I’ve Been Tangoed

 

I am so pleased that I persevered in ensuring that I actually got to attend the tango show as it ended up being a brilliant night. The Primuseum is a quickly little restaurant that doubles as a museum. Of stoves.  What started out as a collection off Primus stoves that were used widely in Uruguay in the 19th and early 20th century has turned into a collection of other vintage stoves and antiques.  It’s equally charming and weird. I arrived at about 9:15, and was quickly seated at my table for one right near the little mini stage.  I noticed another woman seated by herself, and I asked her to join me which she did. Katrina is in her 70s and lives in Washington State. She was travelling with her husband but he didn’t fancy the show so she came on her own. Good for you, Katrina. She then proceeded to tell me her interesting life story.  She grew up in Madison, Wisconsin but found her parents too permissive and asked to be sent to boarding school when she was 14.  When she was 16, she’d had enough and took a train from the school in Ohio to Mexico City. Yes, at 16.  She then hooked up with some hippie and spent the next 10 years travelling around with him, smoking weed, doing peyote and generally living the 60s hippie life.  She then got pregnant, had the baby but it died in childbirth. Devastated, she returned to the US and got a PhD in something like Reiki - but I’m not sure that was a real thing. Anyway, she led a fascinating life, eventually marrying Glen, became a real estate agent, had two more kids and now leads a pretty conventional life in Bellingham, Washington. I couldn’t have asked for a more interesting dinner companion. 

Dinner was amazing - yet another 6 course tasting menu. There wasn’t a wine pairing, but there was a bottle of Tannat, Uruguay’s signature red wine. It’s deep, intense and utterly delicious. Food included a bread basket of apple crisps, sweet potato crisps and bread sticks; a selection of five different bite sized mini appetisers,  a fried sweetbread with all kinds of interesting accompaniments served under a smoke filled glass that was whisked off with great ceremony; smoked bone marrow; vegetarian meatballs and some unidentifiable, yet delicious, dessert. All this was served over 3 hours an although I was stuffed, I never felt sick. During all the food comings and goings, we were treated to a musical song and dance fest.  There was a bass player, a pianist and an accordion player as well as a couple dancing tango. I’ve never really had any particular interest in tango, but I do now. The moves are all about super fancy footwork and dramatic pauses, and it is deeply sexy. The dancers managed to look like they were deeply in love, but at the same time plotting each other’s murder.   I loved every second of it.  The owner (that’s him with me in the photo) spent some time chatting with us, and he is equally passionate about the food and the music. I wish him much success. 

I didn’t make it back to the hotel until about 1:00 and I had an early start for the drive to Colonia with the dreaded Grace. She did not disappoint, yammering at me for the entire 2 hour drive. The one time I attempted to interject, she just talked over me.  I pretended to sleep, but she kept going. It was impressive. We arrived in Colonia, and I was installed in the Posada Don Antonio, another small, old hotel which is clean and comfortable but has seen better days.  I then took off for a wander around this remarkable town which is a UNESCO world heritage site. Colonia is kind of like an historical theme park, dreamed up by people who fell asleep whilst they were setting it up.  The streets are a cobbled obstacle course, and the antique cars parked on the street look like extras in a gangster movie.The past and the present are close friends here, with rustic lampposts illuminating trendy wine bars. The quality of the souvenirs and “artisan” stalls are significantly higher than any I’ve seen on this trip.  It is a wonderful place.  There are signs in the parks saying “no pisar el cesped” which I thought meant “don’t pee on the grass”, but I looked it up and it just means we shouldn’t walk on it.  I was a little disappointed.  I then wandered back to my hotel and hung out by the pool for an hour thinking about the freezing temperatures I will return home to in just over a week.

At 5, I was met at my hotel by Nella, who was to take me on a walking tour of the city. Bloody hell, she was another one who talked non-stop without ever interacting.  There is definitely something going on with these women, and I have vowed to walk away the next time one introduces themselves to me as a guide.  To be honest, I didn’t see anything that I hadn’t seen in my earlier wandering or heard anything that I hadn’t read about in my guide book already. The only interesting thing I learned is that the roof tiles were shaped by moulding the clay over the workers’ thighs which is why they are different sizes.  I finished off my evening with yet another wine tasting - this time focussing on the aforementioned Tannats and accompanied by some tasty local cheeses.