URUGUAY' 03

To step forward

THERE comes a point in your life when you suddenly become inspired to see something unlike your regular touristy hangouts like Paris, Barcelona, Milan, London and New York. You want a place where you can frolic at sandy beaches, discover exotic people and culture, and tuck into a luxurious mode of living and dining. Think South America. More specifically - Uruguay. Uruguay, a country that borders Brazil on the north and northeast, and Argentina on the west and south, is a cosmopolitan society as a result of many successive European migrations. The Republic also has the highest literacy rate in all of Latin America.

Fifteen of us from Duke yearned for a weekend of adventure. We were not disappointed. It wasn't just the sightseeing that made our trip so special. We spent a greater part of our time in Uruguay doing social work at the Jewish Asylum. We built a kitchen at the El Cerro, one of the poorest neighborhoods in the country. We also had the opportunity to meet Mr. Silverstein, the U.S. Ambassador to Uruguay. The trip was sponsored in part by the Freeman Center for Jewish Life.

(L-R): Drew, Maital, Brady, Kelly, Adam, Eric G, Craig, Matt, Katie, Melanie (prog coord.), Me, Linda, Seth, Eric S, Brandon.

-Tucking into a welcome drink at Hotel Barceló in Colonia-

Tzedakah

TZEDAKAH, the Jewish term for helping the poor, is often translated as "charity." However, the Hebrew root tzedek is more closely translated as "justice" or "fairness."  With tzedekah on our minds, we traveled to the El Cerro to build a bathroom for the people in the El Tobogan neighborhood. Tobogan's communitarian soup kitchen gives 3 meals daily to 120 people. Leta, a resident and the organizer of the soup kitchen project, explained in Spanish that the hut serves to help "build a community" in this neighborhood. "People are told to contribute in some ways, and not be lazy and expect us to give them food," she said.

Uruguay is a country in crisis. It is heavily in debt. The people I spoke to, including professors, students and residents at the El Cerro, concur that something needs to be done urgently about the economic situation. Because most of Uruguay's public debt is in dollars, a prolonged slide in the value of its currency has almost doubled the debt since 1998, to 52% of GDP. Even with the new austerity measures, the government expects further currency weakness to lift the debt to 65% of GDP by 2004, by when it hopes this ratio will start falling.

It was a hot day. I shoveled the sun-baked soil and sawed at the steel poles furiously. I wanted to do something tangible for the people here and the thought of smiling faces and gracious hearts kept me working away spiritedly.

(L-R): Drew, Maital, Eric G, Brandon, Katie, Adam, Me.

-Brandishing our 'weapons' before we begin work at the El Cerro-

Tucking into the food, culture...and people

CHIVITO (a steak sandwich filled with slices of meat, lettuce and egg), clerico (white wine and fruit juice), sangria (red wine and fruit juice), bizcochos (sweetened croissant) and mate (tea) were some of the local delights that captured my imagination. If the above delicacies sound alien, do not worry. Most of the food are indigenous to South America. As always, the topic of food serves as an ice breaker between total strangers. It provided me with the ammunition to meet Uruguayan people and forge friendships. I learnt that beef is an essential part of most meals and comes in many forms, including the asado de tira (ribs), pulpa (boneless beef), lomo (fillet steak) and bife de chorrizo (rump steak). You can either soothe your carnivorous palate with desserts like dulce de leche (milk sweets) or wash down the oil with local beer, which is pretty good.

I managed to catch Carnival (Teatro De Verano 2003), the principal festival in Uruguay. The ‘fiesta’ comprises of  humorous shows staged at open-air theatres. These musical extravaganzas of sorts are put up by different neighborhoods in the country. The neighborhoods compete for a grand prize. The crowd come equipped with flags, banners and colored lights, and lend support to their respective district. Houses and streets are also appropriately decorated.

-My awesome Uruguayan friends. I'm terrible with names but I remember Daniel, Jaime, Ginette, Mandi, Michel, Ioni, Mikael, Javier. I'm missing two people yeah?-

-Ana teaches me the Cumbia and I demonstrate to her the Swing. The marvels of dancing-

Being a tourist

A BIG TOAST to Cumbia, a popular style of music the Uruguayans listen and dance to. I tried picking up a few pointers from my Uruguayan dance partners. But I soon got tired of dancing. I ventured around Montevideo. I had the chance to partake of some of the most beautiful scenes this country has to offer. I recall Casa Pueblo, the breathtaking work of architecture by artist Carlos Vilaro. Punta de Este, with its sandy beaches and pellucid waters, is a place that people flock to during the summer. However, it was relatively quiet since the school holidays had just ended. About 120km west of Montevideo dozes the quiet destination of Colonia. Founded in 1862 by Swiss settlers, it became Uruguay's first interior agricultural colony, churning out wheat for the mills in Montevideo. It still retains a distinctive European ambience today and produces the bulk of the country's dairy products.

          
 (L-R): Brandon, Me, Maital, Eric G.                                -Vilaro's glorious creation: Casa Pueblo-

-The Georgetown-like streets of Colonia-

(L-R): Denise, Ari, Me, Craig.

-Denise and Ari are university students in Uruguay. Under the auspices of Hillel Uruguay, a Jewish service organization, they brought our group from Duke around Uruguay. Parque Rodo smiles in the background-

(L-R): Seth, Linda, Me, Eric S, Brandon, Drew.                                         -General Artigas- Uruguay's national hero- 

-Strolling around Montevideo in search of souvenirs to take home-

(L-R): Brian, Me, Alex, Drew.

-Brian and Alex are university students in Uruguay. Buenos Dias...its beach time at Punta de Este. We can't wait to jump into the waters. I ended up playing Ultimate Frisbee-

(L-R): Drew, Me, Katie, Brian, Linda, Brandon, Alex, Craig.

-There's something about the sand and sea that leaves everyone beaming with delight-

Lasting impressions

The day is long an the night

moves on just like the faces here...

They smile and welcome weary travelers

to Uruguay - her maiden name is love.

Imagine all the people living for today.

Imagine all the people here...

Living for peace - to be as one.

Strolling by the sea, together in love.

If you were me and I was you,

what would you do here...

Are not people in Uruguay worried about

what they are going through?

Waves of joy drift through my mind.

One visit isn't going to change anything here...

Yet people have showed us more love than we'd care to imagine.

Come back and I'll take you home. Gracias.