Interesting facts about Uruguay:1. In Uruguay, free medical care, even for tourists, but you just pay one doctor - dentist.2. In Uruguay, very friendly people - if you ask them the way, you still most likely hold to your destination.3. Uruguay is a reading nation - the number of bookstores here are very large.4. It is not strange, but almost 90 percent of the representatives of the European race.5. Uruguay - one of the few countries that has won the World Cup, and did it twice.6. In Uruguay, was only the World Cup within a single city - Montevideo.7. Uruguay - One of the most economically developed countries in Latin America. However, for the Uruguayan economy characterized by a permanent combination of ups and downs, surges of inflation. In Uruguay, the most evenly distributed in Latin America, revenues, because Uruguay is often called the "Switzerland of Latin America"

alsoWhen our countryman for the first time goes to Uruguay, then it especially affects the following:1) friendly people. If you ask for directions, not only to count how many quarters to this point, but will part ways. Do not say, for example, about Argentina or Moscow.2) Tea, mate. Every third passer in his hands is a special cup for a mate and a thermos under his arm, from a cup now and then sipped.3) overt emotion. Russia After the Cold fact that the buses passed applaud wandering singers may seem strange.4) The natural laziness. Well, this feature is quite close to us.5) High civilized country. Name of Uruguay can not be considered to be very successful in terms of perception. Sounds like a cannibalistic tribe. However, when you get into the country, one wonders that the Internet cafes in each house, wifi and gprs are developed in exactly the same as in Moscow, the same McDonald's on every corner, foreign cars, buses and so on.6) A clear regulation of all. Uruguay has not, unlike Russia, for example, oil feed, can be so all there is zvoy law or decree of the government.7) The quality of food. For those who do not mind eating - Uruguay perfect place. A feeling that there is no stale bread, and meat always comes to the table straight from the fryer. Juice is always fresh.8) Low prices. Prices for food, for example, very low. Civita (Brand Uruguayan dish consisting of meat, ham, potatoes, lettuce, tomatoes, pineapples, etc.) in some cafe you can buy per $ 100 of our money.9) Free medicine and education. Medicine here at a very high level. In this case, even for immigrants it is absolutely free, except for a dentist.10) A high level of culture. Bookstores and universities were grouped with a high level of density in this small country.

Sport

Centenario Stadium

The main sport in Uruguay is football (soccer). In 1924, Uruguay sent its national team to the Olympics in Paris, the first South American nation to compete in Europe. They won gold at the competition, as well as at the next Olympics in Amsterdam in 1928. In addition, the Uruguay national football team is one of only five nations to win the FIFA World Cup on two or more occasions. In 1930, Uruguay hosted the first ever World Cup and went on to win the competition, defeating Argentina 4–2 in the final. Uruguay won the 1950 FIFA World Cup as well, famously defeating the favored hosts, Brazil, 2–1 in the last game of the final series. Uruguay performed very credibly in the 2010 FIFA World Cup, having reached the semi-final after 40 years. A narrow 3-2 semi-final defeat to the Netherlands was followed by a further 3-2 defeat to Germany in the third place play-off. Diego Forlán was named 2010 player of the tournament. Uruguay is by far the smallest country, population wise, to win a World Cup. Out of the World Cup winners, the nation with the second smallest population is Argentina (winners of the 1978 and 1986 editions), which has over 40 million people according to the latest estimate; Uruguay's current population slightly over 3.4 million. In fact, only six nations with population smaller than Uruguay have ever participated in any World Cup.
Uruguay is also the smallest member nation of CONMEBOL, South American Football Association. Nevertheless, the Uruguayan national team has won the Copa América 14 times, a record it shares with Argentina.
The most popular football teams in Uruguay are Club Atlético Peñarol (Three times World champions, five times Copa Libertadores de América champions, 41 times Uruguayan League champions) and Club Nacional de Football (Three times World champions, three times Copa Libertadores de América champions and 42 times Uruguayan League champions). Those two, are followed by, Defensor Sporting Club, Danubio, historic teams as Montevideo Wanderers, and other popular teams like Cerro and Rampla Juniors. Uruguay has had many well known players such as Obdulio Varela, Juan Schiaffino, Enzo Francescoli, Gustavo Poyet, Álvaro Recoba, Diego Lugano and Diego Forlán (2005 and 2009 European Golden Shoe, 2010 FIFA World cup adidas Golden Ball winner) among many others.

[edit] Education

Uruguay was the first country to have reached, in 2009, full coverage of their primary students (and their teachers) population by the OLPC's (One Laptop Per Child) XO through the Plan Ceibal. Due to their telecommunication infrastructure, students from primary schools from all over the country are able to access the Internet and its corresponding huge resources base. The Plan Ceibal included training of primary teachers to use the XO system, to maximize results. This represented a total of 350,000 primary students and their 16,000 teachers

Cuisine

Main article: Cuisine of Uruguay

Flan (firm egg custard) with dulce de leche

Uruguayans are known to eat a lot of meat, such as asado. The parrillada (beef platter), chivito (a substantial steak sandwich), and pasta are the national dishes. The latter is due to Uruguay's many Italian immigrants in the late 19th century and early 20th century. Other Uruguayan dishes include morcilla dulce, a type of blood sausage cooked with ground orange fruit, orange peel and walnuts, and milanesa, a breaded veal cutlet similar to the Austrian Wiener Schnitzel. Snacks include olímpicos (club sandwiches), húngaras (spicy sausage in a hot dog roll), and masas surtidas (bite-sized pastries). Typical drinks include mate, tea, clericó (a mixture of white wine and fruit juice), medio y medio (part sparkling wine and part white wine), and red wine.
The cuisine of Uruguay is traditionally based on its European roots, such as Mediterranean foods from Italy, Spain and France, but also Germany. Many foods from these countries such as pasta, sausages, and desserts are common in the nation's diet. A sweet paste, Dulce de Leche is the national obsession and used to fill biscuits, cakes, pancakes, milhojas, and alfajores. The alfajores are pieces of shortbread sandwiched together with Dulce de Leche or a fruit paste. Dulce de Leche is also used in flan con Dulce de Leche. On rainy days, the traditional snack is "tortas fritas," a food similar to Indian bread fried in tallow.
The national drink is Grappamiel which contains alcohol and is very popular. It is distilled from grapes and honey and often consumed on cold mornings during autumn and winter in order to warm the body.
One traditional drink is an infusion called mate. The dried leaves and twigs of the yerba mate plant (Ilex paraguariensis) are placed in a small cup made from a gourd. Hot water is then poured into the gourd at near-boiling point so as to not burn the herb and spoil the flavour. The drink is sipped through a metal or cane straw, known as a bombilla.

Milanesa

Tortellini

• Asado: both the tradition of grilling beef over embers (which translates to barbecue in American English), and the dish, "tira de asado".
• Chivito: a baroque sandwich containing steak, ham, cheese, tomato, lettuce, fried egg, red pepper, olives and mayonnaise.
• Chorizo al pan: a very popular Uruguayan fast food. A grilled "chorizo" and a crusty bread such as a baguette, with tomato, lettuce and mayonnaise.
• Empanada : a small pie or turnover, most commonly filled with meat or ham and cheese.
• Empanada Gallega: a fish pie, with sauce, onions and green peppers. Brought by the immigrants from Galicia.
• Fainá: a mix of chick pea flour, salt, water and olive oil, originally called "farinata" cooked like a pizza on a flat tray. Brought by immigrants from Liguria (Italy).
• Gnocchi (known as "ñoquis") is traditionally eaten on the 29th day of each month. This was the day before payday, when people were at their poorest. Gnocchi made a cheap meal prepared from only mashed potatoes and flour and provided a hearty meal. On these occasions, some people leave a coin or a banknote under the plate to attract prosperity.
• Húngara: very similar to the Frankfurter, but very spicy.
• Milanesa: a thin, breaded steak. There is a great variety, such as: Milanesa Napolitana (with ham, mozzarella cheese and tomato sauce), Milanesa Rellena and Suprema Maryland (made with chicken meat).
• Lehmeyun: an Armenian dish, brought by the Armenian immigrants.
• Pancho: the typically Uruguayan hot dog: a bun called "pan de Viena" filled with a "Frankfurter" with mustard, ketchup, mayonnaise or "salsa golf" on top.
• Pascualina: a spinach pie, not unlike the spinach pies brought by immigrants from Liguria (Italy). . The name makes a reference to Pascua, 'Easter'.
• Pastel de carne: in English: meat pie. Chopped meat, mashed potatoes, green peppers, olives, eggs.
• Russian salad: potatoes, carrots, peas and mayonnaise.

Due to its strong Italian tradition, all the famous Italian pasta dishes are found in Uruguay: ravioli, spaghetti, lasagna, tortellini, fettuccine, cannelloni, fusilli, agnolotti, tagliatelle, capellini, vermicelli, penne rigate, fagioloni, cellentani, rotini, bucatini, farfalle and the traditional gnocchi. Although the pasta can be served with a lot of sauces, there is one special sauce that was created by Uruguayans. The Caruso Sauce is a pasta sauce made from double cream, meat extract, onions, ham and mushrooms. It is very popular with sorrentinos and agnolotti. There is also a huge variety of pizza, as well as calzone, fugazzetas, figazzas, fainás, and cheese fainá.

• Alfajores: shortbread cookies, sandwiched together with Dulce de Leche or a fruit paste.
• Bizcochos: buttery flaky pastry with many variants, the croissants being one of the most popular.
• Budín inglés: in English: "English pudding". A pudding with fruits and nuts, very popular in Christmas and New Year's Eve.
• Chajá: a dessert with meringue, sponge cake, "Chajá" cream and peaches. It is created by a well know firm in the city of Paysandú.^[40]
• Dulce de leche: a sweet treat made of milk and sugar. Is used in many Uruguayan desserts.
• Dulce de membrillo: a sweet quince paste.
• Flan: is a kind of rich custard dessert with a layer of soft caramel on top. It can be served with Dulce de Leche too (Flan con dulce de leche).
• Garrapiñada: a very popular treat, made with peanuts, cocoa, vanilla and sugar. It is sold in little bags in the downtown streets.
• Martín Fierro: a slice of cheese and a slice of quince paste (dulce de membrillo).
• Pastafrola: an pie made of quince paste (dulce de membrillo).
• Ricardito: Also as popular, this is a cream filled treat, covered with chocolate on a waffle base. It has different variants and it's sold in most kiosks in individual boxes.
• Strudel: the famous apple pastry from Germany.

Uruguay (pronounced /ˈjʊərəɡwaɪ/ ( listen),^[7] Spanish pronunciation: [uɾuˈɣwai]), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay^[1][8] (sometimes rendered as the Eastern Republic of Uruguay in the English language;^[9] Spanish: República Oriental del Uruguay, pronounced [reˈpuβlika oɾjenˈtal del uɾuˈɣwai]), is a country located in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people,^[1] of whom 1.4 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area. An estimated 88% of the population are of European descent.^[10]
Uruguay's only land border is with Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, to the north. To the west lies the Uruguay River, to the southwest lies the estuary of Río de la Plata, with Argentina only a short commute across the banks of either of these bodies of water, while to the southeast lies the southern part of the Atlantic Ocean. Uruguay, with an area of approximately 176 thousand km², is the second smallest nation of South America in area after Suriname.
Colonia del Sacramento, one of Uruguay's oldest European settlements, was founded by the Portuguese in 1680. Montevideo was founded by the Spanish in the early 18th century as a military stronghold. Uruguay won its independence in 1811–1828 following a three-way struggle among Spain, Argentina and Brazil. It is a constitutional democracy, where the president fulfills the roles of both head of state and head of government.
Uruguay is one of the most economically developed countries in South America, with a high GDP per capita and the 50th highest quality of life in the world. The economy is largely based on agriculture (making up 10% of GDP and the most substantial export) and the state sector. According to Transparency International, Uruguay is rated as the least corrupt country in Latin America (along with Chile),^[11] with its political and labour conditions being among the freest on the continent.^[1]
In 2007, it became the first Latin American country to legalize same-sex and different-sex civil unions at a national level.^[12] In 2009, Uruguay became the first country in the world to provide every child a free laptop and wireless internet as well.^[13] In 2009, Uruguay became the first country in Latin America to allow gay adoption.^[14] In 2010, Uruguay became the first nation in Latin America to test hemp cultivation.^[15] Between the years 2007 and 2009, Uruguay was the only country in the Americas which didn't technically experience a recession(2 consecutive quarters of retraction).^[16] Uruguay has the lowest Income Inequality in Latin America, and second only to Canada in all the Americas.