Cordoba

The main square in Cordoba

For our first evening in Cordoba a group of us hit a local parilla where, after some initial faltering we managed to order what we wanted.  Nic and one other person ordered the asado, where they gradually bring you a selection of meats cooked on the grill.  They started with an empanada and then some morcilla (blood sausage),  rinones (kidneys) and chinchulines (lower intestines), before gradually getting through two cuts of pork and bit of beef.  By this time the rest of us had long finished our meals including some pretty sizeable steaks, and some of the group were flagging.  So they threw in the towel and we never got to see the full extent of the meal that they would have been served.

The ferris wheel by Gustav Eiffel

Cordoba is Argentina’s second largest city, and with only the one full day there, we did something that we don’t usually do and took the city bus tour – even though it was sponsored by Macdonalds!  It was a beautiful sunny day to be on an open top bus and in fact the tour was fairly decent.  It took in the expected sights like the churches, the Jesuit Monastery and such like, but it also took us to Plaza de Sobremento , where apparently the girls would walk around the fountain to find a boyfriend, and up to the park, where they had a ferris wheel by Gustav Eiffel (of the Tower fame).

The Falklands are not negotiable

We did see a reminder that Argentina is still not happy about the UK's inhabitance of the Falkland Islands ( or  Malvinas), as there was a sign up that said they were not forgotten.

Gauchos ride the streets

But the highpoint for most of us was probably the sight of a couple of hundred gauchos riding through the streets.  They were dressed in traditional clothing and carrying flags in a celebration of their heritage.  Most of the drivers weren’t too happy about it, but we thought it was a great thing to see, and all the better for being completely unexpected.

Most of us went out for a meal in the evening, which I mention only so I can tell you about my Cuba pizza.  Having got them to leave of the tomato and olives, it had cheese, pineapple, ham, sugar and rum, and came to the table aflame.  It created quite a stir and tasted fabulous.  Will definitely aim to recreate this in the future.