A “big rig” camper from Montevideo.
And a converted bus camper from Argentina.
They seem so quaint when you compare them to the European campers!
Also not German
Not German
When I spotted this rig, past experience dictated that its inhabitants would speak German.
“BL” seems like it would indicate Belgium, which has a small German-speaking population.
But in fact it indicates the Bratislava district of Slovakia.
Pretty well traveled:_____, Peru, Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Czech Republic, _____, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Spain, Finland, Luxembourg, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, Germany, Gibraltar, _____, Norway. Starting upper left, diagonally down to the right, any idea what those three are?
Anyway, in true Euro travel style, it appears equipped for anything.
I still chuckle when I see these massive fuel-guzzling monsters, remembering this.
The medicine that mocks me
Several days ago I got inspired by bench dips, and decided to add a few to my daily strength routine.
Great exercise! But then, after 24 hours, my right wrist — apparently not as flexible as the left — hurt enough that I didn’t do them again. The day after that, the pain was gone, so I did a few more. No pain, just a new stress on shoulder and upper pectoral muscles. Great exercise! But again, 24 hours later, more pain. And this time crazy swelling. Tendons not happy. Visit to doctor. X-ray. Wrist splint, ice, topical anti-inflammatory/analgesic. And anti-inflammatory medicine —
— which seems to be reminding me, if somewhat in the manner of a seventh-grader, that someone in his 60s might be better off not launching into exercises demonstrated by 20-somethings as if he himself were 20-something.
On the plus side, in a couple days I’ve gotten pretty damn good at typing with my left hand, and using a mouse lefty as well. Keypad usage is a bit problematic, but left-handed mousing could be a useful skill combined with right-handed keypadding.
Meanwhile, can’t wait ‘til this heals enough to try bench dips again.
How did this happen?
Maybe we bought a blender and it burned out.
Maybe we bought one from Tim and Loren when they returned to the land of the Untied Snakes.
Syd and Gundy gave us one when they were cleaning out storage space. Which I burned up trying to grind up eggshells for the compost pile (thanks for that idea, cuzzie ;-).
So now I’m sort of doing the same. I’m reading The Joy of Less and loving it. Because of our frequent moves in the past — 10 in a 21-year period from 1986 — including two overseas, we’ve done a lot of paring down.* However, even in a non-consumerist culture like Uruguay, the stuff piles up once you settle.
When we made hummus the other day, I dragged out our two blender bases, both of which are pretty heavy duty. One didn’t work at all (ah, another project!). The other did the job. But then a day later a third blender top surfaced. Do we need three? They seem to be sort-of-but-not-quite interchangeable.
And then, when was the last time we used the blender?
Perhaps in 2016. Perhaps not.
There’s something distinctly non-minimalist going on here!
* three of us moving from Mexico: about ten suitcases, three pet carriers (2 trips), plus a single pallet shipped from Houston with 16 cartons, a floor lamp, and a BMX bike.
Uruguay and computers
Some interesting things going on in little Uruguay. A couple of reads:
New York Times: Uruguay Video Game Startups
Uruguay’s One Laptop Per Child Program (thanks Marcos Cristoforo Mercer)
Related: my blog about CIEBAL, Uruguay’s OLPC program
An electrical issue
We had episodes like this all day. Then I heard simultaneous zapping noises from the line outside. A friend called the electric company for us and explained it was centelleando (sparking, which she said would get them here quickly, and sure enough within thirty minutes a brand new UTE Ford pickup appeared. I pointed toward the line and that’s where I heard it. Up ladder, new connector, and chau. All normal again.
The Yacht Club
We had lunch the other day at a restaurant overlooking the Arroyo Solís Chico, opposite the Yacht Club Parque del Plata, near the statue of Ruperto. Several kids were learning to sail in tiny boats in the mild breeze.
You’ve probably guessed this already, but I has to walk around the back to see more. Not a Yacht in sight.
Curious to learn more about their activities, I discovered that they have a web site. There are no yachts there either. I’ve written before about the pathetic state of some web sites in Uruguay: take, for example, the national oil company. Try this link: ancap.com.uy. Now type www. at the beginning and hit return. Kinda takes ya back twenty years, no? That’s Uruguay.
But the Yacht Club Solis Chico takes the web to a new level: see for yourself!
The elementary school experience in Uruguay
Newcomers from California have posted a blog entry about their experience with rural Uruguayan elementary school. I’ve posted before about the umm, unusual school uniforms here. Here’s the explanation.
“The public school uniform in Uruguay has been like this since the beginning of the century, with every child wearing the white dust cover and the blue bow. The reason for the uniform is to make it almost impossible to make fun or to comment about the quality, level of maintenance, or brand of the clothing underneath. It was a democratic and egalitarian effort to make every child look the same way with non-expensive clothes, and equalize opportunities. That is the spirit even today. The size of the bows, is just a tradition. Private schools do not follow this same tradition, but do each have their own uniforms.”
We absolutely love the tradition. Our kids don’t feel embarrassed wearing them since all the other children wear them. They do take them off as soon as we get home, but it’s nice not to have to worry about what they are going to wear at school.
I highly recommend reading the whole article: Escuela Rural on the Waystages blog (waystages.com/?p=106)
20190709 update: apparently a one-year wonder. This of February 2017 appears to have been their last blog entry, celebrated by their last meaningful Twitter post. Their Youtube channel ended shortly after their arrival in 2016. Their Facebook page went cold in November 2017. Well, best of luck to you wherever you are!
Some Atlántida architecture and history
It was a beautiful day Monday for taking pictures.
Atlántida started in 1911 as a summer playground for wealthy Montevideans, and the architecture reflects that.
Along the Rambla La Mansa:
There are a number of whimsical houses, including this one that I’ve never seen occupied on the Rambla La Brava:
And then there’s Edificio El Planeta.
First, a quick Spanish lesson: el planeta means the planet, and it seems like it should be la planeta. There a few Spanish words that don’t play well with rules.
Built in the 1930s in just one year (did Uruguayans once work fast?), it served as Planeta Palace Hotel until 1954. It looks like a ship preparing to steam out to sea, and was very fancy in its day, with private baths, hot water, and heating (heating? In Uruguay?). After the hotel’s closure, it was divided and sold as propiedad horizontal (i.e., condos). It was declared a national historical monument in 2005.
Beautiful new winery
Guest post by Syd Blackwell
Ruta 12 carves an up-and-down path through the hills of Maldonado, northwest of the resort area of Punta del Este. It is a most beautiful road for a scenic drive. Just four kilometers south of the tiny village of Pueblo Edén, high on one of those hills, is Viña Edén, a winery. The owner is Brazilian, and a passionate oenophile.
The property is huge, but a mere seven hectares are devoted to grapes. The rest has been, and will continue to be, displayed in the natural beauty of this greenest of Uruguayan areas. The views are magnificent. The emphasis here is on quality, not quantity.
We had not pre-booked a visit. We only learned of the winery during a visit to Lote 8, an olive oil farm, located just north of Pueblo Edén. Naturally, we seized the opportunity to see the winery. They are open from 11:00 to 20:30 daily and can easily accommodate unannounced arrivals.
The road that has been created to reach the operations, is already quite a marvel, as it steeply climbs the rocky hillside. The stunning building at the top is sheathed in a deliberately rusting metal, a very natural-looking colour. The windows are immense, maximizing the views. We were immediately greeted by an employee, on the wide terrace in front of the building that looks across the beautiful landscape.
We were offered a tasting tour, a tasting tour with a meal, or, a simple tour without tastings or meal. We chose the last. The tours with tastings or meal are, we think, quite expensive. We are used to free tastings at wineries. Our tour cost US$45 for a party of four, with nothing offered but words. At the end of our tour, we received an IVA discount, that reduced the price down to approximately $8 per person. The tasting tour, with snacks, costs $45 per person and the tasting + meal tour is priced at $65 per person. If one were attracted to the menu, and the idea of a chef-prepared mid-day meal, I suppose the last choice is a better value than the tasting tour, where the snacks did not look impressive or plentiful. However, when we had a chance to peruse the menu at the end of our tour, we did not think it remarkable enough to fit the asking price. Of course, we had not tasted the wines that would be offered with the meal.
The wines they produce are, as is the operation, of unique and excellent quality. As listed on their website, they are: Tannat Reserva 2015 for $1080 pesos (USD 38), Chardonnay 2015 for $810 (USD29), Cerro Negro Gran Reserva 2013, and Methode Champenoise, both priced at $1350 (USD48). Without a tasting, we were unwilling to buy any of these expensive products. However, other visitors at the winery clearly were partaking of both the tasting tour or the dining tour, and were purchasing bottles of wine following their tours.
The workings of the winery are all sparkling and new. It only opened for the public in this format in December 2016. On the night before our visit, they had a social event with live music at the winery. They are planning on more events in the future.
We were impressed with the incredible cleanliness and on the emphasis to deliver a pure product with the minimum of evasive processes or ingredients. For example, the flow through the system fully utilizes gravity and not pumps, which they told us, traumatize the wine. They are also completely aware of the soils and climate that contribute to their wines.
While we were not purchasers, the visit was well worth our time. We think this valley and this winery are beautiful. We will bring other visitors.
Further information can be found at the website: https://www.vinaeden.com/
Photos by Syd Blackwell