Think Tuesday
Traveling in Montevideo, Uruguay (Travel Blog Entry #1)
La Feria Tristan Narvaja, Flea Market
Think Tuesday? More like Travel Tuesday! On Sunday I went to a flea market in Uruguay that sold many different things. The place was crowded and full of stands, people selling on the ground (on blankets), etc. There were fruits, vegetables, clothes, paintings, pottery, silverware, and all that other normal stuff you can see in flea markets...but what made this flea market even more special were the antiques! I have a huge obsession with antique, vintage items (I think everyone does, in a way) so this was magical for me.
There were antique typewriters, irons, phones, furniture, photographs, bottles, old vinyl records, and comic books! I was planning on buying some of the old Batman and Superman comics, but it turned out that they were all in Spanish...duh, Uruguay! Either way, there were just so many antique stuff there, it felt like I was in the 70s/80s shopping. HOWEVER, I couldn't buy anything for certain, personal reasons.
But I did manage to buy something. A pair of old sunglasses. They are for men, according to my mother and sister, but I honestly can't care. They are black and half small golden frames.
The market was so crowded that I couldn't take any photos. People were literally pushing each other, grabbing onto their friends, and dancing not to step on dog poo. I didn't think taking out my camera and snapping a photo in a middle of a long, pushing line was a good idea. Perhaps next time I'll take some photos...!
Outside of the market, the streets were less crowded and not bustling with many people. It's called the Old City (the same place where the flea market is); it's full of old-fashioned markets, gorgeous buildings and houses, and streets full of some of the best restaurants. This city really reminds me of Paris, Venice, and Berlin mixed together...unlike some Latin American countries that I've been to, Uruguay has that European feeling. The beach is also near (never mind, anywhere is always near a beach in Uruguay), which is nice. There are also a lot of tourists, so don't be surprised if you hear people speak different languages such as English or Russian!
The only bad thing about the Old City is that it's a tad bit dirty. There are a lot of stray dogs, pee stains (not to mention the stench it gives off! E-euh!), and not-so-artsy graffiti. There are also streets that are covered in trash, which I think is such a shame, because this city is really beautiful! The trash makes this place less glamorous.
There is this huge building full of restaurants in the Old City, nearby where the boats that leave to countries like Argentina are. You can't miss it, because it's bustling with tourists and stray dogs. If you happen to come by Uruguay, you should definitely try the cow meat (beef). Apparently there are more cows than people here! I took some pictures at the restaurant I went to, which was really busy even at a late hour! Or maybe it was just late for me -- Uruguayans really eat late. They eat lunch at 2-3 and dinner at 9-10!
The prices here at Uruguay are a bit on the expensive side. It's such a shame, though, because there are many beautiful things to buy.
The steak's lookin' good, right? The french fries were so-so -- they were restaurant-quality, meaning they weren't "WOW, these french fries are heaven!" but the ones you see in typical diners. As a person who doesn't really like eating steak (I prefer Korean barbeque), I didn't eat as much, but I could see this was really good quality meat. You can put different sauces (well, they weren't sauces, but they were toppings like tomato-onion-basil-like things) to make the taste stand out. I've tried steaks from many different countries in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and South America, and this was one of the tastiest! Still, remember that I don't really like steak so my opinion might be a little off.
I absolutely love the atmosphere of these restaurants. It made me feel very homey and made me feel like I was back in Germany. It's very cozy, too, and the sound of meat sizzling and people chattering soothed me.
You can see in the corner of the picture some cut carrots. I had a picture of the full salad, but I had problems uploading them. The files were too big! Yikes. I also had some other pictures of the restaurant I wanted to share, but putting up these 3 pics was challenging enough. Either way, back to the carrots. If you want to try a unique salad -- something you've never eaten or seen before, try going with this salad. This isn't your usual salad with a lot of green leaves, croutons, or ranch sauce -- this is a strange salad. It's just tomato slices with almost-shredded carrots. At first I was not impressed, but when I put a pinch of salt, some vinegar, some olive oil on the plate, and added a slice of tomato and the carrots, things changed completely!
I'm sorry for the post today being all over the place. First I talked about La Feria Tristan Narvaja, a flea market...then a restaurant?! My apologies. Maybe when time goes by I'll learn how to do travel blogs properly.
I'm planning on visiting the Old City again sometime soon, because I heard that there's another market opening every Saturday that sells a lot of clothes! I'm not a fashionista, but I do love some nice clothes. Yup, I've gone crazy at the Korean terminal clothes shops before, and I can go crazy here, too. So...be prepared!
