Arrived in Montevideo, Uruguay on the 22nd January, for a two day stay, leaving at 9.30pm on 23rd January.
Uruguay is a country of grassy prairies interupted only by scattered patches of scrubby woodland. The breadbasket of South America the region is denseley populated, what land is not under cultivation supports large herds of livestock.
Montevideo is a city of about 1,800.000 residents, almost entirley of European extraction mainly Spanish and Italian. It is the largest city in the country and home to half of the country's population.
On the tour of the city we visited the Plaza Zabala which is a combination park and monument which is dedicated to the Buenos Aires govenor who founded Montevideo in 1726. in the centre is the El Gaucho Monument. This famous statue represents a typical gaucho on his horse.
We passed all the inportant buildings which included Government house, Opera House and also the Legislative Palace. I did not climb the steps to enter the Legislative Palace however apparentley the floors, walls,stairs and columns are made of a variety of Unuguayan marble.
In the evening we travelled back into the city to attend a Folklore Dance together with a Tango Show.
The next day we travelled out of town to a typical Ranch. We were treated to a BBQ Lunch which included wine and a demonstration of Sheep shearing, milking of a cow and Horsemanship. A wonderful day was had by all.
