Montevideo

I feel like I am in a time warp. Montevideo immediately struck me with its preponderance of 60's mod architecture. Sure there is lots of other stuff - the big ornate neoclassiscal stuff that dominates Buenos Aires as well as some other generic type architecture, but when you see this 60's mod stuff, it is very apparent. I think it many places it has been replaced with something new. I like that it is still here. It reminds me of my youth and going to the 5 and 10 to buy Christmas presents.

I have noticed some other differences between Montevideo and Buenos Aires. These are first impressions based on a quick walk from my hotel to the old city and may or may not be true.

1. Fewer people smoke. This is a nice change. I didn't notice it until I saw some people standing outside of a building smoking. Then I realized I didn't have the people walking in front of me blowing their second hand smoke my way. I guess people don't walk and smoke as much as they do in Buenos Aires.

2. People are fatter. I have seen some rather large people, like really unhealthily obese. I wonder if it has anything to do with these chivitos, which seem to be everywhere. I had my one chivito experience in Colonia and I think that was enough. Chivitos are steak with a fried egg and any or all of the following - cheese, french fries, potato salad, bacon, ham - in addition to being an artery clogging mess, no wonder people are heavy.

3. The cartoneros ride horses. Again, I don't know if this is true, but I saw three different cartoners with horses and carts.

4. Pedestrians have the right of way. Again, I might be misreading this, but it does seem to me that cars actually stop when a pedestrian is in the walkway.

So far I like Montevideo. It is colder here than in Buenos Aires and seems a little more down at heel, if that is even possible. I think the 60's architecture is proof that since that time there has been very little in terms of Uruguayan prosperity. In a way, economic downturns are a good thing. It means that architectural styles that have gone out of vogue but not yet become fashionable again have a chance at surviving. I don't think this funky architecture is on any preservationists list yet, but I hope that some day it will be. Seeing so much of it here makes me realize that it took, as ugly as it can sometimes be, is worth preserving.

The bus trip was very nice coming here. A very smooth ride on a very comfortable bus. I slept part of the way since I was drugged up and spent the rest of the time watching out the window as Uruguayan farmland rushed by. Lots of happy cows and horses as well as come pretty rustic living conditions.

My hotel is nice - nothing fancy, also very mod and kind of 1960's chic - wood paneling and all that. My room is quiet thanks to double paned windows which I opened when I went out to let in some fresh air.

I don't know what I will do here for the next two days, but it seems like a nice place to hang out and I am hoping I will find some interesting treasures hidden in this little time capsule of a city.