Pardon My Ignorance, Por Favor

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In Montevideo our walking tour guide stopped in front of Café Brasilero. He told us the café is important historically--it's been operating since 1877--and because Uruguay's most famous author wrote there.  

"Do you know who is Uruguay's most famous writer?" the guide asked our group of English-speaking travellers.

None of us could answer. I couldn't think of any writers from Uruguay, a small country sandwiched between Argentina and Brazil. Even worse, before I planned my trip to South America this fall I'd have struggled to name any writers from that continent.

Our guide showed us this drawing Inverted Map of South America by Uruguay artist, Joaquin Torres Garcia. I interpret it as a comment on the Northern hemisphere-centric view of the world

My husband Will and I began our South American holiday in Brazil. One of our first stops was Rio de Janeiro, where we stayed not far from Ipanema beach. I couldn't stop humming the 1960s song The Girl From Ipanema. I knew it was performed by Stan Getz and Joao & Astrud Gilberto, but had no idea who composed the haunting lyrics. Will and I visited the Garota de Ipanema bar in Rio that inspired the song. It's now an upscale bar/restaurant/tourist spot featuring Girl from Ipanema mementoes.

In Rio we boarded our cruise ship, which would take us around Cape Horn and through the Strait of Magellan to Chile. The first day I browsed the ship's library and found a book by Isabel Allende, an author I've wanted to read for a long time. I had thought she was associated with Central America or Mexico. It turns out she's from Chile and the library novel, Maya's Notebook, was largely set near Puerto Montt, Chile, our last cruise stop. I devoured the book on the cruise and can't wait to read more of her work.

In Maya's Notebook, Allende refers to German settlements like Frutillar, near Puerto Montt, Chile

We left the ship in San Antonio, Chile, and took a transfer tour to our hotel in Santiago. A stop along the way was the last home of Chilean poet Pablo Neruda, a Nobel Laureate and political activist. Before the trip I'd heard Neruda's name, but couldn't have placed him. His home in Isla Negra is popular with South American tourists. The setting is splendid.

Pablo Neruda's home looking up from the beach

 
               

View from the house

Neruda's grave at Isla Negra

My sister-in-law, who joined us on the trip, tests the waters at Isla Negra

My apologies, South America, I still know few of your famous writers and have read even less.

But I'm learning. 

Answers to the above questions: Uruguay's most famous writer is Eduardo Galeano.
Vinicius de Moraes wrote the Portuguese lyrics to Garota de Ipanema (The Girl From Ipanema).