Yerba maté is the drink of choice in Uruguay (and Argentina, Paraguay and southern Brazil). Derived from the stems and leaves of a tree, the yerba is treated like tea and it has quite the stimulant punch. They fill up the maté with yerba and refresh it throughout the day by adding hot water from a thermos. The yerba infused water is drunk through a straw that has a strainer at the end (bombilla).

There are a couple of monstrously cool things about this drink. Carrying the hot water in a thermos means it is highly portable and you can take short breaks to take a draft (no coffee brewing necessary). I saw people all over town carrying their maté - at the park, on the beach, at the soccer match. The other thing is that it is an extremely social drink. They gather around to talk when it is being consumed and pass the maté to those that don't have any. Very civilized.