him, but explained that I wasn’t in the market for prose today, and all I could offer him for his art would be a snot-riddled tissue.
On our way back to the ship, we were captivated by three drummers who made an absolutely fantastic sound, and another larger group of musicians who really gave the place a carnival atmosphere.
It’s been hot today, but a more bearable heat than what we’ve had to endure over the past few days. Having said that; two Magnum-style ice creams that we bought had melted away into mushy oblivion before we’d even got them out of the shop.
There were art galleries galore, and we enjoyed picking our favourite paintings and styles, and wondering how on earth we could possibly get them home with us (the ones we particularly like were massive… and very expensive) – just as well they were way beyond our budget.
Eventually, we returned to the ship, having decided that we really like Montevideo.
Sadly, I still felt mega-grotty and couldn’t face lunch in Marco’s Bistro, so I’ve spent the afternoon mopsing around the cabin in the hope that my cold gets better very soon. Tracey brought me sandwiches from the bistro (which I woofed down, so I’m not without an appetite), and by the time dinner time came around, there might even have been a mild improvement.
Tomorrow, we are back at sea, as we head towards our next port-of-call, Stanley, in the Falklands. Fortunately, it isn’t a class-day for me, so I’ll have the whole day to get better, ready for the sea-day after that.
