There is beauty in the simplicity of my time in Córdoba. It wasn’t about thrill seeking, or adventure, or big moments (although I unexpectedly got a few along the way). It was about finding joy in whatever I was doing: sitting on a park bench with a friend (see Breathe Again), riding a bike (see Once Upon Another Time), or drinking beer (see The Way You Make Me Feel). Perhaps that’s why I enjoyed the month so much, for it was the ordinary that gave me the familiar feeling of home thousands of miles away.
My time outside Córdoba in the small, pedestrian only, mountain town of La Cumbrecita was no exception. La Cumbrecita in the Calamuchita Valley of the Grand Sierras, was originally built by German immigrants who wanted to be reminded of home. I’ve never seen all of The Sound of Music, but something tells me they could have shot b-roll for it there.
Mary and I decided to check it out for one night and getting there was half the fun! We went to the Córdoba bus station the day before and bought our first series of tickets. The next morning we boarded the bus and made our way to our first stop where we then bought tickets for the second leg. After all the flights that come along with our itinerary, there was something relaxing about traveling by bus. And our arrival felt particularly satisfying after successfully navigating two buses in another language. We had arrived!
What sticks out from those 24 hours in Cumbrecita is how green everything was: lush, and pine, and green everywhere you look. I was getting major Twin Peaks vibes and I liked it. We made our way through town and up several hills to find our accommodation.
We had booked a darling matrimonial suite on airbnb (a joke which was not lost on us and continued when we eyed the mirrored wall next to our bed). Mirrored wall aside, it felt like we were living in Sleeping Beauty’s infamous cottage in the glen that she directs Prince Philip to when he asks “When will I see you again?” I liked this too.
After we put our things down in Sleeping Beauty’s cottage, we went for a walk around town and had a long lunch dining on authentic German food. It was the best kind of Saturday, languid and without agenda. Day turned to night as we were walking around among the trees discovering a small church at sunset.
Later that evening we had dinner at La Roc-k where we were serenaded by a live chanteuse singing covers of Celine Dion, Jon Secada, and other 90s soft rock luminaries. It’s little details like this that make travel memorable for me: the juxtaposition of sitting in the Grand Sierras of Argentina and listening to American music. Music is universal, so it’s no wonder that so many of my memories are tied to song.
It was fitting that we ended our night back at the cottage writing a song together. Mary is a talented singer songwriter, who has performed her original material multiple times along our RY journey. She is the professional and I am the novice. Yet we both share a love of music and of writing and we were excited to collaborate. We traded ideas as rain gently fell against our roof. I remember feeling so content, so safe, thousands of miles from home.
The next morning, we rode back to Córdoba with Martin, our airbnb superhost. Along the way we picked up and his ex-wife. There we were, the four of us in the car, listening to indie rock and eating fresh buns from the bakery as if it was the most natural thing in the world. And that’s the crazy thing about travel, if you open yourself to its possibilities, it is the most natural thing, because connecting with others is what life is all about.
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