What I love about Montevideo is that it is a city which YOU have to go out and find, it does not simply stare you in the face like many big tourist hubs. There isn't a set list of top 10 sites to see and then you can tick it off your list...it may be small, but it is rich in culture and hidden treasures - and when you make the effort to go out and find it, the discoveries are so much more rewarding.
My newest find (and one that I should have bothered to visit much sooner!) is the beautiful Central Cemetery ("El Cementerio Central") located in Barrio Sur. You'll find it along Avenida Gonzalo Ramirez at the end of Yaguaron, a beautiful oasis of peace and serenity amidst an otherwise bustling city.
Some may find it strange to visit a cemetery - personally I find the whole tourist fascination with the famous Recoleta Cemetery in Buenos Aires a little grotesque. Its not so much the "visiting a cemetery" part that I find weird, but more so the mass visits, the lack of reverence, the flashing cameras. Yes it is a beautiful place, but is also a sacred place - one where mothers, fathers, sons and daughters have been laid to rest.
Luckily that is something that is still very much acknowledged in this cemetery. There are still people visiting graves - old and new - but they don't mind you wandering. They have bought these beautiful monuments to pay homage to their loved ones, and as such they are there to be shared, appreciated and admired. It is a place of incredible peace and tranquility - it is filled with lush towering trees, some that hang down over the memorials, as if weeping with and comforting the mourning figures captured in the incredible grave stones. There are hundreds of different types of birds - colourful and singing, oblivious to the nature of place they have made their homes. Cats patrol the graves - some sprawled out on the hot sun soaked marble tombs, others watching from the shade...it almost catches you off guard when you notice just how many little feline eyes are following you!
Having been built in 1835, the cemetery is now over 160 years old and still expanding. You can see where the original plot lay, and how it has since expanded downward toward the rambla. There are many important figures buried here, including Delmira Agustini a major Latin-American writer, and Francisco Acuna de Figueroa, the man who penned Uruguay's national anthem (and probably a whole lot more if you're up to speed on Uruguayan, Italian and Argentine history!).
What remains most striking is of course the incredible grave stone monuments. Many were commissioned by very well-to-do families of the 19th century who spared no expense in leaving a fitting memorial for their family name. As such there are works by Genoese artist Lavarello, Italian sculptors Felix Morelli and Jose Livi, as well as Uruguayan artists Jose Luis Zorrilla de San Martin and Jose Belloni (who also designed the fountain in Plaza Entrevero and the horse statue in Parque Rodo).
This is definitely a place to visit in Montevideo. There is an incredible sense of peace and deep history. It is unusual to find such a place in the middle of a city and it is honestly somewhere I could visit again and again. I think it is open to the public every weekday until 4.30pm.
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