Anyways, after a quick stopover at her house, we were whisked away to the nearby town of Alta Gracia. We exlored a 17th Century Jesuit cathedral and estancia (another of many UNESCO World Heritage sites that we've visited so far. There are five giant estancia's that circle Córdoba which provided food and supplies to the central religious infrastructure back in the day. Apparently the Jesuits got too powerful and were expelled from the country. The buildings still remain.
A kilometer up the road, yet a world away, is Ernesto "Che" Guevara'
That night Carmela's dad, Raul, played the tango on his piano and then his accordian.
Carmela had found out where these people live. There were no advertisements, public announcments or marketing effot. There was no entrance fee. No planning committee. Heck, there was almost no planning. It's as if the local citizens know that after the church procession, there would be a giant bbq, and that people would bring their horses to enjoy some friendly competition. A competition in which there is no material prize.
(Remember this face: it's the Michael Jordan slam-dunk look of the gaucho world)
The gauchos dressed how they really dress. They meandered to the open field at about 4pm and made a semi-circle on one side. Towards the other side was a pole with two arms, each holding a red ribbon. Gauchos raced down the field in pairs, trying to nab the red ribbon in their "lane." The ribbon had a hole that was maybe as big as my thumb and the used small sticks to pierce through that tiny hole. It was apparently very hard to do but was great fun to watch.
(This guy was my favorite. After he raced, he pulled his little daughter onto the horse and they rode around, looking at things in the trees and such. Plus, you can't beat his killer 'stach)
So, within two days of arriving, we have bee treating to more culture than we have seen in the last month. We have more plans for this week in Córdoba - touring the downtown sights, shopping, tango, and the famous Argentinian parrilla (bbq).
Danny - I just caught up on the last few posts - can't believe your toe - looks painful. You've visited more hospitals in the last 6 months than you probably did the past 6 years. Great pictures on the horse riding trying to put a stick through a red thing - sounds like a type of game we'd love!
ReplyDeleteAll is good here - Mia is crawling all over the place and pulling herself up on things to stand up...no walking yet, but we now have to watch her more as she's pulling herself up, but can't get down.
Chris
I still fall down myself, so tell Mia not to lose heart. Glad all is going well. My toe is still puffy and black, but no more pain. In Iguazu falls now!
ReplyDeleteHey, Danny, Kristin...
ReplyDeleteI´m very sad.... we were waiting for you in Banfield, Buenos Aires.... and as I can see, you are now in Rio !!!
On the other hand,I´m very happy too because I can see you very happy.
Sorry for my English, is not so good...
Abrazo y Saludos.
Chucky. (Do you remember us? We picked up you near chile...)
A, another thing tHe correct word is GAUCHO ...not GUACHO...GUACHO is not a good word...
ReplyDeleteTry to correct it...