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We start by spending two days in Buenos Aires which allows for team bonding before hitting the slopes. The course leader, alongside an Argentine guide (and friend of Peaks), show the group some highlights of the city. Here’s a snippet from Lucie Archer Course leader from 2007:
“[The day] consisted of a walk through the city to see the sights. We visited Recoleta, where there is an amazing cemetery (Evita is buried here), and then had a coffee stop (or for some a breakfast stop). Café con leche and dulce de leche ice cream were the order of the day. This was followed by a walk through the city past Teatro Colon (a very famous theatre) and on to Plaza de Mayo. We then headed to La Boca (the mouth), which is the old docks area of the city and renowned for the place that the tango was created! It is a very colourful part of the city – literally, as all the buildings are painted in yellow, red, blue, green..... Some of the group ate here for lunch and watched the tango, some of the group even danced the tango. The evening saw us all eventually (with the help of Mel’s linguistic skills) make it to a small Flamenco restaurant for tapas…The Flamenco was fantastic to watch, sitting very close to the action, it was a mesmerising performance.”
La Trochita
We will visit the steam train known as the Patagonia express or La Trochita. There are over 400 km of line still operating what we see today is only a small part of the original, unaccomplished Patagonian railways project. Its original character has been kept largely unchanged, like virtually nowhere else in the world. The legendary 1922 steam engines still pull the train, some of them being now regarded as unique pieces by their own manufacturers. The train runs along the imposing landscape of the Andean foothills, where over 600 curves can have a surprise waiting just around the bend. And the many old stations and stops where the train must pause to refill its water tank, as the locomotives can consume water at a rate as high as 100 litres per km.
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Mate.
You will be introduced to the rituals of Mate. Many of the locals drink mate instead of tea. Yerba mate is a species of holly native to subtropical South America.The infusion made from the plant is called mate and is prepared by steeping dry leaves (and twigs) of yerba mate in hot water, rather than in boiling water like black tea or coffee. It is a slightly less potent stimulant than coffee and much gentler on the stomach. Drinking mate with friends from a shared hollow gourd with a metal straw is an extremely common social practice in Argentina.
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