Or I should say, Given Time (thanks to Gaylord for the title!). Time to relax, time to reflect and integrate, time to walk and read, and time to unpack Louise for 3 weeks.
All this at Carla’s house in Los Antiguos, where I arrived as Workawayer and left as life-long friend. Carla is an energetic super-woman who runs her own three luxurious cabins, three cabins of other people, as well her six apartments in town. The cabins are adjoining to her house, which she had had built 6 years ago and did the interior herself, as well as the colourful and gorgeous garden. The complex is about 4km out of town and 100m from Lago Buenos Aires, the second largest lake in Argentina.
Some of the cabins, and Vera on the pathway:
Los Antiguos is known as the cherry capital of argentina. It’s a small town and the cherry orchards in and around town are lined with either cypress or tall poplar trees, creating a park-like atmosphere.
I was surprised to find a very orange/red municipal office building in town, until I realised it was meant to represent cherries. There is a huge ornate bowl of cherries as one enters town, and quite a few wooden carved figures and objects.
A lovely town, I walked there a few times, exploring the countryside on the way – open fields, lucern lands (alfalfa) and horses in between the cherry orchards. On the shortcut to town one has to cross a river on a low-water bridge, which meant I had to take off my shoes.
I usually had lunch and a beer at Le Petit, one of the local restaurants, and one day, on my way back to the house I was tired and lay down on the soft green grass on the side of the road, next to a furrow with running water. I was looking up at the poplars, my mind completely at peace and must have fallen asleep, because the clip-clop of horses feet on the tar road eventually brought me back to my senses.
Four other French volunteers were also working when I arrived, as well as an Argentinian, Sandra, who was permanently employed. Carla has the kindest heart, provides excellent accommodation and food for the volunteers and is concerned about their wellbeing, making suggestions on things to do and often taking them places, such as to Chile Chico accross the border in Chile, the national park, town and viewpoints. She even made a cake for one of the volunteer’s birthday, and organised a party, which was also a farewell for two of the French. They made ratatouille, Carla provided delicious salmon and 2 others made a strawberry crumble. Of course we had to have pisco sours, which Carla had made and insisted we drink as shots.
I often went to the lake, which on windless days was smooth and sparkling, but worked up quite a swell in the strong wind that blows virtually the whole summer. I was able to watch the full Snow Moon rise over the lake on the 9th of February, as it was a perfectly quiet evening.
Apart from remaking beds and cleaning cabins, we de-pipped many trays of cherries which were then frozen and which Carla uses for making mermelade (jam) during the long winter months. She also makes strawberry, raspberry, apple, rose-hip, calefate and grocella (funny red ‘gooseberry’) jam, which she harvests from her garden or in the wild.This is rose-hip, growing wild:
Grocellas, that grow on very thorny shrubs:
One day Carla disappeared for a while and when she came back, she had gathered wild mushrooms which grow under the pine trees. I usually took Vera, the dog, for a walk and decided to go mushroom hunting on the way, very proudly returning with a bag full. One peels away the top skin, cleans the dirt from the stem, and cuts them up into thick slices which are dried and vacuum packed for later use. A friend of hers pickles them in oil, lemon and spices, very tasty.
We became quite an esoteric little community during my first week there. One of the French volunteers is a chiropractor and he gave each of us a treatment or two. I facilitated a family constellation with a novice group, none of whom had previously participated in constellation work, which impacted greatly on all concerned. Both pets, Emma (the cat) and Vera (the dog) actively took part as well. Afterwards all Vera’s soft toys lay strewn about the energy field.
After 20 blissful days the time came to take my leave. Carla insisted on driving me accross the border to Chile Chico, from where I was catching the bus to Cochran the next day.
We had a last lunch together, and said goodbye, not farewell.
Mella Madness 