Unfortunately, all I got in Uruguay was rainy days 🙁 Despite the rains, tried to sight-see as much as I could.
A taxi in Montevideo … They are pretty reasonable and easy to catch.Uruguayan Peso … (UYU). 1 UYU == 2.16 INR. Uruguay has a GDP of only around 80 Billion USD. Their currency looks solid though 🙂Palacio Salvo … This 330ft tall building, was once upon a time, the tallest building in South America!Plaza Independencia is dominated by this huge statue of Jose Artigas Arnal …Jose Artigas Arnal’s remains are guarded 24/7. Artigas was an Uruguayan Independence Hero …Joaquín Torres-Garcia. The great man at work … He did his work in Uruguay, Spain, USA, France and Italy …Torres-Garcia painting …One of Torres-Garcia’s paintings … Torres Garcia was a famous Spanish/Uruguayan Artist/Sculptor/Novelist/Teacher/Etc. (Man, he did a lot of things!) … Torres-Garcia had quite a few folks he did not admire. He made weird paintings of those folks, like this one.There were a lot of book shops, like this one, in the Old City … Of course, almost all of them were empty. Maybe the rains …Teatro Solis … The shows are pretty nominally priced. The government is doing all it can to encourage people to patronize Performing Arts over movies … They invite folks from various towns of Uruguay, all expenses paid, to visit Teatro Solis.A beautiful, but water-less, fountain … 🙂 At Plaza Matriz.Metropolitan Cathedral from outside …Inside Metropolitan Cathedral … Near Plaza Matriz.An interesting building … During the walk (In heavy rains!) through Ciudad Vieja … (“Old City”)An intricate candle stand … At Palacio Taranco, Montevideo, Uruguay.Now, that is a painting I really like …The full view of the interesting painting at Palacio Taranco … This former private residence of a wealthy family is now an Architectural and Decorative Arts Museum.The central portion of this interesting painting at Palacio Taranco … This former private residence of a wealthy family is now an Architectural and Decorative Arts Museum.Mercado del Puerto … From outside.I settled on a Chorizo for 1st course … Had some red wine as well. Eating meat, while being surrounded by a lot of meat 🙂Lunch getting prepared. @Mercado del Puerto. They had various cuts of meats and fish …This Paella vendor (Remember, Uruguay has a strong Spanish influence) kept looking out longingly at each passing person … He did not have a SINGLE customer during the 1hr I took for my lunch … And it was peak lunch time! Man, business needs thick skin … 🙁Inside Mercado del Puerto … The indoor food court and market. I bought several souvenirs from here. It was nice to be indoors from all that rain.The Port of Montevideo … By now, it was pouring and I was shivering 🙂 But the workers of the port were going about their business as if it was a sunny and warm day!Alfajores … Popular in Uruguay also. I am all sweetened out for now (Not a huge sweets/desserts person and have already had one too many Alfajores in Argentina) … Skipped this store.It was a real lousy day, weather-wise. The rain never let up! After hanging around in the hotel till noon (As I have a cold/cough), I had enough and ventured out with an umbrella. The old city in Montevideo has very interesting buildings …Inside Teatro Solis … The theater was getting ready for a show later in the evening. There are 7 levels in the theater.The students (Tour Guides) at Teatro Solis. As an amateur, it appeared that Teatro Solis is no way comparable to Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires. The male student was really funny and made us all crack up several times. There were people from India (Yo), Germany, Brazil, USA and Columbia for the tour.Uruguayan flag in full glory … “Solis” (Sun) apparently holds a lot of significance for the country. There is a theory that Teatro Solis is named for the Sun.The waiting hall at the Bus Depot cum Shopping Mall at Montevideo (Tres Cruces) …Had this bad boy during the bus ride …The Buquebus bus which brought us to Colonia del Sacramento from Montevideo. The bus just flew as if going for some speed record.
