Currency: Pesos
Language: Spanish
Uruguay, Oriental Republic of Uruguay, state in South America. Uruguay is often called the Latin American Switzerland: a small but very kind-hearted country is famous for its clean environment and a huge number of attractions. The landscapes of Uruguay are dominated by open steppe spaces. Forests in the country are rare, and where they are, they are not very dense. Dry-loving subtropical species of trees, shrubs and palms flourish in forest areas, typical of the subtropical climate. There are no high mountains. Most of the coast of Uruguay is occupied by beaches. The sand varies from light beige to yellow or brown. Since the Rio de la Plata River flows into the western regions of the country, the water in the ocean is rather muddy, and therefore tourists are directed to the more northeastern part of the country, near the Brazilian border, where the sand is the best and the ocean water is more transparent. There are the most beautiful beaches in the country. In the eastern part of Uruguay is Lake Mirin, which is the largest in Uruguay. It is borderline and most of its parts are in Brazil. The country has a high standard of living and a low level of corruption.
Before the conquest of the territory of modern Uruguay by the Spaniards, the tribes of the Charrua Indians lived on its territory. Uruguay was discovered in 1515 by Spanish sailors. The independence of the country was proclaimed in 1825.
The first real European settlement here was called Colonia del Sacramento and was founded 165 years later. Thanks to its favorable location, mild climate and fertile land, today’s Uruguay was a bone of contention for Portugal and Spain, who constantly disputed its ownership. The independence of the country was proclaimed in 1825.
Capital: Montevideo.
Climate:
The subtropical climate of Uruguay is temperate. Winters are short and mild, with extremely rare frosts. The average temperature of the coldest winter month, July, is approx. 10° C. Summers are warm, average January temperatures range from 22-27° C. Sometimes on hot and humid days the temperature rises above 38° C, but the heat is easier to endure due to the cool afternoon breeze. Rain falls more or less evenly throughout the year. The maximum rainfall occurs in autumn, but at least 125–150 mm of precipitation falls during the season.
Language:
Spanish is the official language of Uruguay, on the border with Brazil – a dialect based on a mixture of Spanish and Portuguese.
Population:
About 3.5 million people, of which 93% are descendants of Spanish, Portuguese and Italian and other European immigrants; 6% are African American; 1% – mestizos
State system:
Republic. The head of state and government is the president, elected by popular vote for a term of 5 years without the possibility of re-election (since March 1, 2010 – José Mujica, José Mujica, known as El Pepe, El Pepe)
Parliament – bicameral General Assembly, consists of the Chamber of the Senate (30 deputies elected by popular vote for a term of 5 years) and the House of Representatives (99 deputies elected by popular vote for a term of 5 years)
Religion:
About 47.1% of the population profess Catholicism, 23.2% are believers, but do not consider themselves followers of any religion, 17.2% are atheists and agnostics, 11.1% are Protestants, 0.8% Armenian-Gregorians, 0.6% – are followers of the Umbanda religion and African cults, 0.3% – Jews and 0.4% – profess other religions.
Money:
Peso (International name: UYU), equal to 100 centesimos. In the country’s monetary circulation there are banknotes of $20, $50, $100, $200, $500, $1,000, $2,000 Uruguayan pesos.
Currency exchange:
Currency can be exchanged at exchange offices, airports, banks. Banks offer the best exchange rates. They are open on weekdays from 10:00 to 16:00. You can also change money at the airport, many hotels and shopping centers. The exchange rate of the Uruguayan peso varies depending on the location of a particular settlement. In the resorts of the Atlantic coast, visitors usually go to exchange their money for the Uruguayan peso not in Uruguayan banks, but in Uruguayan exchange offices. There they readily exchange cash American dollars and traveler’s checks in this currency for Uruguayan pesos. The rate for checks is slightly lower than for cash. The exchange rate of the Uruguayan peso for cash is close to the official one, and as a rule, no commission is charged for this transaction. In the interior of the country, Uruguayan exchange offices are rare, here the currency of Uruguay is more common. To exchange money, you need to contact a Uruguayan bank. Banks in Uruguay are open until noon, Saturday and Sunday are days off. Only in Montevideo they work until the evening: from 8.30 to 12.30 or 13.00, and after a lunch break – from 14.00 to 19.00. In general, you can avoid exchanging money if you have a credit card with you. Many Uruguayan restaurants and hotels accept them, but it is impossible to get cash through an ATM using cards issued by banks in Europe and the USA.
Estimated exchange rate
Uruguayan Peso (UYU) / United States Dollar (USD)
1 USD = 19.25 UYU
50 UYU = 2.6 USD
Uruguayan Peso (UYU) / Euro (EUR)
1 EUR = 26.86 UYU
50 UYU = 1, 86 EUR
