Cafayate

Rain in the cloud forest cut our trip a day short. The road turned to a slick mud that caused our wee car to slip and slide. On those mountain roads with drops within inches, we were afraid for our lives! We tried to warn other drivers of the dangers but they did not understand us. They spoke only their native language. We realized that they were likely proficient in these conditions but put them on the ice and snow of Canada and watch out!

We headed south again in what turned out to be another beautiful day with clear blue skies and a plus 30 temp. We decided to head to Cafayate Argentina’s other wine region. Once again we were in awe of the spectacular scenery! Mountains mainly of a reddish mud but green with vegetation. The lush river valley below was bright green as the spring rains had refreshed the area recently. Again, every turn in the road brought something new to see. Rounding one corner we came to Casa del loros the air was full of burrowing parrots and the cliffs full of holes which the parrots use as nesting sites. Fascinating!

Cafayate was a total delight! We spent the day visiting the wineries, tasting and testing the regions best. This region is known for Torrontes a special white wine that is fruity and citrus with a delightfully refreshing aroma and taste. We sampled a lot of it. Wandering around the town we discovered a Peña (live local music) and had one of the most memorable nights of our trip.

We were a little unsure how it was going to end because it began a little unusually. We arrived late but were the only ones in the restaurant. The music was to begin at 9 pm and it was already 9:30. “yes, yes the music begins at 9!” we were assured. Finally at 10 someone puts on a CD. We had asked if there was music but not whether the music was live. We were worried.

They did not have the wine we ordered so our young waiter showed us the wine selection and we choose one. He handed the bottle to Vance and promptly disappeared. We sat at our table and looked at the sealed bottle thirstily for many many minutes. Vance finally went looking for him to ask him to open the bottle. No corkscrew could be found in the place and the young fellow left to borrow or buy one. When he finally returned he proceeded to stab at the cork (the cover intact) in a way that demonstrated he had no idea what he was doing. Could this be? Could it be that our waiter in a wine region had never opened a bottle of wine before? It was hilarious actually. Vance demonstrated how to open a bottle of wine, asked for wine glasses and finally we are able to begin our evening.

Our appetizer nver arrived, potatoes came before our meat, we had to take the plates off another table, our dishes were never cleared, our second bottle of wine was opened like the first, but the food was delicious, two other couples arrived, the live music eventually started and the evening turned out wonderfully and ended late. Two fellows on guitar and singing local traditional songs of travel and family, love and loss, it was fantastic. I’m not quite sure how it happened, but they eventually got me on stage to play and sing a Canadian folksong and we realized that we were not the only Canadians in the place. By the end of the evening we were all friends and singing and drinking wine together. It was a really fun night. As for our charming young waiter, he was singing and enjoying the evening with the rest of us, and I hope that one day he will eventually find his calling, for it surely is not waiting tables.