While we are not usually beef eaters, we can appreciate the quality and protective practices of Uruguay’s beef industry. There was an excellent article published in yesterday’s edition of Ola Uruguay that I wanted to share regarding this topic: Ola Uruguay, A Look at Uruguay’s Booming Beef Industry, By Suki Davis, Issue 39.
![Angus_cattle[1]](http://urmovingwhere.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/Angus_cattle1.jpg "Angus_cattle[1]")
(click to hear “Going To The Zoo” song by Raffi)
We visited the Zoo in Montevideo in June (and again last weekend) and the Zoo in Piriápolis in August. Both are great options but I highly advise that you visit now that we are in the warmer months!
In Montevideo, the Zoo Villa Dolores has a great location, close to the heart of the city. Many of the animals were in hiding when we first visited on a cold Sunday morning- but were out enjoying the sun on our second visit. The displays and animal enclosures were actually quite nice compared to what I remember in the USA as a kid. Zoo Villa Dolores has all the usual suspects: elephant, hippo, lion, giraffe, zebra, along with tons of monkeys, birds (including flamingo and peacock), goats and sheep. There was a separate reptile/spider building, a kid’s play area and plenty of other diversions in the park. We had a lot of fun with the standing scenes that you put your head through… whatever they are called…
Location: Avenida Gral. Rivera 3245
Hours: Wednesday through Sunday, 9 AM- 7 PM
Cost: $20 pesos. Free for under 12 and over 70.
Free for everyone on Wednesdays.
The Zoo in Piriápolis is in a different league completely. It is relatively new and I have heard that it is partially a zoo and partially a local fauna breeding center. It’s built into the hillside of Pan de Azúcar (Sugar Loaf Mountain), a 400 meter high granite hill with a 35 meter high cross on top that you can climb up into the arms (after another 100 steps). All of the animals at this zoo are housed in “natural” settings and it is a fun maze to wind though to find the animal enclosures among the trees and flora.
This zoo was free to enter and had some beautiful and unusual animals, mostly on the small side and many native to this region of South America. The largest of the animals was a single tiger who was maybe a bit too vocal, and in fact, a little scary. There was also a reptile/spider building here and a true variety of settings as you walked from lake/marshland to heavy tree cover, to prairie setting. It was beautiful. My favorite, the capybara. There is a restaurant nearby and a huge play area and park for picnics. Pack a lunch, as our wonderful friends did for us, and take a hike up the Sugar Loaf “mountain” when you’re done. The path leads up from the zoo.
Location: 6 km north of Piriápolis on Route 37, at the foothill of Pan de Azúcar
Hours: Daylight
Cost: Free
As our daughter would say, “Opa!” (Meaning “whoops” or something along those lines…)
We are migrating the Urmovingwhere site to a different format- one that should be more reader-friendly as well as functional on our end. Please bear with us for a few days as we get the new site set up and running. It’s going to be fabulous!
We have a 23 month old daughter who is in a stage of extreme language development. She can say many words/phrases in both English and Spanish and is learning more every day.
As with any toddler, her comprehension of both languages is more advanced than her verbal skills and she gets really frustrated when she can’t express what she wants or needs. I came to the realization the other day that I understand completely what she’s going through. I feel the exact same way about speaking Spanish and want to throw a tantrum sometimes, too.
In fact, our daughter’s comprehension of Spanish is probably better than mine. She learns so much at the jardín that she can follow all the instruction in Spanish and is learning more about Uruguayan culture daily. Just the other day, much to our surprise, she pointed to a honey-pot on her Winnie the Pooh-themed toothbrush and said “Mate!” (the preferred beverage of many Uruguayos that is drunk from a gourd cup). As you know, we’re avid coffee drinkers, so Mate knowledge doesn’t come from home. (Mate gourd photo from Wiki.com)
I studied a little Spanish briefly 10 years ago in college, but haven’t used it since. While I have learned a lot being in Uruguay for the last nine months, it’s been extremely helpful to work with a private Spanish tutor. It is invaluable to have private instruction for questions and very specific cultural information. We go over all the important details in a new language: How to describe what you want for a haircut, asking how to use a product at a store, why you pronounce the “J” in pajama here… All the details that you can’t learn online or in most Spanish textbooks. We are using a text called “Macanudo” which is strictly the Rio Platense dialect of Argentina and Uruguay.
My tutor was born and educated in Uruguay and lived in London for 12 years, she teaches both English and Spanish here. She is very inexpensive by US standards for private instruction- $1000 pesos/month for weekly 1.5 hour classes (about $8.50 USD per hour).
There are so many frustrating moments in learning a language by immersion, though. It hasn’t happened often, but last week I had an experience where I was not understanding what a person at the doctor’s office was saying. I had just gotten done speaking with an angel of a woman and had came back to the counter to verify one final question. The second woman I spoke with was completely unintelligible to me and kept speaking louder and louder, saying the same phrase, just at a higher volume. Then she started muttering under their breath and rolling their eyes shortly thereafter when I still didn’t understand. It was a sad reminder of the many ugly Americans that I have seen do the exact same thing to foreigners. Note to self: avoid that person when visiting the clinic next time and have a few choice words prepared just in case 
While language skills are so natural for a 2-year-old, it’s incredible how difficult it can be for an adult. I had anticipated that my Spanish would have progressed more than it has within 8 months. I’m still waiting for the moment when it all “clicks” and it becomes easier. That moment will come, right?