Uruguay Experiences, Stories & Photos from a Backpacker

Experiences & Stories:

The easy going nature of the Uruguayan people make Uruguay a fun place to travel. Montevideo is a city where many interesting sights can be seen! On a friday night in Montevideo you may see couples dancing in the street to music, by day the old city is an amazing area to walk and wander down to the sea to see all the fishermen and woman on the wharf. On saturday and sunday visit the huge market or see inside the cathedral.

I spent 4 days in Uruguay in 2008, I enjoyed Montevideo a lot and from there I travelled directly north to Rivera on the border of Brazil. Here are my experiences and story.

Buenos Aires to Montevideo: I caught the ferry from Buenos Aires across the Rio de la Plata to Colonia del Sacramento in Uruguay and got a bus down to Montevideo. 1 hour on the ferry and 2 hrs on the bus. This part of the Rio de la Plata is very murky and brown due to erosion and other activities, I don't think there would be anything living down there. More

Montevideo: I was looking forward to visiting Montevideo, I arrived on a friday afternoon, in time for the weekend markets and religious events and to explore the old city Ciudad Vieja and whatever else the city had to offer. After settling into my hostel in the center of town, I went up to the main street and had a look around, plaza's and statues, shops and restaurants. More

Rivera: I came to Rivera from Montevideo which took 6hrs by bus, the reason I came here is because I drew a straight line from Montevideo to Puerto Iguazu in Argentina during my very first trip to South America and I decided to go for this direct route approach. More

Photos:




Hamburguesa con queso, completo... Inside the cathedral in Montevideo during a service. Rock and stone ornaments at a market in Montevideo. Impressive building in Montevideo. Pais Productivo. Justicia Socail. Menos Dependencia. 1001 PCU. Montevideo.
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Recommended Things To Do:

Visit the capital city Montevideo on a weekend and wander through the amazing old city for half a day, see the huge market and religous ceremonies, see people dancing in the street on a friday night. View amazing buildings and statues.

See romantic couples by the shore at night with their flasks of tea in Montevideo.

Travel up the eastern coast through fishing villages.

Visit the dual Uruguayan/Brazilian city of Rivera/Santana do Livramento and jump from Uruguay into Brazil and back.

Eat lots of food, especially if you like bbq meat, ensalada and pasta.

Visa Requirements:

Links:
Uruguay - Wikipedia
Lonely Planet
Weather for Uruguayan Cities
Art Prints and Posters
Infoplease
Travel Blogs
Montevideo Living Blog
Newspapers
Backpacking South America
Blog: Inside South America

Find Accommodation:

Videos:

Antiques Market in Montevideo

People Waltzing in the Street of Montevideo

On the Border of Uruguay & Brazil

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My Hostel & Hotel Reviews:

Red Hostel Montevideo, Montevideo, Uruguay (Mar 2008 - 2 nights) - I thought it was nice with a great central location. They put on a bbq for all the guests up on the roof area and I enjoyed meeting some cool people, we all went out on the town afterwards. Perfect for me. booking

Maps:

Satellite View

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Uruguay Map

Festivals and Holidays in Uruguay during March:

Month	Date	When	Festival / Holiday	Where / Location
February/March			Carnaval and Las Llamadas	Montevideo, National
March		Second week of March	La Fiesta Patria Gaucha (The Festival of the Gaucho Culture)	Tacuarembo

Yearlong Festivals and Holidays of Uruguay