Uruguay Travel Guide: Nice To Know Facts About Uruguay. Interesting Facts.
As you prepare to travel to another country it is a good idea to learn about your destination before hand. That will give you an idea on what to expect, what things to bring and to prepare for. Isn’t it great to also learn something unique about your travel destination when you draw up your travel itinerary? It is a glimpse at the crux of the country. For our Uruguay Travel Guide, take a peek into the gauchos and the yerba mate, two of the things that Uruguay is famous for.
The Legendary Gauchos
It was in 1516 that the Spanish came to Uruguay. In 1603 they began to introduce cattle to the country, which eventually became one of the sources of Uruguay’s wealth. The introduction of cattle to Uruguay brought an influx of the nomadic cattle herders from neighboring countries that were called gauchos, roughly the equivalent of cowboys. And wherever there are cattle, cattle ranches and horse-back riding, there will be gauchos. They were called the wanderers of the pampas, nomads who were skilled horsemen and very good at tracking lost cattle for their employers, the local ranchers who became their patrons. They equally provided service as protectors to their patrons and became soldiers in times of battle. Such is the legend of the gauchos. They are loners and their clothing became a very unique fashion item, indicative of their spending more time on horseback than on land. Their usual attire consists of a wide-brimmed hat, a poncho made of wool, loose or pleated long trousers called bombachas and leather boots that reach up to their knees. Their boots were also unique. They were made from the hide of freshly-killed cattle that is wrapped around their feet and legs. The boots take on the shape of their feet and legs once the hide dries up. Their nomadic existence did not allow them to have many possessions. Gauchos usually only have their trusted horse and a handy facon. A facon is a long and very sharp knife. A gaucho also uses bolas or boleadoras to catching cattle. Boleadoras are two weights or stones on each end of interconnected leather strips. These are used as a lariat to trip animals such as cattle to make it easy for the gauchos to catch them.
Yerba Mate
There are so many legends surrounding this herbal drink that is one of the many things you should not forget to buy when you travel to Uruguay. One of those legends tells of the Goddesses of the Moon and the Cloud who went down to Earth and took on human forms. However, while on Earth they were about to be attacked by a jaguar. They were saved by a Guarani elder, an Indian tribesman who lived in the woods with his wife and daughter. The Goddesses were treated very well by the family. When they got back to the heavens, they thought of an appropriate gift to the family who took care of them. And they went back down to Earth and sowed seeds near the front of the house of the Guarani Indian. They also conjured up a dream where they told the family that the plants will bring them fortune and will be a drink of friendship. The seeds sprouted very quickly and by the time the Indian woke up, the plants were quite tall and sprouting leaves and flowers.
The yerba mate became very popular as an herbal drink, made into tea that is served when there are guests, with the infusion from the leaves of the tree shared by everyone, drinking from a natural gourd cup, also called mate. A metal straw, called a bombilla is used when drinking yerba mate socially. The yerba mate trees are now planted in commercial quantities in Uruguay, Paraguay, Argentina, Brazil and Bolivia. Young twigs and leaves are dried and ground and sold as is or blended with mint, grapefruit skin or with orange. Preparation is done by pouring hot water, rather than boiling water to the ground leaves and allowed to steep. It can also be served like a natural soft drink, taken cold without any flavoring.
The yerba mate is an evergreen tree that grows up to about 15 feet tall. It belongs to the holly family and has male and female plants. It is said that the leaves of the female yerba mate plant taste milder that the male plants. However, the female plants are harder to find in commercial plantations. Yerba mate is like green tea, containing antioxidants, flavonoids and bioflavenoids, theophylline and polyphenols, but their amounts are higher than that with green tea. And the leaves contain more caffeine, too. Studies on the effect of yerba mate as an herbal drink revealed that it relaxes smooth muscle tissue while it stimulates heart tissues and helps digestion. It has anti-inflammatory and lipid-lowering properties, as well as anti-mutation properties.
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