URUGUAY

Squeezed, not only geographically, between Argentina and Brazil, Uruguay used to be called Banda Oriental, located on the eastern shore of Rio de la Plata, its inhabitants being named Orientales.

Uruguay became independent in 1828 after many years of wars with its two large neighbors that occupied parts of its territory.  The Portuguese settlers from Brazil founded Colonia del Sacramento in 1680. It was one of the fundamental centers of smuggling British goods across Rio de la Plata into the Spanish colonies, a commercial route that the Spaniards fought to control.

Three hours south stands the capital of the country, Montevideo, where half of the 3 million inhabitants of the land live. The Spaniards founded the city in 1726, mainly to deal with the smuggling from Colonia. At the heart of Ciudad Vieja is located Mercado del Puerto, an old iron wrought structure filled with restaurants that serve the traditional “lomo” and “parilla.”