clappy-
david's a two hour flight south of
buenos aries near the town of esquel
not far from the chilien border.
he's an avid fly fisherman and pretty
well travels the world to fish.
he told us that prices for homes were
less than what they were in masset -
and that you could live 'very well'
on $1,500/mo; the people were extra-
ordinarily fine and friendly and he
looks out his window in the mornings
and sees the andies.
btw, when we bought our houses - he
and us - they were selling for approx.
$40,000. by the sounds of it though,
he's doing a lot of renovations down
there. what's really nice is that he's
extended an open invitation for us to
use his place.
here is his first email to us - not only
is he generous, he has quite a sense of humour ...
I haven't made any diary entries for days: there has been much work going on here, and the results are beginning to show.
Working backwards, the Honda 50 finally arrived just in time for the New Year's weekend; the owner of the shop was shorthanded, so if we wanted the engine installed we would have to help.
No problem, and 3 interesting hours later we fired it up, paid, and then drove away. It was 2 weeks late,but hey, at least it showed up, and undamaged too! We went out for sea trials, and after the obligatory run-in hour, without any hiccups, zoomed back to the boat launch ramp, very pleased with our choice.
The roof for the new bathroom is set for Jan 2, all the materials are waiting on the lawn; we bought the two 15' lengths of cypress and had the one side trimmed; the metal roof awaits and then it's a week more for plumbing and ceramic tile. I am planning a small party around the "first flush"!
I have had, perforce, to become a painter; to that end I can report that the job is 80% complete. 2 more hours will see the kitchen, dining room and living room all fresh, done in a pale, rosy, yellow.
Xmas day saw the noisy rooster go into my eddie bauer zipper bag and travel down to lunch at Roy's mother's estancia, (she being the manager for owner's from Bs. As.) Once he had recovered from his trip he got right back into the swing of things and was having it off with a new harem when suddenly, out-of -the blue, in struts the biggest golden rooster you have ever seen and catches mine,"in flagrante delecto"; the noise was incredible, the feather's flew and mine beat a hasty retreat.
We had been promised a light lunch and so when we arrived I was quite surprised to see two whole beasties in front of the fire. There was a whole kid goat and a lamb crucified on iron stakes and cooked for three hours in front of a fire placed in a horseshoe shaped brick wall.
We had a tour of the ranch, including a look at one of the daughter's new house: Liliana Prada, has just finished a spectacular home, high-up via 4x4, with stellar 180 degree views: it probably sleeps 8 in luxury She will rent it out, complete with cook and maid, for $375 usd per night and that would include unlimited access to fresh meat and the fishing afforded by the Rio Frio, which runs the length of their 5000 acres.It's mid way between Corcovado and Trevelin, so only 30 kms in any direction sees you on good fly water.
The roses are in full bloom here; lupins, which abound will be over soon. Summer tourism will go into high gear soon: the " gente" take their holidays in Jan and Feb: the climate in Bs.As. is so hot and humid in these months that anybody with the means, flees to the mountains or the sea-side to avoid it. There are 13 million people there, so a large number go"on the road".
Have been over the border to Chile at Futaleufu (Big River in Mapuche) twice, taking tourists over for the rafting and kayaking; it's valhala for that set. Every kind of nationality, brits, swedes, yanks etc. none of them with 2 words of spanish, so now I am a paid (hardly) interpreter and tour bus driver; it's kind of fun.
There is a trout hatchery on the route to the border and I never pass it without stopping. They dole out free fish food and it's quite a sight to see the tourists attacked by hungry fish; the moment your shadow hits the water, the dinner bell goes of for these hungy trout; you are swarmed in expectation of a hand out.... they're just like trained pigs.
We awoke to rainfall this am, the first in weeks. The creek in the garden has been dry for a week, so plans are afoot to install a well. The water is excellent, but the pressure is inadequate to sprinkle the whole place.
I think that's about it from here; perhaps I'll send this away now and hopefully have more to report mid-month. Cynthia, Peter, Hazell and Mike Murphy all arrive mid-Feb so there is much to do. I can't wait to see their faces when they see the life I've built for myself here. They will either think that I've finally cracked, or they'll be getting out their check books and joining me !
I have quite taken to having people to do things for me: must be in the blood! I rarely drive anymore, but rather, sit like King Farouk and watch the passing scene. I still do the cooking, but the maid gives me the "skunk eye", as she believes it too be below my station. (besides, her cousin needs the job)
All that is needed now is a hot-blooded latina, but so far I've drawn a blank. Perhaps the New Year will see my only remaining desire fulfilled.
My very best for '06 to you all
-hoser |
