Why Uruguay is Awesome!

We hadn’t originally planned to visit Uruguay on our round-the-world trip. However, since our Antarctica cruise was departing from Montevideo, we decided to arrive in the city a couple of days early and check it out. We found Uruguay to be a safe, clean, progressive South American Country, whose social policies and culture reminded us of our home country of Canada. We are so happy that we visited, Uruguay is awesome and here is why!

The country is completely secular:

Almost half of Uruguay’s population are irreligious. Since 1916, the church and state were officially separated. The government does not allow any religious symbols in public places and have renamed national holidays to reflect secularism. For example, Christmas is known as “Day of the Family” and Easter is referred to as “Tourism Week”.

Education is free:

In Uruguay, public education is free from kindergarten to university. There is only one public university in Uruguay. In order to accommodate everybody, some classes are held in churches, since churches are infrequently used for religious services.

It is safe:

Uruguay has a low incidence of violent or petty crime. Although the regular precautions should be followed, you would be hard pressed to visit any busy area without seeing citizens with their phones out in their hands without fear of it being snatched, unlike in other South American countries we visited.

Wifi is free everywhere:

Wifi is available in practically all public areas in Montevideo, usually for a 15 minute block of time. This is handy for hailing an Uber or checking out a restaurant review.

Uruguay was the first country in the world to fully legalize marijuana:

Not only is the drug legal, citizens can purchase it at pharmacies for significantly less than black market prices. This has eliminated the illegal/black market sale of marijuana in the country.

José Mujica rules:

Uruguay’s former president from 2010-2015, José Mujica is incredibly humble and a bit of a folk hero. He refused to live in the presidential palace and continued to reside on his farm in the outskirts of Montevideo – he even greeted President Obama at his farm, clad in sandals! He donated 90% of his salary to charity to benefit poor people and small-scale entrepreneurs. His daily attire usually included sandals and he rarely wore suits to work. He drove to work in an old 1987 Volkswagen Beetle and was instrumental in legalizing gay marriage and legalizing marijuana. Uruguay has continued to maintain a very progressive stance on social issues due to his influence.

Tourist discounts:

Using a foreign credit card at places such as restaurants, bars and cafés will result in an automatic 9% discount when payment is made by Visa! There are also promotions at many stores to receive additional discounts when using credit cards. Also, their duty-free spending levels are very low; if you spend 600 Uruguayan pesos (approx. $24CAD), you are able to receive 14.5% cash back. We left through the port and were able to use automated duty-free machines in the Buquebus terminal.

Public health care:

All Uruguay’s citizens are taken care of medically, regardless of whether they have a job or not. Not only that, foreigners on Uruguayan soil can also access free basic health care as well!

The inaugural FIFA World Cup was held in Uruguay:

In 1930, Montevideo hosted the first ever FIFA World Cup and they won, beating Argentina in the finals!

Fake wedding parties:

Because marriage is not particularly popular, fake wedding parties (falsa boda) are planned so people have a chance to attend a wedding! Guests buy tickets for the fake wedding for two people they don’t know (and who aren’t actually getting married), and draw a “role” when they arrive. Some may be lucky enough to be in the wedding party and have to make a toast for the new bride and groom!

Uruguay has a lot of cows:

Uruguay’s economy is supported significantly by the beef industry. In fact, they have so many cows that there are almost four cows for each citizen in the country! Not only that, the cows are very well cared for and grass fed. It is no wonder that the beef is so good there!

They are committed to mate:

Mate is a traditional drink made from steeped yerba mate leaves and consumed through a metal straw in a hollow gourd. Although it is also popular in Argentina and some other areas of South America, it is particularly popular in Uruguay. Virtually everybody carries a thermos of hot water and their hollow gourd around with them periodically sipping from the straw. It is so culturally infused that there were less people walking around without mate than with it!

We regret not spending more time in Uruguay, as we fell in love with it! Uruguay is sometimes overlooked as a tourist destination because of its powerhouse neighbours Brazil and Argentina, but it shouldn’t be! We can’t wait to go back!