Montevideo, Uruguay

I arrived to Montevideo on their version of Labor Day, and was greeted with empty streets and closed shops. After checking in to my hostel I decided to walk to the beach, after a few blocks I was approached by a teenage kid muttering spanish. No thinking he was talking to me I kept walking when suddenly he takes out a huge carving knife and proceeds lunge at me! I bolted! I wasn't sure if he was planning to rob me or just wanted to scare me and show off to his friends nearby, but I didn´t stick around to find out!

Two streets away I met with some other people at the hostel and continued to the beach by a different route, feeling lucky that I got away without losing anything...

Not the best introduction to the city...

Montevideo has a lot of interesting museums and art exhibitions, mainly in wonderful old buildings, so I spent the rest of my days checking them out and enjoying the sunshine and warm weather.

I took in a domestic football match between Penarol and River Plate (1-0) at the Estadio Centenario, a FIFA classic world stadium and the site of the first football world cup in 1930 (which Uruguay also won). It also has a great football museum showcasing the countries footballing history and a chance to walk around the deserted stadium.

I didn't sort out my visa for Brazil earlier, so I'm staying longer than I originally anticipated while that gets sorted out. It will give me a chance to relax and take care of some business before the next leg of my trip...

More photos here