Theme Week Uruguay – Montevideo

25 August 2018 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  16 minutes

Sunset in Montevideo © Femenias/cc-by-3.0

Sunset in Montevideo © Femenias/cc-by-3.0

Montevideo is the capital and largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country’s total population) in an area of 201 square kilometres (78 sq mi). The southernmost capital city in the Americas, Montevideo is situated in the southern coast of the country, on the northeastern bank of the Río de la Plata. The city was established in 1724 by a Spanish soldier, Bruno Mauricio de Zabala, as a strategic move amidst the SpanishPortuguese dispute over the platine region. It was also under brief British rule in 1807. Montevideo is the seat of the administrative headquarters of Mercosur and ALADI, Latin America’s leading trade blocs, position that entailed comparisons to the role of Brussels in Europe.   read more…

Theme Week Uruguay – Colonia del Sacramento

24 August 2018 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  7 minutes

Misiones de los Tapes Street at night © Flc1980/cc-by-sa-3.0

Misiones de los Tapes Street at night © Flc1980/cc-by-sa-3.0

Colonia del Sacramento, formerly the Portuguese Colónia do Sacramento) is a city in southwestern Uruguay, by the Río de la Plata, facing Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is one of the oldest towns in Uruguay and capital of the Colonia Department. It has a population of around 27,000. It is renowned for its historic quarter, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Modern Colonia del Sacramento produces textiles and has a free trade zone, in addition to a polytechnic centre and various government buildings.   read more…

Theme Week Uruguay – Salto

23 August 2018 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  8 minutes

Downtown Salto © Shant/cc-by-sa-2.5

Downtown Salto © Shant/cc-by-sa-2.5

Salto is the capital city of the Salto Department in northwestern Uruguay. As of the 2011 census it had a population of 104,028 and is the second most populated city in Uruguay. The city is located on Route 3 about 496 kilometres (308 mi) northwest of Montevideo, and on the east bank of the Río Uruguay across from the city of Concordia in Argentina. About 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) north of the city the Salto Grande Bridge, built on top of the Salto Grande Dam, joins the two sides. It is served by the Nueva Hesperides International Airport.   read more…

Theme Week Uruguay – Rivera

22 August 2018 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

View of Rivera, as seen from Cerro Marconi © Mx. Granger

View of Rivera, as seen from Cerro Marconi © Mx. Granger

Rivera is the capital of Rivera Department of Uruguay. The border with Brazil joins it with the Brazilian city of Santana do Livramento, which is only a street away from it, at the north end of Route 5. Together, they form an urban area of around 200,000 inhabitants. As of the census of 2011, it is the sixth most populated city of Uruguay.   read more…

Theme Week Uruguay – Las Piedras

21 August 2018 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  6 minutes

Museo de la Uva y el Vino © Roxyuru/cc-by-sa-3.0

Museo de la Uva y el Vino © Roxyuru/cc-by-sa-3.0

Las Piedras is a city in the Canelones Department of Uruguay. As of the census of 2011, it is the fifth most populated city of the country. Las Piedras is also the name of the municipality to which the city belongs. According to the 2011 census, Las Piedras had a population of 71,258. In 2010 the Intendencia de Canelones had estimated a population of 79,412 for the municipality during the elections.   read more…

Theme Week Uruguay

20 August 2018 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Bon voyage, Theme Weeks Reading Time:  11 minutes

Punta del Este © Roberto Tietzmann/cc-by-2.5

Punta del Este © Roberto Tietzmann/cc-by-2.5

Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a state in the southeastern region of South America. It borders Argentina to its west and Brazil to its north and east, with the Río de la Plata (River of Silver) to the south and the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast. Uruguay is home to an estimated 3.44 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the metropolitan area of its capital and largest city, Montevideo (List of cities in Uruguay). With an area of approximately 176,000 square kilometres (68,000 sq mi), Uruguay is geographically the second-smallest nation in South America, after Suriname. Uruguayan culture is strongly European and its influences from southern Europe are particularly important. The tradition of the gaucho has been an important element in the art and folklore of both Uruguay and Argentina.   read more…

Theme Week Paraguay – Asunción

28 July 2018 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  16 minutes

Calle Palma © Bruno Arriola/cc-by-sa-3.0

Calle Palma © Bruno Arriola/cc-by-sa-3.0

Asunción is the capital and largest city of Paraguay. The city is located on the left bank of the Paraguay River, almost at the confluence of this river with the River Pilcomayo, on the South American continent. The Paraguay River and the Bay of Asunción in the northwest separate the city from the Occidental Region of Paraguay and Argentina in the south part of the city. The rest of the city is surrounded by the Central Department. The city is an autonomous capital district, not a part of any department. The metropolitan area, called Gran Asunción, includes the cities of San Lorenzo, Fernando de la Mora, Lambaré, Luque, Mariano Roque Alonso, Ñemby, San Antonio, Limpio, Capiatá and Villa Elisa, which are part of the Central Department. The Asunción metropolitan area has over 2.2 million inhabitants.   read more…

Theme Week Paraguay – Ciudad del Este

27 July 2018 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  6 minutes

Downtown Ciudad del Este © Ekem/cc-by-sa-3.0

Downtown Ciudad del Este © Ekem/cc-by-sa-3.0

Ciudad del Este (Spanish for City of the East) initialed CDE is the second largest city in Paraguay and capital of the Alto Paraná Department, situated on the Paraná River. Its population is at 294,000. The city consists of a large population of Lebanese immigrants, as well as Taiwanese. The city annually attracts thousands of tourists for Black Friday. On a daily basis, many tourists from Brazil cross the border to enter Ciudad del Este and the city also attracts thousands of worldwide tourists. The city is home to Club Atlético 3 de Febrero, whose home ground Estadio Antonio Aranda was used for the 1999 Copa América, and is Paraguay’s third biggest football stadium.   read more…

Theme Week Paraguay – Encarnación

26 July 2018 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  8 minutes

Encarnación Beach © Motorway065/cc-by-sa-3.0

Encarnación Beach © Motorway065/cc-by-sa-3.0

Encarnación is a district and the capital city of Itapúa Department in Paraguay, located at the south-east of the department, on the right-hand (western) shore of the Paraná River, opposite Posadas in Argentina. The city has an area of 274 km² and a population of 128,000. Encarnación is the third-largest city of Paraguay. Encarnación is connected to Posadas by the San Roque González de Santa Cruz Bridge and the International Train. The city is located on Route 1, some 370 km (225 miles) from Asunción, and located on Route 6, some 280 km (175 miles) from Ciudad del Este. The Teniente Amin Ayub Gonzalez Airport, 12 kilometres from the city, is the third most important airport of the country. Because of the mild climate, the city is often referred to as the Pearl of the South. Near the town (28 km on the Ruta 6) are the former Jesuit missions of La Santísima Trinidad de Paraná and Jesús de Tavarangüe, which were collectively declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993.   read more…

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