Saturday 8 April 2017

GAUCHOS IN PATAGONIA - A Short Story



It was an annual event. A chance to do a little business.



A chance to meet old friends.


A chance for the local ranches to showcase the quality of their meat.
Who doesn't like a barbecue?
Matias and Pedro couldn't carve the meat fast enough for the hungry attendees.













Matias paused. It wasn't even midday and he was tired already.






















Pedro looked around, wandering when the rodeo was going to start.












He spotted his cousin strutting across the cordoned off arena. Did this mean they were preparing to begin?






Pedro grinned in relief. This is why he was here, never mind the family get togethers, it was the horsemanship he wanted to see.












































More gauchos were keeping their horses' fidgets under control by riding them around the arena.


















Would the rodeo ever begin?


















Pedro got word that they were waiting for the stand-by ambulance to arrive. Nothing was allowed to start until the ambulance was on-site. 
Pedro grimaced, 'it's quite something that Health & Safety has spread it's insidious net to the arse end of Patagonia,' he thought.



I hope you enjoyed the second story in my South America series and I look forward to reading your comments.



22 comments:

  1. Wha ha ha!! Yes... our lives are ruled by rules and H&S!! ;-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Glad it made you smile, AJ. The bit about waiting for the ambulance is absolutely true, so unfortunately time constraints meant that I missed the rodeo!

      Delete
  2. Love the pictures! A slice of life in Patagonia.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Darlene. It was fun to weave a story around the photos.

      Delete
  3. Bloody Elf and Safety! Just love your illustrated story Susan

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thanks, Keith. (I've been enjoying your A-Z challenge posts!)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thank you! That means I achieved my goal. :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. I love the story lines you are attaching to your photos.

    Interesting versions of the beret they are wearing ... slouchier. I like!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thanks, Joanne. The berets are great, aren't they? My husband liked them so much he bought one!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Absolutely loved your photographs and your accompanying words were a delightful read.

    All the best Jan

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Jan. It was fun to go through my photos to get inspiration for the story.

      Delete
  9. photographs and thoughts went perfectly. End was quite funny! Great job! Thoroughly enjoyed it!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Yolanda. I have quite a store of photos from my recent trip to South America, so hope I can keep it up because it's such good writing practise!

      Delete
  10. This is great! Even better than the last one - and Mateus did look knackered :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Thanks, Liz! Yes, those guys working so hard on the barbecue that 'Matias' had to keep stopping for a breather. :)

    ReplyDelete
  12. Such stylish folk, those gauchos :) :) I think I need a beret!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Aren't they? Yes, I love the berets! My husband bought a plain black one and wore it while we were there. It really suited him but he hasn't worn it since we came home. :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. I love their faces - I'd also love to see a real rodeo!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Me too, Liz! I was so disappointed that we missed it due to the late arrival of the ambulance!

      Delete
  15. I love the story you built around the pictures. Well done!
    Happy Easter.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Thanks, Sandra - glad you enjoyed it. :)
    Happy Easter!

    ReplyDelete

Many thanks for commenting. I appreciate your feedback.