Little house on the Pampas

We have now officially left the city bustle behind. We re-entered Argentina at the port of Buenos Aires and proceeded to rent a beautiful, brand-spanking-new Toyota with which we escaped the metropolis to head northwest into the Argentinian Pampas. We are currently in the outskirts of the historical town of San Antonio de Areco, a town best known for its Gaucho lifestyle. Gauchos is the name given to Argentinian cowboys, whose unique outfits and feats have become iconic. This area is steeped in the Gaucho culture, and I would not be surprised if horses outnumber humans in this environment.

For our stay in the Pampas we have rented a cabin in a local hacienda (farm). It’s the only rental property on the farm, so basically we have the grounds to ourselves and the ranch hands. It’s really cool.

Relaxing (for a change)

Our simple but adorable abode. We have free use of the bikes on the side of the house.

The windmill at the "hacienda"

Old tilling implements

Horses are literally everywhere on the property. The owner, a very nice man named Nacho took me around and showed me the grounds. Tomorrow he promised to take us on horseback to check out his cattle, and I’m very much looking forward to it.

Nacho, the property owner, with one of his horses

A young ranch-hand

Horses, of course, are not the only animals around. There are plenty of dogs, cats, chickens, geese and a great variety of birds, some of which very colorful.

A couple of days ago, a tornado caused quite a bit of damage to the ranch. They lost power, which luckily they were able to recoup just today.

Trees on the property took the brunt of the damage

Other than the travel to reach this place, we have not scheduled any activities today. The only exception being a jaunt into town for dinner. The vast majority of eating establishments does not open until 8PM for dinner, but luckily we found a cute little café on a side street, with decent food and a picturesque environment, willing to serve us.

Diane is already relaxed and reading her book, and I plan to join her soon, when I finish this post. Tomorrow I’ll be able to talk about this area in more detail. Until then, thank you for your perseverance in following our activities. Good night.