From Punta del Este we took the 2-hour bus to Montevideo, our final destination in Uruguay. It’s the capital and the largest city in Uruguay with almost one-third of the country's total population. The city also lies on the Rio de la Plata bank, so on the opposite site than Buenos Aires and only the river is between them. The origin of the name Montevideo refers directly to the Cerro de Montevideo, the hill situated near the city. It was originally called "Monte VI De Este a Oeste", meaning "Sixth Mountain from East to West", because the Spaniards, the people who created the city, identified its geographical location as the sixth (VI) mountain visible on the coast, flowing down the Rio de la Plata river from east to west, referring to the highest point of the city. Over time, these words were standardised to “Montevideo”. The main purpose of creation of the city was to counteract the Portuguese advance into this area that regarding the Treaty of Tordesillas belong to Spain, the agreement signed on 1494 that divided the newly discovered lands outside Europe between the Portuguese Empire and the Spanish Empire. In later years, the city was also affected by the Brazilian-Argentinian war, until it finally became the capital of the fully independent state of Uruguay in 1830.
On our first day, we explored the city, focusing on its most important part, the centre. We started with Plaza Independence, the Plaza Independence, the most important square in Montevideo, which houses some of the most famous buildings such as Palacio Salvo, Teatro Solís and Palacio Estévez, the old home of the President. The one listed first was originally intended to be a hotel, but unfortunately this didn't materialise and has since been occupied by a mixture of offices and private residences. At the time it was the tallest building in Latin America. Interestingly, it was designed by the same architect, Mario Palanti, who used a similar design in his Palacio Barolo in Buenos Aires. It's also funny that the president has moved to another building that was built right next to the old one, and the Uruguayan president is the only one in the world that doesn't have guards, so it's easy to spot him and meet him in person on a bench outside his office. It just shows that people here are very friendly. In the middle of Independence Square is a statue of Jose Gervasio Artigas, who is considered the father of Uruguay because he led the nation to independence. Interestingly, below the monument is a mausoleum where his mortal remains rest and which is free of charge. This is just one of many museums that are free in the city. You just have to take into account that they are all only open 4 hours a day. The next day we visited the southern district, which is directly on the river, and walked the entire promenade up to the famous Montevideo sign. Along the way we noticed many runners and organised sports groups. It seems that sport is a really important part of the lives of the people there. Another thing we saw almost everywhere was Mate tea, which is a traditional South American drink rich in caffeine because almost everyone drinks it all the time, and a cup is the third most important thing to take with you when you leave home, right after your phone and wallet. It is definitely the national drink of Uruguay and is served in a hollow calabash gourd with a "Bombilla", a special metallic drinking straw. It is often drunk with friends while enjoying the sunset. You can also add Alfajor, which is a traditional dessert that is super sweet. Both the food and drinks are very good there and throughout the country, but the prices are quite high. This just confirmed our assumption that countries south of Brazil are more expensive and those in the north are cheaper. Nevertheless, we really enjoyed the Uruguayan culture and it was a good place to end our LATAM trip. After these forty days of travelling and visiting five new countries, it was time to go back to Rio for a while to soak up the sun or catch the last waves in South America!