Pan de Azucar

I took a day trip to Pan de Azucar which in English translates to "Sugar Loaf," a quaint town in Eastern Uruguay. I intended to climb the large hill or cerro in Pan de Azucar that you see below. There's a 35 meter cross resting on the top of this third largest hill in Uruguay, but let's just say that I never made it to the top of the hill.


I hop off the bus in downtown Pan de Azucar only to ask for directions to a tourist center or somewhere to buy a map. Oh wait, there isn't anywhere like that in this sleepy little town. That's ok. I'll just walk in the direction of the giant hill with the cross on top. I walk and walk and walk.


I walk alongside major highways, through farmer's fields, and unbounded natural brush. Other humanity is not to be found, but that's ok, as long as I keep the hill in front of me and head toward it, all will be fine.

Unfortunately the terrain is swampish from the rains of the past two weeks. My sneakers get soaked in squishy black mud. I climb over fences where cattle and horses graze and walk alongside large animals that begin to make terrible snorting noises. The brush gets thick in front of me, but the cerro is ahead so I push onward.

I climb through sharp thorns and thistles that get tangled in my hair, poke through my clothes, and cut my skin. But I know the hill is up ahead. A burning sensation creeps up my right leg. I look down and panic. My jeans are coated in a thick layer of big fat red fire ants. It is at this point I start half screaming-half crying while swatting the ants away. They crawled up my jeans, in my socks, and down my shoe; and I am still in the middle of the thistley brush. There is nothing I can do but slog back through the mud and nasty underbrush behind me.


I trek back out of the mess I got myself into and about 4 hours later I get back to where the bus dropped me off. Turns out there are no more seats left on any bus back to Montevideo until the very last one departing that evening. Fine. I'll take that one. I am covered in mud and it's getting cold, so where is the closest restaurant or cafe I can wait in until the bus comes? Oh there are none, the man at the counter says. No really, there has to be something. Nope not really. And there wasn't. I walked in every food service looking place asking for a cup of coffee but nobody could help me. Finally a kilometer out of town, I found a pizzeria that let me sit inside and watch the news while I drank a tall glass of cafe con leche. The best part of my day.


Overall, I'd have to say Pan de Azucar is a pretty agricultural town with spectacular sunsets, but I didn't have much luck the day I visited. However, at least it wasn't as bad as my trip to Concordia--no hitchhiking was involved this time.

Heritage Day

Dia del Patrimonio or "heritage day" celebrations in Uruguay were a lot of fun. We got to see various museums, parades, displays, music, dances, performances, and other assorted festivities.


The photos you see are of candombe groups who usually perform during carnaval. Candombe is a style of music and dance that originated in Uruguay. I will dedicate a future post to explaining it more.


It seemed like everyone came out to enjoy the traditions of Uruguay. There were people everywhere in Ciudad Vieja and Centro. Uruguayans seem to be proud to be Uruguayan.


And what celebration would be complete without a giant jar of dulce de leche? This is biggest jar of dulce that you've ever seen. I have to admit...I gave it a hug.

Dia del Patrimonio

Today and tomorrow (September 26th and 27th) the Dia del Patrimonio is being celebrated in Uruguay. If you are somewhere in Montevideo or the interior check here for a list of events in your city. Most government buildings are open to the public and there are to be celebrations of all types. I will report on what fun I get myself into these next couple of days.

Camp for High School Students

Earlier this week I helped at a camp in Carmelo for students who attend Liceo Jubilar. Liceo Jubilar is the high school that I visited last week in a neighborhood where the poverty was almost unimaginable. The school is doing admirable developmental work in the community.


The students at the camp were amazing. They know they have many challenges to face in order to meet their life-goals, but they were very open and willing to talk about their situations. Their realities are very different than any group I've worked with before (at camps or in the classroom).


My heart goes out to them. I want to see them overcome their circumstances. While everything might seem against them, they still have the potential to be profoundly successful. When I look at these students I see great potential. They can do anything they set their mind to. They just need the love, encouragement, and education that all children should be afforded.


At the camp, another Fulbrighter and I taught the students about the human values in the US Constitution and about American music. In the photo you can see the students learning how to swing dance.


I also taught them how to dance some hip hop (because I'm clearly an expert on the subject from the semester of Street Jam classes I took at my university's rec center last year, cough, cough). Awkward dancing aside, camp turned out to be quite a bit of fun!

Carmelo, Uruguay

These past couple of days, I've been in Carmelo, Uruguay helping with a camp for high school students from disadvantaged neighborhoods.

Carmelo is a cozy little town in the Eastern Uruguay nestled along the Rio de la Plata. The pace of life is much slower in Carmelo than in Montevideo. People ride through the streets on bicycles and pedestrians stroll casually alongside the river.


It is a beautiful little town in Uruguay, worth a visit if you are in search of a some rest and relaxation. I will post more about the camp to follow.

7k Race in Montevideo

I ran in a race today. Yes, that's right. A carrera. A race! The 7k BBVA. Christine talked me into doing it. I have no idea how she managed to convince me (she must be very persuasive).


The race looped around the rambla along the Pocitos beach. It was only 7k (or 4.35 miles) which wasn't very much at all. My usual run along the rambla is 6k, so I figured might as well tag on another kilometer, join a herd of other runners, and get a cool shirt in the process.


The amount of runners who showed up was insane. There were probably close to 3000, or so we figured since our race numbers were in the 2600's. I can't believe how fast the race went. It seemed like it was over in a flash even though I had second doubts about signing up for it in the first place.


They gave us a chip to tie to our shoes to track our times. They also gave us free water mid race that I about choked on (there's probably some skill to running and drinking from a plastic cup simultaneously, but it's still a mystery to me). And after the race we got a medal. Woot woot. This one's for the trophy case!

Poverty Revisited

In my last post I left you with a question. What can we do to eradicate poverty in the third world? I think about this a lot. To be honest, I don't know. And I'm not sure anyone knows.

However, my thinking almost always circles back to the same solution. Education. Erasing poverty begins with quality education. Education gives people the tools they need to succeed in every area of life. If we want children to live better lives, we need to teach them how to do so. Some situations seem impossible to change, but education is bigger than circumstances. Education is bigger than crushing poverty.

Humanitarian aid, government programs, economic policy, international relief funds, and other oft cited "ways to reduce poverty" are all chipping away at the problem, but only education can internalize the results. Education empowers.

Do you agree? How do we solve the problem of poverty in third world nations? Is education the answer?

And however you answer, what does it imply for those of us who want to be part of the solution?

Suburb Slums

I visited a liceo (high school) in the suburbs of Montevideo today. The suburbs in Uruguay do not mean the same thing as they do in the United States.


The suburbs are not full of middle class families with 2.5 kids, neatly mowed lawns, and a minivan in the driveway. The suburbs in Uruguay are where the poorest of the poor live. I didn't have my camera with me, but I did capture a few quick shots with my phone. I wish I could show you more.


The poverty is shocking--appalling even. I could never imagine living in such conditions. When people say that Uruguay is a third world country I generally think tisk, tisk, you don't know what you are talking about, Montevideo is relatively wealthy. Most people make enough money to live comfortably. But not in the suburbs. Not in the slums of the city.


When I see such utter poverty, I can't conscientiously go on living the way I am. I cannot not do anything. It's reprehensible that there are children living in such conditions. What can I do? What can you do? What can we do?

Because something needs to be done!