Love notes from Siel is a newsletter about love, writing, and the nomad life from me, Siel.
Dear friend —
Argentina can seem far away from the rest of the world sometimes — the fastest flight from the U.S. takes 10+ hours — but the country serves as a great base for exploring South America. An hour on a ferry, for example, gets you from Buenos Aires to Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay.
Never heard of Colonia? Well, it’s a small place with a long, tumultuous history. Founded by Portuguese colonialists, it was soon after conquered by Spaniards, then ping-ponged between those two countries a bunch of times as they fought over control of the area. At some point the place we know as Uruguay today was also attacked by the British, and for a minute it was part of Brazil, and on top of all that it massacred its indigenous populations (close to 90% of Uruguay’s population today is of European descent) and fought some own civil wars to boot —
In fact Uruguay only became a country called Uruguay in 1928 — less than 100 years ago.
That fact came as a surprise to me, because despite its short history Uruguay today is known as the Switzerland of Latin America, thanks to its relative economic prosperity, high life expectancy, and liberal social policies. It’s a reminder of how quickly the fates of nations can change. One decade you’re living under an oppressive military regime that’s suspended civil liberties and gotten famous for its ridiculously high number of political prisoners. The next you’re suddenly in a democracy where everything from education to public safety’s on the upswing….
Today Colonia’s historic center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, unique for its mix of Portugues, Spanish, and post-colonial architecture. It’s a sleepy, easygoing town with a historic city gate, ruins of old forts, and cobblestone streets.
There’s a tendency, I think, for U.S. Americans to think of Latin American countries as a single, homogeneous entity — yet the countries each have such unique histories, advantages, virtues, challenges.
So many places I’d love to get to know, so little time —
Love,
Siel
A book you might love that’s mostly set in Uruguay:
The Woman from Uruguay by Pedro Mairal (Bloomsbury, 2021)
An Argentinian writer is married and in debt — his wife has been supporting the family for a while because he’s, you know, a writer. Finally money comes in from his publishers to his bank account in Uruguay, which keeps the funds in U.S. dollars, protected from Argentina’s inflation problems and exchange taxes. So the writer takes a ferry trip from Buenos Aires to Uruguay to pick up $15K in cash — and to hook up with a young Uruguayan woman he’s got a burning crush on while he’s at it.
As you can imagine, trouble ensues — trouble that includes a ukulele, a drunken visit to a tattoo parlor, and a hand job on a public beach. This book was a bestseller when it came out and is a riveting way to get a taste of what Uruguay and Argentina are like today —
Three links you might love:
Uruguay boasts one of the world’s greenest grids, powered by 98 percent renewable energy. Plus, “often called the Great Exception for its relative wealth and stability in the region, it enjoys a poverty rate around 10 percent and a middle class encompassing more than half the population. It ranks first in South America for political rights and civil liberties.”
To be fair, Uruguay isn’t exactly a socialist paradise. Last summer, the capital city Montevideo ran out of water, sparking major protests.
Still, we can learn a lot from Uruguay. “It’s far from perfect. But Latin America’s strongest democracy offers many lessons, including the value of a strong social safety net.”
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Thank you for this one Siel, there’s some
History here that I was unaware of. but should know for when I travel to
Sur America y America Central. Gracias querida.
Looking good! Fascinating.