Montevideo : I Love This City



Of all the cities I have visited on this trip,  Montevideo impressed me the most and made me wish I could have stayed longer.  I loved everything about it :  its gentle charm,  its 12 miles of seaside, its European flavor to its Spanish culture.  The people are kind, warm, and sophisticated.  Montevideo is as much a feeling as a place.

The seafront attracts people morning, noon and night to jog,  to walk or bike ride. It brings people together as a community.  People wave, kiss ( the embrace), stop and talk .

But the seafront also invites invidual effort .







It does so with a quiet grace.  It lacks the glitz and glamour of a Rio or even a South Beach.  Understated elegance is its beauty.



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The sea defines Montevideo.  From the airport to the city center , you travel along the seafront for 12 miles.  When you get to the city, you reach the port and the historic old city, the Ciudad Vieja.










Montevideo is defined by its people.  The people  are so gentle, polite and classy.  Their Spanish , like their neighbor's in Argentina , is Italian accented,  a result of heavy immigration over the centuries from Italy.  The English is usually fluent but when it is not the accent is Italian !  The kids wanted me to take "just one picture"  and when I did,  they went on their way - off to their hang-out
on the beach, right in front of the city center

Tourists explores the ancient stones.

Tourist discovers he is not as young as he used to be,