German
Uruguay: Montevideo, MACA and Mini Starlink
November 2024
On the road in Uruguay
Long, straight highways through huge fruit fields, lots of oncoming trucks. We found it especially when the navigation system indicated the next intersection in 100 kilometers.
Uruguay is known for political and economic stability. In addition to agriculture, the country focuses on IT- and Software- services.
During our travel time in the low season, coastal towns and the city of Punta del Este, for example, were deserted. Condominiums in high-rise buildings were mostly deserted, as they are only used as vacation homes. The hatches were also closed on many exclusive beach houses.
Every year Punta del Este, with a population of around 15,000, receives more than 350,000 tourists of various nationalities in the summer, with Argentinians and Brazilians being the most representative groups of foreigners in the destination.
In order to maintain the high number of visitors, foreign tourists are exempt from 9% VAT on restaurants, car rentals and hotels in Uruguay.
Filling our gas tank would have been a bit of an adventure without a reliable address in iOverlander.
Interesting camping spots by the sea, rivers and reservoirs.
In addition to modern vehicles, there are also many rust buckets on the road in a precarious driving condition.
Among the various campsites we visited, La Chacra Holandesa in Atlantida stood out because of its excellent value for money. It is beautifully surrounded by farmland, horses and cows. Dogs and a few chickens are an integral part of the site.
Cheese factories Nueva Helvecia
The municipality was founded in 1862 by Swiss emigrants. Hardly anyone still speaks Swiss dialect here, and only a few speak German. Of the 4000 or so cheese producers in Uruguay, most are in the region around Nueva Helvecia. A fourth is still produced by hand.
A Ruta del Queso de Colonia has been in operation since August 2024. The companies participating include artisanal and industrial cheese dairies as well as sales outlets specializing in regional products.
Overnight camp in Montevideo
We have already spent several nights at the lighthouse in Montevideo. This time, on a Friday, huge stages with corresponding loudspeaker boxes were set up in its immediate vicinity.
We found another spot, right by the sea, 4 kilometers away. However, we could still hear the loud bass of the event at night.
At 5 o'clock in the morning, we were woken by loud shouting directly in front of our vehicle, which was parked parallel to the sea. A few minutes later, four police vehicles and then a marine rescue team with recovery equipment arrived.
What had happened? Apparently, an intoxicated homeless man had fallen over the quay wall into the sea right in next of us. Fortunately, a woman saw this and called out the alarm.
The poor, dripping wet guy luckily got away with a bump on the head and certainly sobered up a bit. He still grumbled at the police officers who were there to help.
Uruguay MACA: November 2024 E
MACA Museo de Arte Contemporáneo Atchugarry
is a museum of modern art with changing exhibitions and a sculpture park in the extensive outdoor area. We were surprised by the variety of paintings and objects on display. We have rarely spent so many hours in an art museum before.
Mini Starlink
We have now been the owners of a Mini Starlink set for a few days. We had it send to us from the USA to Uruguay.
It includes the Starlink antenna with integrated WLAN, a 15-meter-long DC power cable and the power supply unit. There is no longer a separate router device as with the standard version - the WLAN is now integrated directly into the antenna. The integrated WLAN is ready to use immediately after installation and covers an area of over 100 square meters. The dual-band technology even allows up to 120 devices to be connected simultaneously. Power consumption is also no longer an issue with the Mini Starlink.
Brigitte has managed the registration in Uruguay. Installing the antenna is easy. It is connected to the power supply using the cable supply. The antenna is then adjusted manually. The Starlink app shows the correct position. As long as there are no obstacles such as trees affecting reception, the antenna is ready for use after a few minutes. We even have good reception for most part in our Sprinter when we place the antenna inside behind the windshield.
We are very happy with our unlimited Internet access, which is available almost everywhere. We have therefore canceled our subscription to the Iridium satellite phone.
