Montevido

         

 I headed into Montevideo the next day. Entering the city limits reminded me of a Mad Max movie. Oil refineries, power plants, chemical factories, and paper mills were stacked between 100-year-old buildings crumbling to pieces. Ground level was covered in slums and garbage, cars from the 50’s and horse drawn carriages moving thought the streets.

            It was an unfair first impression because the city center is beautiful, although falling apart due to lack of maintenance. The old part of town is small and can be covered on foot in a day. Entertainment seems to center around eating, dancing, smoking, and drinking mate. Age is not a factor in where you hang out or what you do for fun and it’s common to see people walking through town carrying a thermos and their Mate cup filled with Yerba, independent of social status. The East side of the city is covered in newer office and apartment buildings and is quite different from the Mad Max scene. The city has some really attractive buildings and the beachfront was filled with joggers and sunbathers when I left town on a Sunday morning.