Soy Celeste

Money shot.

Last night, Uruguay won it's world cup qualifier, 3-0, against Colombia. Colombia beat Uruguay in the last round of qualifiers. Given the that it was a grudgematch, it was fairly sober and pleasant. But I'm slowly discovering that Uruguay might really be the Switzerland of South America, so this was not entirely surprising.

Other things I learned at the match:

• A new chant: "A esos putos, vamos a ganar."
• Uruguay is a great, staccatoed name to chant.  (ooo-roo-GWHY)
• No fist pumping, you punch towards the air with an open hand. 
• The stadium Estadio Centendario was built for the the 1930 world cup and is the only historical momument of World Football, so take that Azteca and Bernabeu...and a list of others.
• Patagonia, the store, must be Uruguay fans. I already had several items of clothing in "celeste" blue.  (that's heaven/sky blue). 
• "Soy Celeste, soy celeste, celeste soy yo" is an easy chant for a foreigner. 

Celebration after the second goal. Note the open hand fist pump.

Is this the origin of Liz Lemon high-fiving a million tiny angels? 

1-0 Uruguay

Short trip to Piriapolis

Spring is finally (sort of) here! In between some rainy and particularly windy days (I thought I was going to be thrown into the ocean on at least one run), we've had some gorgeous sunny ones. I took advantage of a sunny Sunday to go to Piriapolis, about an hour and a half up the coast. It only took me 10 tries to stop inserting an "n" into the name by calling it Pirianapolis. I used to think it was funny when people said Minninapolis, but now I understand that it is very clearly part of an English-speaker's nature to add extra consonants.  It was a small town with a beach and a restaurant on top of a hill. So, I don't have any stories of getting lost in the middle of a foreign country, but rather I just have memories of a sunny afternoon and a lunch on a hill. 

I finally managed to volunteer in class, which is a feat. There is no raising hands here. Students talk when they feel like it, and usually they're talking over another student or the professor. It's not the easiest environment for a non-native speaker who is used to the orderly nature of raising hands or being cold-called by law professors. One of my answers was met with cheers of "Kerry! Kerry!" Coming from 18 year olds, I'm pretty sure that it was not an indication that I should be proud of my answer, and I should not volunteer ever again. I have more tests in the weeks to come, and hopefully I will be able to tell you all that I am actually passing classes here in Uruguay. But that remains to be seen.

Fotos:

Switzerland? No, silly. That chalet is pink. It's Piriapolis!

Aerosilla = chairlift.  (Pronounced Ay-arrow - see - jah in Uruguayan Spanish)

Glamour shot at the top.

The school cafeteria has a snack that looks like a layer of jelly on to of a layer of cheese.
??/10 (I have no desire to pay for it)

Spring is here! And I did such a great job of conveying it through this photo.
I give this photo a 2/10.