Montevideo Day 1

This morning we arrived in Montevideo after crossing the border around 1am. We got here a little bit early around 6 and had some time to kill in the terminal before we could go to a hostel. Luckily, that meant we had time to book said hostel after having no responses from Couchsurfers in Uruguay.

When we got to the hostel, we checked in and made some plans for Montevideo while we waited for our room to be ready. It definitely took longer than normal because I was so tired after a not great sleep on the bus (just far too short...we got the dinner when we got on, border control around 1, and then some coffee about an hour before we were due to arrive which he woke us up for around 5). However, plans for the next few days were successfully made. We quickly hit the grocery store for some breakfast and then our room was ready when we got back.

We had a much needed shower and nap. Then, around 6 we went out for a walk and to see sunset. Our first stop was Parque Rodo. This was a nice little park with lots of grassy areas, a pond in the middle, and some fountains. There were people laying in the grass, many dogs playing, and some people were even in paddle boats on the pond. We walked through the park and shortly came to the Rambla after coming across a random market full of little stalls. The Rambla is a strip of road/sidewalk along the coast. It's about 10km long and it was very busy with people walking, jogging, roller blading, and biking. It was also right next to the beach which was packed. And we couldn't help noticing all the people drinking maté, a tea-like drink with a special cup and straw. Ever since sharing maté with Gab and Gonza in Ushuaia, we've been seeing it everywhere!

The sun was pretty bearable due to the time of day and the lovely breeze being on the coast was refreshing in the heat. It was a great walk. We stopped after about half an hour at a quiet part of the beach and sat to watch the sunset with a beer. It was a cool one. The sun dipped behind a cloud, popped back out from under it, and then dipped below the horizon. It was also a bright red sun, pictures did not do it justice.

After the Rambla we walked past Punta Brava on our way to Montevideo Beer Company. We had half a pint each here; Allan had the stout and I had a pomelo IPA. They were both very good. The sun was down, but it was still really nice to sit outside to drink. We then moved further inland to La Temeraria, a vegan place that does vegan Uruguayan food. The menu was smaller than google suggested, so we were a bit disappointed. We shared a vegan milanesa with spiced potatoes. It was a good amount of food. After that, we walked back to the hostel and did some bits and bobs before bed.Read more