How I fell in love with a country called Uruguay...

This past week I traveled with six of my friends from ISA to Uruguay. The trip as a whole was absolutely fantastic -- it was so amazing to experience another culture and see another South American country. The group of people with whom I traveled was great as well, it was so fun to travel with people my own age and be hanging out with those people constantly. That is definitely something that I have been lacking here in Chile. I love living with my host family and it is great for improving my Spanish skills, but there is just something about that college campus atmosphere, of living on campus in an apartment with your best friends that just makes life so much more enjoyable. Going from being around people your own age constantly to living a normal life with a family is an interesting change, for sure. Anyways, it was nice to have some semblance of "normal" college life again. Also, staying in hostels is probably the coolest thing I've ever done. We met so many amazing people staying at our hostels (well mainly the one in Montevideo), from all different walks of life, all different countries and backgrounds, who were traveling to all different places for all different reasons. I am always amazed by the things that people my age are capable of doing. We met so many people who were just traveling by themselves for months and months with no concrete plans. I hope someday I have the "ganas" or even the opportunity to do something like that.

On Monday we flew into Montevideo and we stayed in a hostel called "Unplugged" for three nights. Unplugged was fantastic, so much fun with so many great people. During those three days I fell in love with the city of Montevideo. Although it is a large city, it really does not even compare to the feeling I have in cities like L.A., Santiago, Vina or Valpo. Granted Uruguay itself only has about 3 million people living in it, but the vibe in Montevideo was unlike any large capitol city I've ever experienced -- it was just so relaxed. The architecture and the overall feel of the city seemed more European than South American, which was an interesting change from Chile, which to me feels very Latin American. Over the three days we were there we explored the coastal area near Pocitos, which was where our hostel was located, as well as went into the ciudad vieja and el centro to see the busier parts of the city, which still had that relaxed feel. Also while in Montevideo, I ate my first (though definitely not last) chivito, which is possibly the most amazing thing I have ever eaten, and perhaps also the most unhealthy -- essentially a cheeseburger on steroids, complete with bun, tenderloin beef, ham, bacon, peppers, onions, and more mayonnaise than you would probably ever need or should ever have on one bun (Uruguayan food resembles Chile's in that respect). Heaven on a plate.

After Montevideo we headed to Punta del Este, which is the city in Uruguay aside from Montevideo that it seems everyone has heard about. It definitely had the feel of a tourist town, although it was a bit eerie because it is fall in Chile (not summer) so there weren't any tourists there -- in fact it seemed like there was no one there...a ghost town of sorts. The beaches were extremely beautiful, however, despite the touristy feel of the town. We went to see "la mano" which is a huge statue of a hand sticking up through the sand, apparently a drowning person grasping at their last chance for life...creepy much? Someone else told me that it was a commemoration of the idea of human life originating from the land (a basic Chilean ideal, which would make sense since the statue was made by a Chilean artist), which is much less creepy, so I think I'll go with that one. That night in Punta del Este, we went out to a bar called Moby Dick's, which other than the amazing name was not all that exciting.

After only one night in Punta del Este, we got on a bus and headed to a small coastal town about four hours from Montevideo (2 from Punta del Este) called La Pedrera. I loved Montevideo and enjoyed Punta del Este, but La Pedrera was probably my favorite place in Uruguay. The town of La Pedrera is an extremely small town in the absolute middle of nowhere. Again, since it wasn't summer, there were no people in the town, and almost everything that was there was closed. However, this was exactly the escape from civilization that we needed, and a great way to close out the trip. Shortly after our arrival, we walked along the beach and saw quite possibly the most beautiful sunset I have ever witnessed. The colors of the sky over the small town of La Pedrera painted a picture I have only before seen in picture books or on postcards. Welcome to paradise. Our hostel, Casa de la Luna, was amazing and had so much character. The owner, Paula, was so friendly and helpful. She showed us all around the town, helped us get meat and cook an asado (bbq) and hung out with us as we ate it. Since we were the only ones staying there, it honestly felt like we were just staying at this woman's house for a night. The next day, we explored the wilderness around our hostel a bit and then headed to the beach, which was gorgeous and had water that was even warm enough to swim in (the Atlantic ocean at that!). After that we hopped on another bus back to Montevideo, ate our last chivito, and left on our plane the next morning.

From the moment I stepped off the plane, rode the bus to Montevideo, and met my first Uruguayans, I fell in love with the country. I was just overwhelmed by this feeling of connection, a vibe, from the country, its culture and its people that I will never forget. Seeing a different culture in Latin America was also such an awesome experience -- listening to the zsha (I'm not sure how to convey this sound through letters but it is the more French like sound they use instead of saying the y sound), hearing people say "vos," a completely new verb form that doesn't exist in Chile, seeing absolutely everyone with their mate cup and thermos, and meeting Uruguayans, who are incredibly friendly, kind, and helpful. Despite how much I loved Uruguay, it was a great feeling to return to Chile and feel like I was home again. I actually missed things about Chile, like my host family and avocado (first thing I ate when I returned). It was just a nice feeling to feel like I belonged here in Chile and to have somewhere to miss that wasn't home or Willamette.