Gaucho Festival Part 2 - So Authentic

Yup, laundry out right by the main circuit. 

And here is who was producing it!  Lots and lots of suds.  The festival went on for four days, so I suppose they had a lot to clean.

Children in traditional dress.  Obviously, they hated being there.

I asked for this picture of a saddle so you can see how different they are than the western and English saddles used here.  They put blankets atop it, and adjust in the middle for the horse.

Just riding down the main circuit.  Pedestrians made way for the horses.

For just this reason ... lots of horses passing through, some at a gallop, at the same time.  Miraculously, we saw no injuries while we were there.

Did I mention that they just parked the horses anywhere?

Down to the Corner

Kaleidoscope mandala's found its third corner now.  I'm working on the parts they sent me - it had six! squares to stitch.  I suppose that means I'm catching up, in a way.  Anyway, it feels good to have a third corner done.

Egg for Ingrid

My second temari egg is a gift for Ingrid, who's leaving Montevideo next month for colder climes.  It's a slightly different design from my first one, but the same colors.  She really liked them, and says this egg will be the foundation of a decorated egg collection.

Gaucho Festival Saturday, March 8, 2010 - Part 1

Yup, there's no one stabling area for the horses and no fencing, so the horses are around everywhere at the festival.  It was a warm late summer day and gorgeous out. 

Did I mention the camping area for the participants runs through the festival?  I expect there were a lot of tents accidentally trampled by horses.

Almost all the women and girls were in these flowing dresses straight out of the nineteenth century.  They looked lovely on the horses. 

A bit more of the camping area here.  It looks about as organized as the Grandfather Mountain camping area did.

Riding is a family affair, and here's a girl in a male outfit!  All the horses looked in excellent condition, by the way, and some were absolutely beautiful.

Gathering around the parilla, Uruguay's version of barbecue.  They put on anything from ribs to whole pigs.

Sitting in one of the temporary shelters for participants on the grounds, gathered around and just talking. 

Slogging On

I managed to finish my seventh block on the HRW this week.  Now it's back to the Kaleidoscope Mandala for a bit.

Four Enclosures

I closed up two more rectangles this week.  Still several to go.

More Gaucho Festival Parade Pictures

This is the rest of the photos from the Gaucho Festival parade.  It was a very long parade.  The dogs in this top photo are what they use around here as cow dogs.  They've never heard of Sharrs, who would do so much more...

Got the Green

My order from Nordic Needle came last week, so I was able to work on the shutters.  Yay!  It's hard getting used to having to wait for any kind of supply.  I can't just go drive and get most things here.

To the Edge

I made it to the edge of page one!  There's still a huge amount to do, but at least I now have the parameters delineated.

Gaucho Festival Parade Part 1

This parade reminded me of the Fort Worth Livestock Show parade - lots and lots of horses and people in nineteenth century garb.  Horses behaving, horses out of control, and a lot of manure on the ground.  It was fun to watch and reminded me of home.  Children as young as three were riding their own horses and the most frequent flag was "Libertad o Muerte", one any Texan could understand.  There were a lot of pictures, so I've divided it into two posts.  By the way, the correct name of the festival is Patria del Gaucho.

A Small Stitchlong Start

The Marquoir group put out this little four part heart for a Mother's Day design.  I completed the first part in an afternoon and really like the color choices for the design.  Parts come out weekly.

And Seven Down

I am done with part seven of Herz Rot Weiss!  It's coming along pretty well, and I adore the color combination.

Valle Eden Railway Station

More countryside pictures from last month.  I am -so- behind on everything.  Anyway, here are some pictures of the train station at the town we stayed in for the Gaucho Festival.  The town has maybe five houses... but it's also the birthplace of Gardel, the founder of tango, supposedly.

Mystery Part Five

I finished up part five of the German group mystery.  I still love the way it's looking.

Faye's Celtic Block Done

Here's the picture of Faye's block empty a second time.  I finished it and the work I did is in the picture below.

There's a Celtic cross, a piece of Irish crochet, and a dragon charm.  I also did a couple of seams.  None of it's the knotwork the others have done on blocks, but I hope this other view of Celtic art is acceptable.

Darlene's Asian Block

Darlene picked a blue and white theme for her block.  Here it is before my work.

And here it is after my work.  I added a leaf outline, a yin yang symbol and blue cherry blossoms.  I also did a few seams.  I like the blue and white theme, so it was easy to work on.  I hope she likes the work.  One more person works on it before going back to her.

The green floss didn't come in this past week, so I ended up working on peaches next to the door.  Floss came in after I worked on it, though!  I can get Anchor here, but DMC is non-existent, and I've not found any fabric, even Aida, at all.  The only patterns I've seen have been in magazines.

My First Biscornu

I finally succumbed and made a finish into a biscornu.  I think it came out pretty well.  The back is blank, and the front is that Frimas design I finished last month.

The seventh part of Herz Rot Weiss from the Marquoir group is started.  I truly love these colors.  It looks sophisticated with the tracery.  I'm behind, but I'll get it done.