we arrive at the estancia!!! which is a word that basically means the main private residence on a ranch. sort of like an estate. a beautiful home in the middle of a large ranch with all sorts of animals and crops! and with NOBODY around for miles. it was a great place to spend a few days with friends! our host, jorge (kate's cousin), was gracious and welcoming.
another gorgeous blue sky day. with warm dry weather.
some of the mares in the field wandering beneath the flowering trees.
the horses here were all so beautiful! it was a treat to see them running in the fields.
i have a soft spot in my heart for sheep, and was very excited to see that there were baby lambs!! though, a little guilty, 'cause i knew we were eating lamb one of the nights....
there seemed to be babies everywhere on this farm. here's a mama hen with her baby chicks!
and a mama cow with her calf (kind of hard to see, but he's just at the side of her right hind leg).
here they have redefined "farm to table". this is the spread they set out for lunch and dinner. in the yellow bowl is potato salad. i watched suzanna (a woman who lives on the ranch and is obviously some sort of magician) pull the potatoes from a field. and gather eggs from the hens pictured above. and it was the best potato salad i've ever had!
i picked up a new skill while here!! i have always wanted to try my hand at archery, and jorge happened to have a bow and arrow set. i'm very proud to say that i got a bullseye by my second quiver! i may have to look into taking lessons for this. seems like a good skill to have!
this is how meat is "grilled" in argentina. deboned, butterflied and pressed flat on a rack that is laid over an open fire and rotated every so often. and this was as fresh a meal as anyone could ask for. this piglet was still alive when we arrived, and was our dinner that night (yes, a bit grotesque i know, but at least i left out the pictures of the slaughter....which i'm happy to say was humane and fast). they call this an "asado", which is somewhat like what we would call a barbecue. friends and family gathering to enjoy delicious food cooked over fire!
a gorgeous sunset as we wind down the day, and begin to prepare for the night's feast and festivities!
so true confessions, this is not my photo, i snagged it from somewhere else on line. i couldn't quite capture how the sky looked from the backyard of the estancia. but i wanted to share how AMAZING the stars were from this night! i was giddy at the chance to see stars i had never seen before. and was not disappointed! with almost no ambient light for miles, we could clearly see the southern constellations and the milky way. i even saw shooting stars!! it was breath taking. i could not have asked for a more gorgeous night!
being so far out in the middle-of-nowhere, we had an fantastic party that night. music turned up so we all could dance as silly as we wanted by the fire. too many bottles of wine to count! and peeps. yes, someone brought peeps. and roasted them over the open fire! it was truly one of the most amazing and memorable nights of my life! i am so lucky to have had the opportunity to come here!
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