Santiago, a political prisoner in Uruguay, was jailed after a brutal military coup that saw many of his comrades flee elsewhere. Santiago, feeling trapped, can do nothing but write letters to his family, and try to stay sane. Far away, his nine-year-old daughter Beatrice wonders at the marvels of 1970s Buenos Aires, but her grandpa and mother--Santiago's beautiful, careworn wife, Graciela--struggle to adjust to a life in exile.