Uruguay in South America,A Country of Beauty and Wonder.
Uruguay,the country I just happened to be born in,pretty much by chance,because in the 1890's at the harbors in Italy people would board any ship that had space available to bring them to America,meaning North, Central, or South. As luck would have it, some family members headed for New York, others to Argentina ,and my great grandfather decided to continue to Uruguay just a couple of hours further south,I guess he never imagined or maybe he did, the treasure he was giving us, his future generations.Thank you Don Silverio Conte and Teresa Mazzella. Uruguay is a very small country of only about 68000 sq miles located between Argentina and Brazil.A population of about three million of which half live in Montevideo and half throughout the rest of the country,you can drive from south to north in about 8 hours at it's furthest point and east to west in about 5.The climate is similar to that of the Midatlantic states in the US although it doesn't snow.With a literacy level of 98 %,free education even at university level,a healthcare system free to the lower class, and at low cost to middle class and even subsidised for all the population is really living proof that a capitalist society needs not to be the law of the jungle.You will literally encounter the president at the grocery store, the supermarket,or strolling in thepark with his wife.President that was leader in the guerrilla movement " MLN-Tupamaros" DURING THE 1960'S and 70's and spent about 13 years in prison as a hostage of the military dictatorship that ruled from 1973 to 1985, a real tragedy for a country that prides itself in being the most democratic country south of the rio grande among other things it is recognised as the country with least corruption only behind Chile,and it is said president George W.Bush was able to visit restaurants and public places with minimum security detail during his visit to the country,even though he was by no means popular politically but very much respected as a political adversary, by a people who understand the importance of democracy,where politicians as late as the 1960's would personally duel if they felt their honor was unjustly maligned and their honesty questioned.The topography of the country is that of rolling hills and prairies with no high mountains, an abundance of rivers are spread throughout the country with two of them the Rio Uruguay which the country takes it's name from(the english translation of the official name would be repubic to the east of the Uruguay river) and the Rio Negro generating most of the electricity of the country .Hundreds of miles of oceanic beaches compete for the most beautifull scenery and of course are public, free and open to the population and tourists with some as Punta Del Este Atracting the rich and famous from all over the world,(if you want to see stars sunbathing on the beach with no entourage this is your place).The celebration of "Carnaval" in Montevideo is the longest in the world lasting 40 days,with parades you'll swear the whole population of the country is there but unlike that of Rio De Janeiro you'll see from babies to grandparents enjoying the celebration.
