GAUCHOS AND COWBOYS

Oh yes, in a few weeks I will be down in the land of the gauchos. They're the Argentine equivalent of the gringo cowboys, and I've stuck a rather whimsical image of a gaucho out on the pampa here, done by the legendary Argentine cartoonist and illustrator Florencio Molina Campos, to liven up tonight's post. I like the title, "Ah...tiempos!" (which you could translate into "good times"), because I believe it sums up my attitude whenever I can get back down into the other hemisphere where I can enjoy life the way the South Americans do.

Anyway, today I got a nice email from my sister who was glad to see that I had revived the blog, and she suggested that I might try to post something about my cowboy connections here in the USA, which goes straight to the fact that, starting next Monday, I will be over in Elko, Nevada attending this year's annual National Cowboy Poetry Gathering, right before I depart for South America! Now normally, if I am not down in Chile or Argentina, the good people over at the Western Folklife Center usually corral me into working for them during the Gathering, which always meant long days and hard work with little chance to take in any of the activities other than those I was assigned to manage. Well this year, I opted out, and instead chose to buy tickets to the thing (first time in maybe a dozen Gatherings I've gone to in which I have not been part of the staff!) and will be there as part of the audience.

Over the years I have gotten to know so many of the artists (poets and musicians) that I am expecting that this year's Gathering will be all play and no work, while we party all the way to the end in the late evening of February 3rd, which leaves me with just the 4th to get home to my little rural digs in Wells, Nevada to do laundry and pack for South America. Then on the 5th, barring inclement winter weather, I'll be heading out on the 400-mile drive from here down to Las Vegas, where I will be dropping off my car with my daughter before flying out from the airport there for Dallas and the connection on the long, overnight non-stop red-eye flight to Santiago.

You know, it's funny, but last year when I was down touring all through Argentina and Chile, I missed the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering. But they managed to stage their own South American "happening" by featuring musicians, poets and rawhide artists from Argentina and Brasil. It was their second year featuring cowboy cultures from South America. The year before they concentrated on the "llaneros" of Colombia and Venezuela, who raise cattle on the wide plains north and east of the upper Andes Mountains. It was from one of the llanero musicians from Colombia who were guests at the 2004 Cowboy Poetry Gathering that I bought my Colombian bandola, which is kind of a cross between a mandolin and a ukelele, which is the "national instrument" of those countries. Those of you who followed my blog last year might recall that I brought my bandola with me as a pleasant diversion for my travels.

Anyway, enough on all this. My sister had hoped that I might try to post something here on this blog about this year's National Cowboy Gathering even though it might seem to be a bit off subject, and perhaps I will find a moment to do so on my last day at home on February 4th. -But maybe not. Regardless, there will be plenty to come when I get to santiago, so stay tuned!

Chao, amigos!

The 2007 Journey: Preparations Almost Complete

Okay, so I'm pretty sure I've got all the big issues for this new South America trip taken care of.

-Airline Tickets, check.

-Vehicle Rental Agreement set, check.

-Santiago accomodations, check.

-Travel Insurance Policy, check.

-ATM clearance, check.

-House Sitter, check.

I will still need to visit the bank to get crisp, untorn US dollars, but I've already given them my request and will pick these up next week.

Now, with the current frigid cold snap here in northern Nevada showing scant signs of leaving, I am getting more and more anxious to escape to the late summer weather of northern Chile and Argentina! Take for instance the above photo, taken last February. It is a distance shot of the pueblito of Molinos, a tiny burg of some 500 or so inhabitants on the road between Cafayate and Cachi in southwest Salta Province, NW Argentina. Imagine being bathed in summertime dry desert warmth, but not too hot. To the west, over the foothills of the Andes, cumulus thunder clouds are forming, being a normal, near daily occurrence at this time of year. A gentle breeze blows by and you just want to stop and take it all in. I'd do that in a minute!

Anyway, this post is partially being put up as a "training excercise" since I've grown a bit rusty at doing this traveler's blogging thing - sure, I was posting like mad on the site a year ago, but since I've gotten back, I've let it slide. But hopefully when I have come down for a landing in Santiago three weeks from today, I will be back at it like a regular, and all you folks can vicariously follow along....

THE ADVENTURE IS SET TO RESUME

Dear friends and interested visitors to this site:

It is my great pleasure to inform you all that I am now in the advanced stages of preparing once again to set out on a new travel adventure in those austral realms of that most magnificent continent of South America, and a return once again to some of my favorite destinations (plus a few new ones) in the countries of Chile and Argentina.

This time, I will be leaving the USA on February 7, and will arrive in Santiago the following morning after the all-night flight from Dallas, Texas. My good friend and agent, Andrés Gabor will again be providing me with a sturdy 4x4 pickup truck to use for the duration of my travels, which will last until my scheduled flight back to the USA on March 11.

Since this is only a one-month excursion (instead of my usual three month extravaganza) I will not be visiting Patagonia this time around. My current itinerary will instead concentrate on points north and east of Santiago, beginning with a northward drive up the Panamerican highway and back into the Atacama Desert, that will include visits to places such as Vallenar, Huasco, Alto del Carmen, Copiapó, Taltal, Antofagasta, Calama, and finally San pedro de Atacama. From San Pedro I am planning a new traversal of the high Andes at Paso Jama east of there which will lead me into the rugged realms of Argentina's Jujuy Province, in the far northwest of that great country.

From there I will work my way back southward along the east face of the Andes and through some of the most spectacularly scenic country that one can imagine. Anticipated stops will include the Argentine cities and towns of Susques, Jujuy, Salta, Cachi, Cafayate, Tucumán, Catamarca, La Rioja, Villa Dolores, and finally, Mendoza, before re-crossing the Andes to return to Santiago for my return flight home.

Now that I have resumed this blog I will plan to post regular updates from various cyber cafes en route. I have tentatively re-set the commentary option so that those of you who visit will be able to post your comments. If this gets to be too bogged down with spam however (as I suspect it might) then I will have to adjust back to posts limited to blogger members only. WE'll see about that.

So come on back whenever you feel like it - that's my invitation for you to vicariously come along with me!

Chao, amigos!