A Stroll Around Montevideo, Uruguay

For me, the only way to really get a feel for a city is to explore it on foot. That’s exactly what we did during our visit to Montevideo, the capital of the South American country of Uruguay, with our expert guide Roberto (of Ciudad Vieja Tours).

We are here! First time in Uruguay!

Since we arrived by ship, it made sense to start our tour at the historic Mercado del Puerto (Port Market), built in the 1860s

The ironwork for Mercado del Puerto was cast in Liverpool, England, and arrived with its own crew of blacksmiths to assemble it

Montevideo has its own unique Carnival, in which rival groups battle to put on the best shows, such as this one in the Ciudad Vieja (Old City)

A local artist in Ciudad Vieja replaces broken street tiles with mosaics

Art also adorns the walls (and gates/doors) of Ciudad Vieja

Palacio Taranco, built as a palace in the early 1900s, now houses the Museum of Decorative Arts

Plaza Zabala, named after Bruno Mauricio de Zabala (the guy on the horse), who founded what would become Montevideo in 1726

Casa Rivera, former home of Uruguay’s first president, General Fructuoso Rivera

Casa Rivera’s decorative octagonal tower

Places you only find with a local: an auction house where Montevideans come to get period pieces for renovated buildings

Sarandi: a typical pedestrian street in Ciudad Vieja

Plaza Constitución (Constitution Square) is the oldest plaza in Montevideo

Montevideo Metropolitan Cathedral in Plaza Constitución

Places you only find with a local 2: an impressive interior for a bookstore

Teatro Solis, Uruguay’s oldest theatre

A tiny remaining fragment of Montevideo’s fortifications

Puerta de la Ciudadela (Citadel Gate) in Plaza Independencia was once the eastern entrance into the Ciudad Vieja fortress

Plaza Independencia (Independence Square) stands on the border of Ciudad Vieja and Centro (Montevideo city centre)

We stumbled upon a wreath laying ceremony in Plaza Independencia at the monument to Uruguay’s national hero, José Artigas (again, the guy on the horse)

Artigas Mausoleum beneath his monument in Plaza Independencia

Palacio Salvo on Plaza Independencia is closely related to Palacio Barolo in Buenos Aires, Argentina, which was also designed by the architect Mario Palanti

The Mercado Agrícola (Agricultural Market) has recently been renovated

The Palacio Legislativo (Legislative Palace) is home to the Uruguayan Parliament

Casa Soler, with its unique tower

At 515 feet (35 storeys), Montevideo’s Torre de las Telecomunicaciones (Telecomunications Tower) is the tallest building in Uruguay

Parque del Prado: Prado Park, often just known as the Prado

Historic (and sadly slightly rundown) stagecoach hotel on the edge of the Prado

Monumento a la Diligencia (Stagecoach Monument) in the Prado

Monumento a los últimos charrúas (Monument to the Last Charrúa): the last four members of their tribe, they died in Paris in 1833, where they were being shown off as curiosities, after the rest of their people had been exterminated on the orders of General Fructuoso Rivera, Uruguay’s first president

Some of Montevideo’s beautiful old buildings desperately need a little TLC

Fortunately others, like the Castillo Soneira, are receiving it

Los Yuyos: a typical Uruguayan restaurant, where we had a tasty late lunch

Estadio Centenario (Centennial Stadium) was built to host the first ever football (soccer) World Cup in 1930

A Bello y Reborati house in the Pocitos neighbourhood (see my previous blog The Remarkable Houses of Bello and Reborati, Montevideo, Uruguay to learn more)

Not a military camp, but one of several exclusive schools for younger children in Pocitos

Back at the port: anchor of the German ‘pocket battleship’ Admiral Graf Spee, which was scuttled by her crew off Montevideo after the famous Battle of the River Plate in World War II

This post was inspired by this week’s photo challenges of Walks from Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge and  Jo’s Monday Walk.

Our last view of Montevideo’s Ciudad Vieja and Centro as we sail away

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