La Rambla, then and now

Strolling along the rambla, 1930s

The rambla of Montevideo functions as an emblem for the city, a place to congregate, an extended promenade, a sports track, and a connector for diverse neighbourhoods. For the visitor arriving from the airport, the winding route along the rambla offers a scenic, impressive entrance to the city.   The 22 kilometre stretch of coastal avenue extending from the port in Ciudad Vieja to the suburb of Carrasco is the subject of an exhibition of archival photos presented at El Centro Municipal de Fotografia, Sala CMDF.

Installation of photos at CMDF

The construction of the rambla was initiated by the municipal government of Montevideo in 1922 and took over eight years to complete.  The economic boom of that time period made the visionary project feasible, while the steady stream of working-class immigrants arriving at the port provided a ready and willing labour force.  Montevideo was promoted as the "Switzerland of South America" and "Athens of the River Plate", and politicians wanted to take advantage of the natural attributes of the waterfront and make the coastline accessible for recreation and transportation.

Land was appropriated to provide space for the public project.  The red-light district "El Bajo" was completely eliminated in the process, a social consequence undoubtedly foreseen and approved by city council.   By displacing bordellos, dance halls and cafes from prime land, the seedier elements of Montevideo were forced to move to less-visible areas of the city.  Creating the rambla meant radical surgery; a big facelift for a rundown riverfront.

Construction of the rambla, c. 1925

Lots of manual labour was required

The finished plaza in  front of the Parque Hotel c.1935

Some urban spaces are just awkward, unfavourable places in spite of  fancy design features and updated architectural elements.   Those unsuccessful city squares and walkways - though well-intended - end up being perpetually vacant, or serving as a magnet for undesirable activity. The rambla, in contrast, maintains its reputation as a vibrant, safe, well-used part of Montevideo, embraced and enjoyed by all sectors of society.  It is a public treasure that has become an integral part of the collective experience.

The wide sidewalk allows for multi-purpose use

Beach volleyball courts at Playa Ramirez, set against the city skyline

The plaza is now used as a skateboard area

A place to be active,  or sit and watch the parade.  The Parque Hotel from 1910 is in the background.

An unobstructed view of the water is essential to the concept of the promenade

A contemplative place

The rambla is a popular spot for fishing

Sunday morning pastime

The rambla allows access to the beach for joggers

Enjoying yerba mate with friends

Morning

Evening

Night, with fireworks

"Under the seeming disorder of the old city, wherever the old city is working successfully, is a marvelous order for maintaining the safety of the streets and the freedom of the city. It is a complex order. Its essence is intricacy of sidewalk use, bringing with it a constant succession of eyes. This order is all composed of movement and change, and although it is life, not art, we may fancifully call it the art form of the city and liken it to the dance — not to a simple-minded precision dance with everyone kicking up at the same time, twirling in unison and bowing off en masse, but to an intricate ballet in which the individual dancers and ensembles all have distinctive parts which miraculously reinforce each other and compose an orderly whole. The ballet of the good city sidewalk never repeats itself from place to place, and in any once place is always replete with new improvisations." 

           — Jane Jacobs (The Death and Life of Great American Cities)

La Casa de los Gatos

La Casa de los Gatos, Boulevard Espana and Juan Paullier

I have mentioned this house in two previous blog posts, but I vow that this will definitely be the last time.  The house no longer exists.   Once the home of Geronimo Ithurralde, a prominent Montevideo merchant, the mansion located at 2232 Bulevar Espana was demolished earlier this week.  In the early 1900s, Ithurralde designed his grand residence incorporating elements from a favourite castle in Segovia, Spain.   He lived here with his wife, seven sons and one daughter.   In her old age daughter Thula,  the last surviving family member, remained in the house and sheltered more than 20 stray cats.  The reclusive woman kept to herself, looked after her feline companions and died alone - Thula's decomposed body was discovered by police in an upstairs bedroom.   Legend has it that her ghost frequented the watchtower at night.

Demolition begins at the top, with the cupola

Oak staircase is removed

Urns at the entrance

Fine ironwork

Salvaging bits and pieces

Fig leaf decoration

Layers of history

Interior

Tile detail

Reduced to rubble

The cat lady's watchtower disappears

Sledgehammer assault

Bulldozer removes the remains

A hole in the streetscape, soon to be filled with an apartment tower

Here is a video of the demolition in progress, the only press coverage that I could find.

On the street

Postscript 5/8/2011:  Today's edition of " El Pais" section B has an article about the house in which architect Mariano Arana mourns the loss of the building, and describes the demolition as "incomprehensible."   Too little, too late, I'm afraid! 

Piria - Utopian pioneer

Francisco Piria

There are characters in history whose gifts of intelligence, tenacity, vision and timing work together to produce a life blessed with good fortune.  Francisco Piria, born in Montevideo in 1847 to Italian parents, was one of those determined and lucky men.  Educated in Genoa by an uncle who was a Jesuit monk, Piria acquired a lifelong interest in ancient mysticism and alchemy along with a strict Christian upbringing.

He returned to Uruguay after completing his studies and found employment with an auction house in the Old City Market, selling clocks, watches, overcoats and boots.  When the market was destroyed by fire in 1870, Piria decided to re-establish himself as a real estate auctioneer.  His business grew and prospered as Piria bought and sold land for upscale neighbourhoods in Montevideo, Rosario and Buenos Aires.


In 1890 Piria acquired 2700 parcels of land in an undeveloped coastal region 100 kilometers east of the city of Montevideo.  His trips to the French Riviera had convinced him that this location, with its white sand beaches, granite hills and virgin forests had the potential to become a successful seaside resort town.  The site also had metaphysical qualities that appealed to him, falling in line with harmonious magnetic forces that he claimed existed in a triangular connection with Salto, Uruguay and Cordoba, Argentina. It was an excellent area for positive energy and healthy living.

Castillo Piria

 Piria wasted no time in getting an infrastructure in place for his proposed settlement.  He built a seven mile long boardwalk along the beachfront, a port and a railway. Workers were hired for mining granite and planting a vineyard. Piria financed the construction of a church, a bank, a bodega and a hotel.    The layout for the town he named "Piriapolis" incorporated geometric principles of alchemy, with significant points in the terrain marked by sculptures and fountains.   By 1897 the construction of  his own grand residence at the top of a hill overlooking the town was completed.   The house was also situated in a strategic spot, surrounded by granite cliffs, with a view of Piria's empire,  the nascent town nestled between Punta Fria and Playa Grande.  The railway was conveniently located just steps from his own back door.

Castillo grounds, with statuary and exotic trees

We visited Piriapolis and toured the Castillo, to see how pioneer Piria lived and to experience firsthand the mystical environment which inspired him to take on the challenging project of building his own Utopian community.  The castle was designed by Piria as a replica of an Italianate villa.  The park-like grounds are full of exotic trees which he imported from Spain and Italy.

Dining hall, with Limoges dinner service

The interior of the castle has high ceilings, dark woodwork, tiled floors and medieval style furnishings. The museum guide took us upstairs to tour the private living quarters of the Piria family and admire the stunning landscape from the walk-out terrace.  It seemed as if the view from each window of the house had been carefully planned to frame basic elements of nature - rocks, water and woods.

Interior view with chapel

The Castillo's atmosphere is contemplative and soothing, and one can imagine Piria seated at his desk working on his writing, (articles to be published in his own newspaper "La Tribuna") looking up from his manuscript now and then to enjoy the magnificent vista of the "Pan de Azucar". A flock of parakeets chattering in the garden's lush palm trees reminded us that the secret codes of alchemy, Kabbalah and Renaissance magic were known as "the language of the birds."

Argentino Hotel 

The aging but ever-ambitious Francisco Piria embarked on the construction of an impressive resort hotel in Piriapolis in 1920.  The Argentino Hotel took ten years to build and boasted that its facilites were the most sumptuous in South America when it opened.  Piria promoted the resort as a healthy vacation destination with an excellent climate, and did not hesitate to mention that visitors should consider investing in a piece of land in Piriapolis.   That opportunity is still available in 2011, with lots in subdivisions on Cerro San Antonio and Pan de Azucar being sold by real estate developers.

Lobby of the Argentino Hotel

 The hotel is still operating today, with 300 guest rooms, health spa, casino, banquet and convention facilities centrally located on the Rambla de los Argentinos overlooking the Playa Piriapolis.  The original details of the interior have been preserved, retaining the charm of the 1930s.

A monument to Francisco Piria stands next to the hotel

Piria died in 1933 at the age of 86, but local legend tells us that he simply disappeared and his body was never found.  A large cross was erected in honour of Piria at the top of the Pan de Azucar hill.   Some believe that Piria found the philosopher's stone and achieved immortality.  Others believe that the place called Piriapolis - the lasting legacy of a man who was a remarkable blend of visionary, eccentric, pioneer, entrepreneur, and socialist - is magic itself.

The boardwalk, Piriapolis

Plaza Zabala

There's a bronze equestrian statue honouring Bruno Mauricio de Zabala in the city square that bears his name.  Zabala, the first governor of Montevideo, is credited for establishing the city as a garrison and center of Spanish control of the Banda Oriental (East Bank) of the Rio de la Plata in 1726.  The military justification for building a fortress in this location was to prevent the advance of Portugese from Brazil.  The site offered a large, protected bay for ships and a strategic lookout from Cerro, the hill that lies to the west of the city.   

The first census taken in Montevideo counted 50 families of Galician origin, 1000 indigenous people (Guarani) and a small number of blacks from Africa. It is interesting to note that by 1805, Montevideo had a population of 9400, and one third of its inhabitants were black or mulatto.  Black slaves built the stone walls, residences and public buildings in Montevideo, worked the agricultural land and served as domestic help for white Uruguayan households.  

Palacio Taranco, main entry

The Plaza Zabala is just a few blocks from the Port of Montevideo, a piece of inner city real estate that offered an ideal location for individuals connected to the shipping business.  The Ortiz de Taranco family, headed by brothers Jose, Felix and Hermenegildo managed an import/export business that supplied goods from Europe to clients all over South America.  They purchased the plot of land adjacent to Plaza Zabala in 1907 and built a grand residence there, just a stone's throw from the busy harbour.

Courtyard and formal garden facing Plaza Zabala

The Tarancos hired Charles Louis Girault and Jules Chifflot to design their new home, French architects known in Europe for their work on the  Petit Palais and the Arc de Triomphe.  One crucial specification for the layout was that the house would have to comfortably accommodate the brothers and their families in three separate apartments on the upper floor.  Completed in 1910, the residence is an opulent mansion, replete with Italian marble, rich woodwork and gold leaf decoration.  In 1925 Prince Edward VIII was a guest here.

Lavish interior of Palacio Taranco

The Palacio remained a private residence until 1943 when the surviving Tarancos sold the building to the government and it was converted into offices for the Ministry of Education.  The palace and its contents were not well cared for, and  many important artifacts, including a massive billiard table imported from Italy, went missing.  In 1979 the state designated the site as a National Monument.  Today the restored Palacio Taranco is used as a Museum of Decorative Arts, displaying a permanent collection of paintings, textiles, sculpture and ceramics.

The ballroom overlooking the terrace and gardens

A sign posted in the museum tells visitors that Jose Louis Ortiz de Taranco, age 14, arrived in the port of Montevideo in the late 1870s with 17 pesos in his pocket.   

Plaza Matriz

The city of Montevideo includes a number of plazas that serve as focal points for community gatherings, concerts, markets and cafes.  These inviting public spaces offer places to sit and take in the energetic activity of the urban environment from an unhurried, relaxed vantage point.

Plaza Matriz, a prime spot for antique hunting and plein air dining located in the heart of Ciudad Vieja, is one of the nicest squares, with tree-lined pathways and an ornate central fountain.  The square is flanked by historic buildings including the Cabildo, the original seat of the Colonial government.   We spent a very hot summer afternoon browsing through the antique dealers' stalls while listening to a string quartet play works by  Handel, Bach and Mozart on the plaza.

My treasure hunt yielded an embroidered evening bag with a porcelain clasp painted with a romantic scene from Fragonard.  The purse is in excellent condition and the tag inside reads "Made in France."  I also bought a photograph from the man who specializes in vintage books, old prints and works on paper.  I imagine the  sitter in this portrait attending a summer concert at Teatro Solis, elegantly dressed in her frilly white gown and carrying a certain floral evening bag.   

Montevideo studio portrait circa 1907

La Corte facade

For lunch we stopped at La Corte, a trendy restaurant housed in the former Club Uruguay established in 1888.  This is where the business crowd chooses to dine, and the place is always packed at midday - inside on all three levels and outside on the plaza, too.  We managed to get a table upstairs in the loft overlooking the main floor with its exposed stone wall and Cutcsa truck decor.   The executive menu is the best deal in town, an all-inclusive entree, dessert and drink selection offered for 198 pesos (just under $10 U.S.).  Choices include pasta, beef or fish dishes served with salad or potatoes, accompanied by a glass of wine or mineral water, followed by coconut tart, ice cream or fruit cocktail for dessert.  The service is fast and courteous, delivered by a well-trained team of attractive young women who know the names of the regular customers and don't hesitate to kiss them on arrival and departure.  The  atmosphere reminds us of Earl's Tin Palace in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.  
















The placemat at La Corte shows an artist's rendering of the exterior of the Club Uruguay building, the facade of Iglesia Matriz, (a cathedral dating from 1804) and the edge of the park on the plaza. 

And this is how it looked as we left the restaurant and made our way down Peatonal Sarandi.