Today was absolutely filled with adventure! We started off with a bus ride to the rural area about an hour and a half outside of Buenos Aires to a ranch called Estancia Don Silvano. When we arrived, we were welcomed warmly with empanadas and an overview of the days activities. We had a lot of time to explore on our own, so we went to the stables where they kept the horses and said hi to them. On the way, we found the first of two ranch cats who was just adorable. Eventually we meandered over to the carriage ride, and upon arriving were a little surprised to say the least. Unlike back at home when you go apple picking and there’s a big trailer filled with hay bails and pulled by a tractor on a relatively smooth path, our carriage was more in the traditional sense of the word. Three tightly packed benches sat on top of a wooden frame, and the whole contraption was pulled by two horses. We sat down, the driver signaled to the horses, and we took off much faster than I had expected. As we made our way around the fields, we saw sheep, llamas, cows, and some birds we were never able to identify. After a bumpy ride, we disembarked and continued exploring the ranch. We stumbled across a zip-line and ropes course that we of course had to try. We harnessed up and headed up through the trees. This was definitely one of the more scary moments of the trip, but it ended up all being worth it coming down the short zip-line and seeing peacocks wander below.
After this adventure, we headed over to the main house of the ranch and received a brief lesson on the history of Gauchos. Gauchos are similar to cowboys in the US, both having an air of legend around them, but both very much an important part of real history. Gauchos originated in the plains (or pampas) of Argentina in the 17th century. The word Gaucho most likely comes from the Quechua word huachu, meaning orphan or solitary. These men took advantage of the many cattle and horses that escaped from the city of Buenos Aires into the surrounding area. The Gauchos tamed the horses for travel and killed the cattle for meat and leather. They lived a very solitary life, never staying in one place for very long. Because they did not have a lot of formal currency, Gauchos would trade leather for goods such as yerba mate, alcohol, and some food. As the country developed and the pampas were divided up into large estates called estancias, Gauchos were hired by land owners to continue their work herding cattle. The Gauchos are considered the first peasant society in Argentina. They also played a very important role in the revolution against the Spanish. Their extensive knowledge of the region allowed them to easily out strategize their opponents. Because of this and their foundational role in Argentina’s agricultural, economic, and cultural history, the Gaucho is a folk symbol to this day.
After this talk, we headed to lunch, where we were treated to a wide variety of meats, from blood sausage (which I wasn’t quite brave enough to try this time) to pork and beef. While we ate, we were entertained by an extremely talented singer and dancers. Several times the entire hall got up to dance along to the lively music. As lunch wrapped up, we headed over to see the Gauchos (and Gaucha) at the ranch show us some of the traditional games and races that they would do on horseback. It was incredible to see how quickly and precisely they were able to move on their horses, I have never seen anything like it before. For the final game, they raced from probably 100 feet away and picked up a hoop only slightly bigger than a ring with a pencil while fully galloping. According to tradition, if they successfully grab the ring, they pick out someone from the crowd for a kiss (although if that person’s partner is their, they have to kiss the horse). We wrapped up the events with a marienda of pastries and yerba mate, a perfect end to a beautiful day!
