The Gaucho and the Tango Dancer

He had mixed feelings leaving Salta for Buenos Aires.

How could he have considered as a real "Saltenos", as a "Macho-Gaucho" to travel to the city of the Portenas (inhabitants of Buenos Aires)?

What drove him to the Confiteria Ideal, located at a few honderd meters of the Obelisk at the Avenida 9 de Julio?

Could it be compared with the natural Obelisk, one of the icons of the Quebrada de Cafayate, the spectacular multicolor canyon in the south of Salta.

It had been at the Plaza 9 de Julio in the center of Salta that a Belgian tourist had revealed him his passion for tango.

The tourist didn’t realize how few Carlos Gardel was appreciated in the Pampa neither that outside Buenos Aires, Evita was not the kind of goddess as in the opera, otherwise, he would have started the conversation with the competition between Messi and Maradona.

Even Bergoglio was a better hit in Catholic Argentina although he was not the best friend of president Kirchner.

Argentinian gaucho's rather honor general José De San Martin, the founder of the nation, or Gil, the local Robin Hood at Salta and night mare of the Spanish.

Enrique is the name of our Gaucho.

He's Syrian of the third generation and at the age of 36, he married to an Italian of the fifth generation,

She grew up in Checoana, a village at about 35 km from Salta where Madonna's are still honored in a processions and where gaucho men and women are admired by the local community.

He's crazy about Balthazar, his 2 years old son, already owner of 2 horse and an pancho.

Enrique studied tourism and works for a local travel agency but in his free time, he puts on Gaucho clothing and goes hunting with his friends to catch his horses he let escape the week before.

"I don't trust politicians", he said to the tourist", tasting a glass of “torrentes wine” at the Piattelli bodega near Cafayate.

As most Argentinians, he's a bit reluctant to be outspoken about the Videla military regime, although he was just a kid at that time.

"The country is ruled by the farmers and the truckers", he said, "because they take hostage of the country if they don't get what they want."

"Life is difficult for middle class Argentinians", he explained, "inflation has been up to 20%, so I have to negotiate every six months about increasing my wage but I never end up to the inflation rate.

It's almost impossible to get a loan for building a house, so we agree among friends to provide the necessary cash and hire equipment to construct on our own as much as we can do."

Enrique talked about his passion for the 3-day drinking and dancing carnaval in Salta.

"Gaucho's prefer playing Argentinian folk songs on their guitar", he said.

And then he switched his MP3 to Piazolla as if he wanted to convince the tourist that a Saltenos knows about all kinds. of music, even tango…

During the drivng through the Andes mountains, following the trail of Tren al las Nubes (Train to the clouds), the El Condor Pasa like panpipes music brought them back in the lost city of Tastil.

In the 15th centrury, the Atacama were conquered by the Quechuas (better known as the Inca's) who were beaten one age later by the Spanish.

In San Antionio de los Cobres, some  indigenous were gathered in the middle of nowhere to emphasize the Argentinian presence near the border of Chili.

A social housing program and a small hospital had to compensate for this historical mistake.

The Purmamarca community and the mountain of the 7 colours were declared as cultural heritage by the Unesco and the cultural faded away in tourist business.

But their Pachamama or Mother Earth gets an indigestion of cameras, hotels and souvenir shops.

"Is it a good thing to "cultivate" these people?”, the Belgian asked.

"It's not a good thing to disrupt their culture", Daniel answered, " but it's neither defendable to leave them in their poor circumstances and unknowingness."

Leaving Salta on his way to the airport, Daniel remembered he Belgian explaining him the difference between Argentinian tango, tangowals, milonga and tango nuovo.

They discussed about the meaning of Volver, one of the favourites of Carlos Gardel and the limited number of songs without a "corazon".

I'll present you to Marina, the tourist had said, she's young, good looking and a perfect tango teacher.

Marina must have been in her early terties and she was married to a biologist who did ecological research on ants.

They lived with their 2 kids in a middle class house in Florida, one of the suburbs of Buenos Aires.

About 10 years before, she performed in tango shows as was demonstrated on a pamphlet on the wall.

She's the kind of woman you presume to have aristocratic roots although many Argentinians might evoque that impression.

Regarding the economic disaster of the last decade, Buenos Aires seems to breath an atmosphere of nostalgia and fainted glory, also resonating in tango music.

It’s the same spirit, you can experience in the estancias as Enrique thought about the El Bordo de las Lanzas, where his friend was managing the property of the aristocratic family Iturrieta de Arias.

When Enrique finally arrived in the capital of Argentina, he took the old fashioned metro, got out at the Obelisk which was surrounded by dirt and construction equipment.

“Macri, he mayor of Buenos Aires has cut the the wonderful trees in the surroundings of the monument”, Marina told him later, “and many portenas hated him for that.

He’s the leader of a new party, “Pro”, that in fact means ”conservative” and is related to the military and the big farm owners.

They represent not more than 10% nationally but up to 60% in Buenos Aires.

Kirchner and Macri are enemies!”

“I thought Buenos Aires was a Peronist rampart”, Enrique considered at that moment, “I thought the lobby of the military and the big farmers had their roots in the Pampa.

His distrust in politics was only increasing.

Enrique entered the Avenida Corrientes, took the Calle Suipagha and entered the Confiteria Ideal at the first floor, where he was  welcomed by Marina.

"Walking", she told him : "walking met your feet attached to the ground, walking on the music. Tango is a sensation from the belly down to the earth, it’s not in the head."

Enrique listened, learned, tried.

People were dripping in, they took a table, ordered for a drink and they danced.

El Abrazo at the first floor of the Confiteria is a place of tradition, where women are heavily painted, wearing coloured skirts with a slit, floating above high heels.

They looked twenty in their seductive moving and turning their hips en breasts even if they were born in the time before the second world war.

"Now your turn", Marina said, you're a man, you have to guide the woman but not like a horse, gaucho..."

Enrique putted his hand at Marina’s shoulder and they danced : the gaucho and the tango ballerina.

Buenos Aires dancing with the Pampa, dancing to a new future for Argentina…

And she gave him the illusion that's he was guiding her.

Cosi fan Tutti.