Feb 19 - Montevideo, Uraguay

SANDY SHORE : Montevideo (pronounced “va-DAY-oh”) is Uruguay’s capital and largest city. It sits atop the Rio de Plata and is often referred to as a smaller, more manageable Buenos Aires.

We walked into the little village near the port… about a 10-minute walk from the ship. I call it the hottest 10 minutes of my life. The sun is super intense in Uruguay; my goodness! Montevideo is where I learned once and for all to just let go and give in. It’s as if my skin pores were opened up as wide as possible and perspiration was pouring out like water from a faucet. It wasn’t just me, everyone had pink, shiny faces. Even Donna’s dad who is a lizard about heat, he loves it… he admitted that it was a “warm one.”

Donna and I ventured into the commerce area and noticed a lot of matè tea drinkers, painters, vendors, musicians and really alluring outdoor cafes serving fresh seafood. We wandered around the village, purchased a few trinkets, snapped a few pics and ate what was probably the best food thus far on our adventure. “Roman-style” calamari (fried), a grilled provolone cheese with herbs and spices and a lovely Chilean salmon served with fresh garlic and olive oil. Wonderful!

We continued so perspire throughout lunch and then I climbed 3 flights of stairs to use the Damas room… I think I just lost consciousness when I blurted out from the stall for all to hear, “I am so effing hot!” Just to be clear, I was referring to temperature. I have been to Rome in August, Fresno in July and have danced in a steamy disco in Puerto Rico, but I’m telling you that this is the HOTTEST I’ve ever been. We slithered back to the ship with very pleasant memories of Uruguay… a lovely country with a really cool flag.

One of my most favorite discoveries here was the beer Patricia. My mom’s name is Patricia (she preferred “Patt”). She used to write me letters and cards, nearly ever month or so, with advice and suggestions and she’d sign off “Mother Patricia” (rhyming it with Teresa). I loved it, probably didn’t always tell her that because I didn’t always appreciate her timing -- I used to like to think that I was always on-track, despite her subtle disagreements. I remember one note… the last one in fact, where she wrote under this nom de’plume, she said that since I wasn’t really paying attention to her, she wasn’t going to write anymore as Mother Patricia, but she hoped that I would make the best choices possible. I know she was always proud of me, if not for my choices, for my heart and I’m sure she knows on some level how much those cards meant to me and how much I love her. ~ss

DONNA KAY PHILLIPS : This Uraguayan port is basically a smaller version of Buenos Aires. Having pushed pretty hard the previous two days, we stuck close to the Puerto Mercado (Port Market) where we found local artists interesting and the local food very appealing and fresh.

The local beer here is a Pilsner style, served in grandé bottles), called Patricia (Sandy's mother's name). A few choice bottles have been saved as souvenirs. I keep defining these ports by their beer mainly for my friends in beer, Roxayne and Larry. I hope I am doing you proud and am thoroughly enjoying the task.

I found the locals very friendly and accommodating and with the exchange rate being around 35 to 1, there were some great deals to be had. We found amazing leather pouches, some may say "purses" but they're not. I have been enchanted by the local artwork since our stroll down Caminito in BA. I succeeded in finding a local water color painter called Alvaro Saralegui Rosé. He was painting an South American looking man sipping Maté and after watching him for a few minutes, I decided to glance through his pieces. We found a few that we liked but Sandy really fancied the one he was in the process of painting, so we went to lunch and he finished it up for us a little while later. It doesn't get anymore original than that. He and his wife were very charming as they endured my awkward string of spanish nouns. I actually realized that I am able to "get by" in Spanish speaking countries, thanks in part to our friend Lisa Watson, who inspires us with her fluent Spanish each time we travel with her to Playa del Carmen, Mexico.

My father and his friends toured Montevideo on an old steam engine train and motorcoach and saw much more of this beautiful destination than we did although we were very happy simply hanging out in the town talking with the locals, listening to the Samba drummers amble by as we drank our beer and ate local Roman-style Squid and Chilean Wild Caught Salmon.

Today I would normally be running through my daily pattern, it's so cool to drop in on someone else's daily pattern, lighting down like a moth watching the days go by from anywhere on the planet. In these cities, they do not have all of the products or comforts that we are used to in the U.S., but they do not necessarily know that they are missing these things. This live is simpler, more basic and there is a strong sense of survival. They live with less, somehow I think this is an asset in a changing world.

I can safely say that I probably never would have visited Uruguay in my life if not for this trip, and I am so glad that we were able to experience Montevideo. -dkp