Carnaval – Uruguay!

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I was super excited to experience my first “Carnaval” during our time in Montevideo.  Santiago and Coki talked about it in our podcast discussion and I could believe it was actually happening while I was there.  I hadn’t figured it out, but when I texted Santiago saying we were in Montevideo, he told us where to go.  So we went.

This gallery contains photos from two nights at Carnaval.  The first was at Teatro Verano.  It’s an outdoor amphitheater where the “official” performances take place.  The groups are judged and there’s a winner.  We saw 4 acts that night.  There were different categories, and I was mostly impressed by the “Murgas” – like a choir.  The groups in the other categories did a mix of singing, parodies, and acting.  As we were told by a guide, the acts get pretty political.  Although they were all in Spanish, we understood enough to know they were mocking the government and the president a bunch.  The crowd loved it.  The 4 acts ended around 2am!  We thankful got a ride back from the people sitting next to us so we didn’t have to walk (yeah, hitchhiking back at 2am in Uruguay was questionable judgment, but they said they were police officers…)

The second night, we changed it up and went to the other official venue, the Velodrome.  The acts were (supposed to be) shorter and a fraction of what they do at the official place.  So we expected to see more 20min performances.  Somehow, we left all of our cold weather clothes in the hotel and only stayed for 2.5 acts.  They weren’t any shorter, but at 11pm, we called it a night.  I was able to get closer photos too, which was the goal.

Random note:  Importantly, at both nights, I had an delicious chorizo for dinner at Carnaval

It was awesome to see a part of the culture in Uruguay that was clearly so important to so many people.  I can’t say that the acting and performances were “my cup of tea”, but the singing was outstanding.  What stood out to me was the attentiveness and engagement of the audience.  People were singing along, laughing, and supportive of every group that performed.  It was really awesome. There were thousands of people there and they stayed until the end.

I admit, I was expecting “Carnaval” to be a parade and party like we see on TV from Brazil.  This was different.  It almost felt like a “Festival of Musical Performances” that lasted over a month.  The costumes and makeup made for some great photos though.

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