Saturday, January 25 - Montevideo, Uruguay - Day 22

I was asleep at 4:30 this morning when someone turned on the florescent light over my head.  You know, the kind that flickers a few times before it comes on.  What the hell?  I was alone in my cabin when I went to bed, as far as I recall.

It only took a second to realize that I'd hit the switch by mistake.  I sleep with my arm over my head and the buttons are right there in the headboard.  I turned off the lights, said a bad word, then scooted down so I wouldn't do it again.  I must have moved the covers because that triggered the motion sensor light that I put at the foot of the bed at night.  After getting up to turn that off, I was awake.  No chance that I'd get back to sleep.  So I showered and got dressed.

After lounging around for awhile my new friend Carole came by and we walked into town.  She wanted to buy a special kind of rosary for a friend of her traveling companion.  We finally found them at the weekly market that I was hoping to go to anyway, so it was a long hot walk but worth it.

After getting back on the ship, I headed straight to the Lido.  I was looking forward to drinking about a gallon of ice water.  The water, tea and lemonade dispensers can be finicky and seem to break down regularly.  On one side of the Lido, the ice dispenser hasn't worked for the 22 days we've been on board.  Then I heard someone say there was no water.  Nope, no water on the ship.

I got a notice last night saying they'd be doing maintenance on the water system in my cabin from 9-noon.  They didn't mention that it affected the whole ship.

And just to whine some more - since we've been on the ship for three weeks, it's time for another mandatory muster drill.  Hopefully it will be much easier than the one in Ft. Lauderdale when at least one woman passed out.

I'm now in my cabin, in the chilly air conditioning, with my hair and clothes sopping wet from the 90 degree heat and high humidity.  Luckily I bought a bottle of water before I came back on board so I just finished that.  If the water doesn't come on soon, I'll have to resort to drinking the pricey bottled water.

Ok, I'm cooling off and feeling positive about how many steps I've already walked today.  Let's talk about Montevideo

I've been to Montevideo before, for a week.  It's a small city but lovely.  One thing to note - we started walking at 9:30 and most places were closed.  As we headed back to the ship at noon things were opening.  Like most of Latin America, things happen much later in the day.  Enrique was shocked yesterday when I told him that most grocery stores opened at 7 a.m.  "But why? Who would want to shop then?"  Me.

FYI I'm having problems getting phone service so am not able to finish this now. Hopefully I'll have better luck in the Falklands.

Here are some photos...

Saturday, Jan 5 Hanging Out in El Centro

Another relaxed day, starting with breakfast in the hotel.  Next, came a walk around the historical center, visiting some streets I hadn't been to before.  I also stopped to get a quote for a new pair of glasses.  For progressive trifocals with transition lenses, cost was around $400.  Cheaper than home but nowhere close to the cheaper price in the border town of El Algodones, on the border with Yuma, Arizona.

Here are photos of my day.

Breakfast included cantaloupe and pineapple along with some refried beans and some kind of chicken taco.

Delicious sweet bread.  I was surprised that the cinnamon roll was topped with sesame seeds.

Chilequiles - small fried pieces of corn tortilla topped with green chile sauce, cheese and sour cream and onions.  Que rico!

The street looked quiet as I headed out but quickly got busier.

I was on the block where they bought/sold gold and silver and exchanged money.

Then I moved to the neighborhood that sold clothing.  I like the black look.

Lots of stores selling dresses like this for quinceaneras (15 birthday) and weddings.  I really, really want one.

Sorry about the reflection - this upscale store sold mariachi clothes, including outfits like this.  And some very beautiful and expensive boots.

My dad always wore suspenders.  He would have loved this store that had them in every color.

Look closely - this tree on a pedestrian street is covered with oranges. 

This store sold all kinds of stones and minerals. 

The streets were getting busier.

Lots of families with little kids.

Lots of snacks on sale.  Mostly ice cream and salty stuff like chips along with cups of fresh fruit chunks.

Clever way to make a living.

I talked to this man.  After losing his hand he began making small items to sell on the street.

I liked the googly eyes.

He made me this flower.

Did I mention lots of families with little kids?  People just seemed to be doing what I was...wandering around, enjoying the nice weather.

That's a lot of sugar.

Fruit for sale.  The first row is coconut.

More salty snacks.

Iced tea, horchata and other drinks on sale.

Beautiful details on the buildings.

The famous cathedral that is at the center of the historical district.

This was some sort of police vehicle.  The driver went over one of the small barriers and got a bit stuck but eventually got going again. 

Lindor chocolates on sale at Sanborn's.

Smallest car I've ever seen.

In the mood for pork?  Here's a pile, waiting to become tacos.  That's a snout on the top of the pile. 

This may look like shawarma but is actually al pastor - beef for tacos, cooked like shawarma.

I'm a klutz.  I have been known to fall down with no reason for it so I'm extra careful when the streets present challenges as they do in Guadalajara.  Some thoughtful person stuffed cardboard in what used to be a glass covered light and is now just a hole that's about six inches in diameter.

A few more obstacles to maneuver around.  See the chunk of concrete just in front of the guy walking toward the left?  

Soft serve ice cream, like this woman is selling, was very popular.  It was about 80 degrees out.

In addition to snack vendors there were a few musicians.  This man was playing a trumpet.  Not particularly well, but much better than the guy up the block playing his electric guitar.

Notice anything different about this Coke Light?  It's a glass bottle, with a screw on top.  Never seen that combo before.

My dinner - take away from the taqueria across the street, Taqueria Los Faroles.  From the top - two tacos (al pastor - which is beef cooked on a shawarma kind of spit); cheese quesadilla made with a corn tortilla (flour was also an option); guacamole (of course!); and condiments - cilantro/onions, chipotle sauce and chips for the guac.  The guacamole was excellent and like the one from Los Dichos, very spicy.  All the food was great - I don't know anywhere near me that serves homemade corn tortillas and they make such a difference.  And the al pastor?  Crispy bits, just enough lime and spice...delicious.  Total cost for the meal - $5.