February 25, 2012

We docked at Buenos Aires early this morning. There was a thunder storm before sun rise. Deck 11 was wet when I went for a 1 mile walk and to take some photographs.  There was a 20 km wind, but it was about 19 C and cloudy.  We went to the dining room for breakfast, there were not many there.  Service was quick and we were back to our room just after 8 to get organized for the 9 a.m. meeting of the group for our excursion to the gaucho ranch Le Mimosa.

The bus left at 9:15, we drove part of the way on the Pan American highway. The price of the lowest grade of gasoline was 5.86 pesos per liter or about $1.17.  

Our excursion is to the working gaucho ranch. The gaucho is like the American cowboy.  The Yerba Mate, an herbal tea, is a drink of the gauchos.  After a rest stop where there were beautiful leather goods and silver items for sale, the guide made some Yerba Mate the traditional way in the gourde and with the metal filter spoon.  We were to share the drink and he would add hot water as needed.  Few tried it, since about half the group has been sick during the voyage. We passed agricultural land where the crops are soy beans, corn and grapes.  Sheep and cattle are also produced. There were many different kinds of trees planted over the past two centuries only the Ombo is a native tree.

By 11 a.m. when we arrived at the ranch, the skies had cleared; the temperature was about 25 C with a gentle breeze. We were greeted by gauchos offering glasses of red or white wine or soft drinks and a meat filled empanada.  Then as we walked through the tree shaded garden, we were greeted by a man who introduced four dancers who did an Argentine folk dance, then chose four people from the audience with whom to waltz.  We then explored the grounds and peeked into the house where the owners still live. The family has farmed there since 1869.  There were lovely bird calls coming from the trees and seven kinds of birds live there.  We saw the fire pit where the beef was being roasted. We joined three other tour buses to view the ducks, geese, chickens, sheep and horses. Rides on a horse drawn wagon or horseback were offered.  Then we watched some gaucho skill games. There were four gauchos who tried to put a twig through a small ring as they galloped past it and then they performed a similar event using a larger ring and a lance like stick.  The gauchos wear both hats and berets like in the Basque region of Spain. The Basque berets are more suited for head protection on windy days.  Lunch was served to the 200 guests when the games finished. The tables of 10 were set with two 750 ml bottles of Goyenechea Merlot-Syrah wine, a 750 ml bottle of Goyenechea Sauvignon Blanc wine, a 960 ml bottle of Quiling beer, a jug each of Coke and Sprite and two 350 ml bottles of mineral water, all which were frequently replenished.  The meal started with a potato salad, a lettuce and tomato salad and bread, followed by sausage, roasted beef, beef ribs, roasted chicken, ending with vanilla ice cream with a caramel sauce. Once we were fed the same Argentine dancers aged 14, 17, 22 and 28 danced again on the stage and open area in the dining hall.  They danced several dances including Tango then picked audience members to join them.  Larry and I were chosen among 18 or so others.  We ended forming a line that wound through the tables and back to the dance floor.  With the dancing finished people returned to their bus for the 90 minute ride back to the ship.

The tour bus dropped us off at the port terminal where we caught a shuttle bus to the ship. We needed to pack since we disembark on Sunday morning, but decided to have a nap instead before getting ready dinner. At dinner, we sat with Castagna’s table. Pat & Beth joined another table with two empty seats, since Carole was not coming for dinner. The Mackies did arrive for dinner, so they and Pat and Beth returned to our original table.  There were many empty tables in the dining room this evening, since many passengers went to Argentine Tango dinner shows.  We said our good-byes to our waiter, assistant waiter and maitre d’ and returned to the room to pack and update the blog.  We didn’t dance this evening, but when we went to the Deck cafeteria for a late coffee, we met one of the guitarists from Salsamore, the Latin band, who thanked us for dancing to his music. The ship is quiet with people either packing or still at the Tango dinner shows. Sunday we disembark, for one more day in Buenos Aires, take a city tour and check in to our hotel.  Monday evening, we start the long flight back to Canada.