We arrived in this beautiful beach town on a Sunday morning, so most museums and stores were closed. Consequently, we decided to take a lengthy, all-day tour out of town to the UNESCO World Heritage site of Colonia del Sacramento. It was about a 2-1/2 hour bus ride to the site so our guide filled the time by sharing some facts about her country. She said that Uruguay is the second smallest country in Latin America. Their population is also quite small. They won their independence from Brazil in 1825. It is divided into 19 departments with middle class families making up about 65% of the population. Beef is an important product of their economy and is exported to over 100 countries. They are very proud that their cattle are raised on the open range and eat only fresh corn and grass. The people of Uruguay have the highest consumption of beef in the world. Wine is becoming an increasingly important product for the country. Tannat and Merlot are the major wines produced in the area. The wines here are lighter in body than the ones produced in the south of France. Our guide told us that the physicians here recommend that people drink two glasses of wine a day for good health. Wonder if they all own vineyards!!!! There are three traditions in Uruguay: 1) Gauchos ride through the countryside on their horses wearing high boots with spurs, baggy pants and shirts, a scarf for a belt and a wide brimmed hat with a flat top; 2) everyone barbecues. It's a family dining favorite; and 3) Yerba tea. We saw many people, both men and women, carrying around a thermos filled with tea and a manta (cup) from which to drink. Seems like a bulky item to carry under the arm all day but we saw many people carrying them.
I asked our guide about religion in Uruguay. She said that this country is probably the least religious place in South America. About 45% of the people identify themselves as Catholic but 40% of the population do not identify with any religion. Consequently, there are relatively few churches in Uruguay. The one church in this village was originally built in 1730. However, during the war of independence a priest was hiding explosives inside the church. Unfortunately, there was a fire in the church, the explosives caused a major explosion and the church was destroyed. It was rebuilt by the Spaniards in the 18th century and continues to be used for services on Sunday mornings. The interior of the church is quite plain compared to other churches we have seen in South America or Europe. Our guide explained that this sparse interior design reflected the casual attitude of the local people towards religion.
It was immediately apparent that Uruguay is a country filled with active people. We passed beautiful sandy beaches with people running, biking, sailing, surfing and sun bathing. People appeared to really enjoy being outdoors. A large river runs next to the town of Montevideo and it was surprising for us to see a combination of a grass strip next to the road, then a lovely sandy beach. Cars drove right up on the grass and parked while they enjoyed the shore. Picnic tables lined the shady areas and many families were out enjoying the beautiful weather.
Our bus was trying to get to the old bull fighting stadium but it was difficult because many streets were closed due to a major bike race. Luckily, our driver was able to take back roads to get to the location. The stadium is now in ruins but still maintains its elegance and charm. It was built in the Moorish Spanish style and was filled with large, but graceful arches and beautiful columns. This beautiful stadium was quite expensive to build but unfortunately the people of the area weren't very interested in watching bull fights. Three years after it opened bull fighting became illegal and the magnificent stadium was abandoned. After suffering extensive damage from earthquakes, as well as neglect, this stadium is now in ruins. So very sad.
We finally arrived at our destination for the day, the charming village of Colonia del Sacramento, which is Uruguay's oldest city The early Portuguese painted only in yellow and pink so the original structures that remain are painted in those colors. The tiles, made of clay, were made by prisoners and slave immigrants. Spaniards later arrived in this village and added to the existing buildings with red brick, so many structures have stone on the base and bricks on the upper levels. The oldest surviving structure in the village was a monastery with rough stone walls. Unfortunately, due to the deteriorated condition of the building we were unable to enter.
We continued walking through the cobblestone streets. A few of the original streets have been left intact to remind visitors of the difficult conditions of the roads during the early years. We walked carefully along the streets, examining each step before we planted our foot. Although it took some effort to maneuver our way, the walk was quite pleasant. The lanes were alive, teeming with art galleries, tiny restaurants and store windows decorated with a myriad of hand-made local crafts. The hard scape is softened with numerous trees and flora. We passed on particularly attractive group of plants which had intertwined to create a wall of cactus, avocado and bougainvillea. Quite striking. The most interesting tree we saw is called the "drunken tree" by the local residents. It is a type of silk floss tree and is unique because the trunk bulges in the lower one third, sometimes to a diameter of seven feet! Quite a unique look! There was an abundance of beautiful yellow hibiscus flowers blooming in the yards.
After our delightful walking tour through the streets of this charming colonial village we settled in for lunch at a lovely local restaurant, located just off the main town square and park. We sat in the courtyard with an open roof in the middle. A large tree provided a lovely shade canopy with its lush foliage. There was a refreshing cool breeze blowing through the ourtyard which helped create a comfortable environment in which to enjoy our lunch. There were pops of color everywhere we looked. The table linens were red and orange and there were plants hanging everywhere. Sconces were filled with candles or, in some cases, flowers. Decorative brass colored plates were hanging on the walls scattered throughout the courtyard. Lunch was absolutely delicious. We had an opportunity to taste the famous beef, which was quite delectable. Bob asked for a beer and they brought him a quart bottle! Needless to say, he didn't finish it, otherwise he would have fallen off of this chair.
Once we finished lunch we had some time to walk around and shop or explore the town independently. We did a bit of shopping to purchase our magnet and an interesting hand carved, painted mask from Carnival that took place in the village last weekend. I was getting tired but Bob was anxious to see if there were any more interesting photo shots so he "parked" me under a beautiful shade tree in the park and took off to go exploring.
Soon it was time for us to leave so we started walking toward the bus. All of a sudden we heard a woman scream loudly! Our guide went running to the back of our group. As it turned out, the ship's escort was walking and suddenly fell forward onto the cobblestone street, doing a complete face plant! He was surrounded immediately by local guides who called for an ambulance. Our guide asked us to continue walking to the bus and wait for her. After about 45 minutes our guide arrived at the bus with our escort. The doctors had arrived on the scene, conducted a brief evaluation, cleaned and patched up his cuts and scrapes, and determined that he had just fainted due to dehydration. Ship personnel always remind us to be aware of the dangers of dehydration but it's the first time one of us has suffered such a dramatic effect! They sent an additional cruise ship escort with us on the ride back to the port just to keep an eye on him, but he appeared to be fine - just extremely embarrassed by the incident. Certainly encouraged all of us to take water with us whenever we leave the ship for the day! We arrived at the ship without further incidents after our 2-1/2 bus ride It was a long way to travel for this excursion but definitely worth the effort to visit this charming, quaint village. Next stop will be at a popular beach resort in Uruguay.
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