Improve your Spanish While Keeping Fit in Uruguay 
The seasons in Uruguay are opposite to those in the US,
with the shortest day in June and the longest in December.
International Living Postcards--your daily escape Monday, June 11, 2007
Montevideo, Uruguay It's a crisp, bright fall morning in Montevideo and I have just returned from a swim at my local pool, having cycled the two miles each way through quiet, leafy residential streets. The twenty-five meter, crystal-clear pool was bathed in sunlight streaming through the wall-sized windows. Three lanes were completely empty, and the other three had been combined for a water aerobics class which was just starting. I joined in with about two dozen sprightly ladies and a couple of men for some serious early morning exercise. I joined the ACJ--Asociación Cristiana de Jovenes (Young Christian Association) where I have unlimited access to the pool for $35 a month (and no joining fee). For $45 a month, I could have unlimited access to all the club's activities--machines, volleyball, karate, tango, choir, and many more.There aren't many expats at the ACJ; permanent residents tend to be members of the Punta Carretas Golf Club where you pay a one-off joining fee of $6,700 (individual) or $10,000 (couple), plus a monthly membership fee of $90 (individual) or $150 (couple). This covers all activities. Apart from a top-quality 18-hole golf course, the club has both an indoor and outdoor swimming pool. There is also the Carrasco Lawn Tennis Club where the one-off joining fee is $2,500 (individual) or $3,100 (couple), plus a monthly membership fee of $75 (individual) or $130 (couple). The club has 22 top-quality tennis courts and an indoor and an outdoor pool. The ACJ has two advantages for me besides the price; there are long stretches during the day where it is practically empty, and as there are few expats, I find my Spanish is improving--you will soon learn that brazos alternados means alternate arms and rodillas arriba means knees up. Paola Fornari
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P.S. To join any sports club in Uruguay, you need a thorough medical check-up and a medical certificate, issued either by the club, or by one of the many medical insurance companies.
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