Happy Birthday Mai!

This woman is one of a kind and I am so grateful to call her a friend. Cheers to Mai!

Mai the biker, you should see her trapper hat :)

Oso Oso

Oso got a well deserved bath on my birthday. This is him sunning himself.

Vote for BrightHaven!

BrightHaven is in the running for SmartNow’s annual promotion prize. Please vote here now: http://smartnow.com/page/731

This animal sanctuary houses some of my favorite equine friends along with dozens, literally, of cats a dog and a pig who are living out their sunset years at this wonderful healing sanctuary. The owner, Gail, is in service to these animals 24/7 as this is also her home she shares with her husband. Jessica, the stable manager, is a dear woman who gives love generously to the animals and teaches volunteers, like me!

Here are just a few pics taken since August 2007, when I started my volunteer work with Brighthaven. I was inspired to return to the horse world I left behind as a rebellious teen and started trying the Acutonics tuning forks on the horses here. I have been out almost every Monday or Friday since and built a great relationship with Daisy when I left in August of this year. She was a little surprised, as were some of you, to see me groggy and tired but back last Friday. I have so missed the 4 girls and Jessica, Gail, and Bianca.

Transitioning

Today I will have been back in the states a week and I’ve experienced the most profound exhaustion as I begin this transition. The opportunity to seize each moment takes on new meaning as I digest “each moment” of the last 3 months. There is nothing like traveling in a foreign country to feel alive, sometimes with fear, a new kind of openness, curiosity, frustration, indignation, warmth, and ultimately surrender. Of course this is a personal experience and may be viewable to others, or not.

While back in the spiffy clean USA I have a new appreciation for dirt. Really. I miss it as part of my daily life, I think it keeps me in touch with the earth and thankful for each hot shower I take. Even having the fresh smelling jasmine, orange, patchoulli, almond, lime, aloe… bar of soap to wash with is a luxury most people in this world do not have.

I realize I’ve not relayed enough of my experiences in Argentina to make you appreciate, like I do, the overwhelming abundance we are afforded here in America, Marin County at that.  Where we enjoy the best organic produce, weather, shopping, access to open space, enormous homes, cars, incomes and egos. No wonder we have the most “self-help” lecturers, authors and spiritual teachers than any other place in the world. Sit down, I realize we are playing an important part of the shift in consciousness just like anybody.

I’ve said a lot this early morning. I leave you to expound upon this.

Sometimes its time to go home

Arrived 11am Tuesday. I can’t tell you how it feels to be back in the bay area again. I spent most of the day feeling dizzy and tired, trying to tell Lin about random things that happened and falling asleep at 3pm and waking again at 3am.

More later when I have the words.

Happy Birthday Gina!

Tonight I fly out of BA at 11:50 pm headed for Houston and SFO. Aside from that special occasion, today is my dear friend Gina’s Birthday. Wish I was there to celebrate it with you!

Thanksgiving 2006

OLIVE YOU!

Hugs and Love from BA!

First night alone in a hotel, last day in BA

Sunday morning I realized just how exhausted I was and checked myself into the Grand Hotel de la Paix. Modest, clean, very expensive at 270 pesos per night including breakfast, close to Horacio’s and wifi in the lobby I was sold. This is my first night in a hotel room alone, the 3rd night total in the last 3 months. The other nights were spent with Laura from the ranch while passing through Zapala and then Neuquen. I’ve slept on couches, beds, planes and busses, in people’s homes, on ranches, in the city, country and in between. Rented a gorgeous apartment in Buenos Aires, stayed in a dark smoky guest house, crashed at a new friends home on a spare bed, even took a friends bed while he slept on the floor.

This tiny room with a balcony overlooking Ave Rividavia is all my own. Notice its a little lonely and quiet, never thought that I would mind this, but will do as I gather my thoughts and make a plan. I look at one way plane tickets to SF, there is 1 for $1200 on a Brazillian airlines no one has ever heard of, changing planes in Lima and San Salvador before landing in SF and it leaves at 6 am out of BA. Ugh. I decide to sleep on the means of transportation back to the US. Someplace in my being I have decided I’m ready to return to the states. It’s not even 8 pm and I cant keep my eyes open any

Monday morning I search for round trip tickets, leaving BA to SF and returning SF to BA. I book a flight and leave in 8 short hours. Shortly thereafter, I get an email from Leah, a girl from the ranch, saying she is in BA and flying out Tuesday. I reply and give her my number at the hotel. I trotted about my new neighborhood picking up last minute things, like 4.50 peso 1 kilo bags of mate, its at least 5 times more expensive in the states without the variety. Nearly every corner store sells mate, the gourd, bombilla and sometimes small thermos the people from Uruguay tend to take with them everywhere. I stop by my “old apartment”, that is Horacio’s apartment that I have been given the key to and total rights to live in as if it were my own. He’s not there so I return to the hotel to find that Leah has stopped by! What! a note for me from her saying she will be back within the hour, “dont move”. Neither of us have a cell phone. I realize the hotel has my given name of Cynthia, they require a passport upon check-in, and the man looks at me as if to ask “who’s Bella?”

My last day in Argentina is a fine day I share with Leah, who comes back and we catch up on the last week or so since we last saw each other at Ginny’s house, the morning Newen the cow was born. We’ve had very different weeks and manage to laugh a lot at how strange it is to be in “civilization” together. Our shared history at the ranch bonds us in a way I cant describe. I take her to a nice local store Horacio and I stopped in and we buy mate gourds together, go back to the hotel for a siesta and to pack. Leah takes a real shower and naps. We’re dining with Horacio at 7:00 tonight.

Leah drinking beer with my new one of a kind “bullet” bombilla, gift from Horacio

All smiles as we enjoy beer, provoleta, and friendship

BIG day

I spent an amazing day with Horacio at his cousin’s home. he is a very important man and his grandfather is on the 2 peso bill of Argentina. He was known for his role in politics and started the newspaper The Nacion. See who of you can guess this man’s name. I am also staying 1 block from the street named after his grandfather, another hint. out of respect i dont feel right publishing his name here.

An hour and a half drive and we were at his estancia, near San Areco, think I mispelt that. He owns 25 Arabian mares and 5 studs. We enjoyed a nice asado, bbq carne and pork, with baked potatoes and salad. His 3rd wife, Nicki, was Miss Argentina many years ago. She didnt speak much English but his daughter, her Name is Esmerelda, she is an actress here and his son, by Nicki, Santos speaks English as well, but was shy. Everyone was so welcoming and friendly, no hint of status or social class, it was a fabulous day.

After lunch we lounged by the pool and then took mate as we watched his horse expert, Alberto, bring out about 10 1-3 year old mares and 2 studs. They are absolutely perfect horse specimens, shaved, washed, groomed, and he did exercises with them. I was elated to do the forks on a 1 year old female, she didnt show much until I was nearly done and kept doing funny things with her mouth, a lot. My heart raced as these horse experts watched me with the tuning forks.

Needless to say, I have made a good friend with Horacio and seen things most people will never see about Argentina.

Falling away

Not sure where to start today. I enjoyed my birthday with new friends human and animal at Ginny´s house, in El Huecu Argentina. My back went out a couple days ago, changing my plans to celebrate my birthday in BA with my crazy friends there ala dancing all night style.

Feels like I have been living on another planet. We drove into town today to retrieve my laundry, clean or dirty, as our ride to Zapala would be arriving soon. To my dismay and gratitude, the woman Sylvie had my clothes cleaner than new and pressed and folded. Another total luxury. So today I wear my only jeans I thought I would have to toss out they were so dirty from the fires and riding and gardening of the last weeks.

Plan is to sleep before meeting up with friends for dinner, we are in Zapala now. Tomorrow morning we take a 4 hour bus to Neuquen and I purchase my airline ticket to Buenos Aires and spend a night there with Laura leaving for BA Friday morn. A friend in BA is picking me up and I rest.

Besos…

Patagonia Birthday Nov 4th Election Day

Today is my birthday and I wished to take photos with all the animals on the small farm of Ginny’s. It starts with Georgie, my favorite of the 3 cats, and a cup of tea in bed. A nice start. Laura bakes all day to create a multi layered cookie cake, she’s done an amazing job with such limited cooking supplies. Later we will watch the election via Direct TV, yes its a true thing. Strange to be “connected” in this way while so deep into rugged Patagonia. I’m hopeful to hear good news from the states but just in case I will have a wonderful birthday before we watch.

Bella and Laura

Chef Laura and the fantastic b-day cake

Monica and Newen

Gauchita the dog and Sebastian the cat

With Manzana

In the zone

I LOVE NEWEN! He has the prettiest eyes I’ve ever seen.

Mother and daughter

My unicorn dream

Newen 5 days old, love to see him run about

Hand fed Momma

Mother and daughter

Love the animals here

Gauchita horse play

Gauchita and Manzanita

They play all day

Plastic bottle fence

Ginny

Traffic coming into town

Oso sunbathing

Actually he’s had a bath and is drying his fur and vest