Brian

Uruguay Rated #1 for Prosperity in South America

October 29, 2009 by Brian

The third edition of the Legatum Prosperity Index was released this week. This index ranks 104 countries (accounting for 90% of the world’s population) based on a definition of prosperity that combines economic growth with measures of happiness and quality of life.

The 9 areas the Legatum Prosperity Index looks at are:
1.    Economic Fundamentals
2.    Entrepreneurship and Innovation
3.    Education
4.    Democratic Institutions
5.    Governance
6.    Health
7.    Personal Freedom
8.    Security
9.    Social Capital

The highest-ranking South American countries are Uruguay (33rd), Chile (36th) and Argentina (38th). The lowest performing country in South America is Venezuela (74th), just ahead of Bolivia (73rd) and Ecuador (71st).

Uruguay scored especially well in 3 areas:
•    Personal freedom at 14th
•    Safety and security at 26th
•    Health at 28th

Full details about Uruguay’s rankings in the 2009 Legatum Prosperity Index can be found here. If you want to see how Uruguay’s ranking stacks up against the US, click here.

Since Ecuador was our second choice if Uruguay didn’t work out for us, we were surprised how low it scored on the Index given its preference as a hot spot for expats. In fact, International Living named Ecuador the World's Best Retirement Haven for 2009. It just shows how it important it is to get your information from multiple sources when deciding where to live as an expat.

Read the Index’s key findings related to South America here.

More information on the Prosperity Index, including full country rankings, background on data and methodology, and profiles of each country can be found at www.prosperity.com.

Recipe of the Week: One-Day Sour Dill Pickles and One-Day Sweet Pickles

October 27, 2009 by Brian

A few dishes we make require pickles, and we also like to eat pickles with hamburgers and sandwiches from time to time. We’ve found that there isn’t a good selection of pickles in Uruguay (or pickle relish for that matter).

Since produce is so inexpensive in Uruguay, we decided to make pickles from scratch. But, we didn’t want to go through the canning process and wait weeks or months to enjoy our pickles.

So, these recipes are for “quick” pickles. We’ve included a recipe for sour dill pickles (my favorite) and another recipe for sweet pickles (Brian’s favorite).

And before the jokes start, no, I didn’t make these pickles to eat with ice cream… I may be pregnant, but I’m not crazy ☺

One-Day Sour Dill Pickles

Ingredients:

1 large cucumber (or 3 small pickling cucumbers)
2 cups white vinegar
1 small bunch fresh dill
3 cloves coarsely chopped garlic
2 tablespoons sea salt
1/8 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper

Directions:

Thoroughly wash the exterior of your cucumbers
Slice into uniform, thin rounds
Place your dill, garlic, salt and peppers in a 1-quart canning jar or other container of similar size
Add cucumbers
Add vinegar to cover the pickles
Seal jar or container and refrigerate for 24 hours
Serve

Tips and Modifications:

The skin of these pickles will retain a fresh green color and the flesh of the pickles will be fairly white
These pickles are very tart; to reduce tartness, dilute vinegar with ¼ to ½ cup of water
Sour dill pickles will keep for about 10 days in the refrigerator
Optionally add some sliced pepper and onion with the cucumber in step 4

One-Day Sweet Pickles

Ingredients:

1 large cucumber (or 3 small pickling cucumbers)
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup white sugar
1 ½ tablespoons salt
¼ teaspoon mustard powder
¼ teaspoon ground turmeric (optional)

Directions:

Thoroughly wash the exterior of your cucumbers
Slice into uniform, thin rounds
Loosely pack in a 1-quart canning jar or other container of similar size
Combine apple cider vinegar, sugar, salt, mustard powder and turmeric in a small saucepan on medium-high heat
Bring to a boil and allow to cook for 5 more minutes
Pour hot liquid over the vegetables in the container
Seal jar or container and refrigerate for 24 hours
Serve

Tips and Modifications:

Sweet pickles will keep in the refrigerator for about 10 days
Optionally add one sliced sweet onion or sweet pepper with the cucumber in step 3
Add some crushed red peppers for a little spice

Uruguay Presidential Elections: Outcome Still Uncertain

October 26, 2009 by Brian

The Uruguay Presidential elections were held yesterday. In order to secure the Presidential post, the candidate must receive 50% plus one of the votes. Jose "Pepe" Mujica was just shy of that number, with 47.5% of the votes. Luis Alberto Lacalle received 28.5% of the votes and Pedro Bordaberry received 17% of the votes. (for more details on the political parties in Uruguay, click here)

Because no Presidential Candidate received 50% plus one of the votes, there will be a runoff election on November 29 between the top two Uruguayan Presidential Candidates (Mujica and Lacalle) to decide who will be the next President of Uruguay. For more information on this year’s Uruguay Presidential Elections, visit El Pais, the Uruguay newspaper.

What we’ve found most interesting about the Uruguay Presidential Elections is the level of involvement by Uruguay’s citizens. It seems that everyone is passionate about politics and gets deeply involved. There are people on every street corner handing out information on the candidate they support. And it seems like there’s a rally every other day for one of the candidates.

It’s not uncommon to see one of the Presidential candidates on a street corner giving a speech to a large group of people. Lacalle has a small campaign office across the street from our apartment and has given speeches there.

This picture was taken from our balcony:

Even though voting is compulsory (there’s a fine of UY$400, or less than U$S 20, for not voting), the people of Uruguay care deeply about what happens with their government and take their freedom very seriously.

In a country of a little over 3.4 million people there are approximately 2.5 million people who are eligible to vote. It’s reported that voter turnout for the Uruguay Presidential Election was above 90%. That means over 2.25 million people voted in the 2009 Uruguayan Presidential Election.

Perhaps this is because Uruguay was under the rule of a dictator from 1973 to 1984 (when the first free elections were held). So, the people of Uruguay still remember what it was like to be oppressed by their government.

We never saw this level of involvement in politics in the US, or anything close to it. In the 2008 US Presidential elections, there was a 56.8% voter turnout. This was the highest voter turnout for a US Presidential Election since 1968, which was still only a 60.8% voter turnout. (source)

A lot of US citizens go to the polls uninformed about the candidates and issues on the ballot. Perhaps many US citizens take their freedom for granted because they have had it for as long as they can remember…

Whatever the reason, it’s refreshing to be part of a community that truly cares about the direction of the country.

36 Hours in Montevideo, Uruguay

October 23, 2009 by Brian

It’s always neat to see US newspapers running stories on the tiny country of Uruguay that we’ve come to love. Today, it’s the New York Times highlighting Montevideo.

The news story, titled “36 Hours in Montevideo, Uruguay,” gives a breakdown of the writer’s stay in the capital city. It’s a nice story, especially if you’re planning a trip to Montevideo.

He gives some detail about museums, hotels, architecture, food, nightlife, markets, mate and more. For only spending 36 hours in Montevideo, he made good use of his time.

Read the story on the New York Times Website.

It’s Spring in Uruguay… Time to Plant a Garden!

October 23, 2009 by Brian

We typically have a garden of some sort every year, even if it’s just a few tomato and jalapeño plants. Now that Spring is here, I’m getting that urge to plant a garden.

But, we’re living in a Montevideo apartment, so that doesn’t leave us much room for a garden. Our front balcony has three small planters on it so we decided to plant a basil plant, rosemary plant and cilantro plant in them.

We’ve seen a couple nurseries around Montevideo, but we came across one the other day that we really liked, Ciudad Jardin. They have a great selection and their prices are reasonable. The basil, rosemary and cilantro plants ranged from UY$15-25 (U$S 0.74-1.23) each. Large bags of soil (tierra) are only UY$50 (U$S 2.46) each.

They even deliver to your home! If you want to have a small garden, or just need a couple house plants, check out Ciudad Jardin.

Ciudad Jardin is located at Av. Brasil 2528 esq. Brito del Pino. Telephone: 708-0504.

Our Expat Family Makes the Front Page of InfoNegocios

October 22, 2009 by Brian

Yesterday our expat family was featured on the front page of InfoNegocios, a Spanish News Magazine. You can see the article on their website.

We wanted to thank all of our readers and the Uruguayan community for all of the kind emails we received yesterday and today. We love living in Uruguay and are happy to share our experiences with you on the Exploring Uruguay Blog.

Here’s a screen shot of the article:

Uruguay Restaurant Review: Las Papitas

October 21, 2009 by Brian

A few months back a new restaurant, Las Papitas, opened downstairs so we decided to check it out. And, we’ve been going there ever since. The staff is extremely friendly (most of them speak English), and the food is great.

Las Papitas has a concept unique in Montevideo… they just serve French fries. French fries with every type of dip imaginable. In fact, they have more than 20 dips to choose from. They recently added a picante dip to the menu for us (it’s not posted on the menu, so you’ll have to ask for it especially if you want to try it). Thanks guys!

But, we recently discovered our favorite item at Las Papitas, Revuelto Gramajo (UY$129). Revuelto Gramajo consists of skinny fries, egg, cheese, panceta (bacon), green onions and red bell peppers fried together. If you ask for picante, they’ll throw in some diced chile pepper or Tabasco for you. It’s delicious, and the closest thing to Carne Asada Fries I think we’re going to find in Montevideo.

They also serve sweet potato fries (boniatos), which are good. We haven’t tried their Canadian Poutine yet, but it’s a dish that originated in Quebec and is supposed to be good. They also serve smoothies, which we haven’t tried yet (once the weather warms up we’ll definitely be sampling the smoothies).

Prices start at UY$49 for a small cone of fries (no dips), and go up to UY$139 for a large cone of fries with 3 dips.

Las Papitas is located at 21 de Setiembre 2853 esquina Ellauri. Telephone: 712-4033.

Become a fan of Las Papitas on facebook.

Recipe of the Week: Empanadas from Scratch

October 19, 2009 by Brian

Ever since we moved to Uruguay, we find ourselves picking up Empanadas frequently. Il Lolo is our favorite, but MLCalentitas seems to be open more frequently, so we often go there.

Empanadas are great, but we are tired of going out for them. We decided we wanted to make Empanadas from scratch. We’re sure glad we did, they came out fantastic.

Here’s the recipe… we hope you enjoy.

Empanada Dough Ingredients:

3 cups flour
1 teaspoon sea salt
½ cup cold water
1 egg
1 egg white
1 teaspoon white vinegar
3 tablespoons lard (or vegetable oil)

Empanada Filling Ingredients:

1 cup steak or chicken, pre-cooked and chopped
1 cup red bell pepper, minced
1 cup onion, minced
1 cup Magro cheese, grated
(or your favorite fillings)

Other Ingredients:

Vegetable oil
Extra flour for work surface

Directions:

Beat the water, egg, egg white and white vinegar in a bowl and set aside
Mix the flour and salt in a separate bowl
Cut the lard into the flour mix (use a pastry blender or two butter knives)
Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and mix with a fork until it becomes stiff
Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface until all the flour is incorporated and the dough is smooth
Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour (do not keep longer than 24 hours)

Make several small balls out of your empanada dough
Lightly flour your work surface
Place a ball of dough on your floured work surface
Roll the dough out into a 1/8-inch thick layer
Cut the dough into circles with round cookie cutters or a bowl (we used a 5.5 inch round Tupperware bowl)
Remove the excess dough from the circle
Place filling in the center of the circle
Fold the circle and contents into a semicircle (the dough is stretchy, so don’t worry, it shouldn’t break easily)
Crimp the edges with a fork (If the edges won’t stick together, wet your finger and rub it along the inside edge of the dough and try again)
Continue until all of the dough is used up

Add 1-2 inches of vegetable oil to pan and heat to 180° – 200° C (360° – 400° F)
Deep fry the empanadas for 1 to 2 minutes per side (they should be lightly golden)
Drain on paper towels and serve warm

Tips and Modifications:

You can freeze the dough if you want to keep it longer than 24 hours
Makes about 16-18 empanadas
We like dipping our empanadas in hot sauce

Share a comment about your variations and modifications for empanadas.

Casa Singer: The World of Spices

October 16, 2009 by Brian

As avid cooks, we’re always looking for new specialty foods stores in Montevideo where we can procure our favorite ingredients. We came across a store in Centro, Casa Singer. Thank you Clara.

Casa Singer carries a wide range of spices, flours, grains, dried fruits, extracts, condiments and ethnic foods. The prices are a bit high, but you’ll find foods and spices here you won’t find elsewhere in Montevideo.

We picked up some dried chilies (52 grams), ground cayenne pepper (62 grams), ground cumin seed (52 grams) and a big jar of mixed peppercorns (225 grams) for UY $680 (U$S 32.77).

For the Spanish translations, click here.

Casa Singer is located at Av. 18 de Julio 1612. Phone: 409-7846.

Pictures of Casa Singer's interior:

Getting Health Insurance in Uruguay:
Asociación Española

October 15, 2009 by Brian

We mentioned on previous blog that we had decided to pursue private health insurance through Hospital Britanico in Montevideo. We went this route because we were told time and time again that it was the best health care in Uruguay, and the best place to have a baby in Uruguay.

While the care we received there was great, we decided to go another route. This decision was mostly due to the fact that every time we talked to the Hospital Britanico Scheme office, their price for delivering the baby kept changing. So much so, that the amount they wanted up front more than doubled from our original conversations! Yikes.

So, after doing some more research, we decided to pursue medical coverage through Asociación Española, one of Uruguay’s largest mutualistas. Asociación Española is named a "Baby Friendly Hospital" by the Ministry of Health, according to World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF initiatives. And, they have the most comprehensive Pediatric Department in Uruguay.

In addition, their health insurance rates are much lower than Hospital Britainco’s health insurance rates. Brian and I will each be paying UY$1446 per month (U$S 69.69 as of today’s exchange rate), which includes funeral coverage in addition to health care coverage (tax included). The rate for Zoë is UY$ 867 (U$S 41.78) per month, including health care coverage and funeral coverage (tax included).

There is an additional fee of UY$ 1085 (U$S 52.29) per month if you want a private room, but we decided to forgo that for now. You must pay 12 months of fees before you can actually have a private room (only 7 months for delivery of the baby). So, she said we can think about it and pay the full 7 months of fees later if I decide I want a private room.

Asociación Española has arrangements with SUAT for emergency services, so we also signed up with them. The rate is UY$ 290 (U$S 13.98) per month, and they currently have a special for 4 months free.

That brings us to a total of UY$ 4629 per month, or U$S 223 (if only the US dollar would stop losing value!) for all three of us to have health insurance, emergency service coverage and funeral coverage. This is UY$ 1302 (U$S 62.75) per month less than Hospital Britanico (and we did not have funeral coverage with them).

Getting health insurance with Asociación Española was very simple. We just went down to their Departmento de Socios office at Rivera 2341 and met with a woman who spoke English (we were told you must get there between 8 am and 1 pm to be able to meet with someone who speaks English; no appointment necessary).

We told her we wanted to sign up with the hospital, provided our passports and signed a couple of papers. They didn’t even ask us any medical questions like they did at Hospital Britanico.

She recommended that we get photo ID cards for the hospital since we don’t have our cedulas yet (Uruguayan ID cards). There is an extra fee of UY$ 17 (U$S 0.82) each for the cards, but they make them for you on the spot. We paid the cashier; they took our pictures and gave us our Asociación Española ID cards.

Then she walked us over to the SUAT representative and gave her our information. We signed a couple papers and she provided our SUAT ID cards. Our coverage was effective immediately and we don’t have to pay anything until next month.

It was a very easy process to get health insurance through Asociación Española. Now, the next step is to find a good English-speaking Obstetrician at Asociación Española. Any recommendations are welcome!