Apfel strudel, jesuits and bier - quite a combination

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After coming down from Northwest Argentina we spent a few days in the centre of the country. We spent 2 days in Cordoba, Argentina´s second largest city, and to be honest it was enough time for us. I think we are developing an understanding of our likes and dislikes more as this trip goes on. We seem to find that big cities drain us and we cannot concentrate for too long on them! Having said that, Cordoba is a nice city and certainly has some pleasant sites. We enjoyed visiting the Musee des Bellas Artes (some of these Argentines certainly know how to paint) as well as some of the local Jesuit sites (Cordoba was an important city for the Jesuits, founded by them in 1573).

Just 2 hours from Cordoba, however, we found our true calling... If only we had known how much we were going to enjoy Villa General Belgrano, we wouldn´t have booked onward bus tickets in advance. But we did, and so only had a day to explore this great town and surrounding area. Villa Belgrano was founded in the 1930s by 2 German immigrants who attracted other Germans to settle in the area. A signitifcant boost was also given to the population by the German soldiers from the "Graf Spree" ship who were sunk in 1940 off Montevideo and settled at Villa Belgrano. The town is now a heady mix of alpine architecture, chocolate shops, apfel strudel and "bier" halls. As can easily be imagined, we thoroughly enjoyed our stay! Villa Belgrano is not just a place to be gluttonous though... we also had plenty of exercise both at the hotel swimming pool (such a hard life) and on a great trek up to two local hills (Cerro de la Virgen and Pico Aleman). The trekking was good fun and gave great views across Villa Belgrano to the Sierras Chicas mountains in the distance.

Our time in this part of the country was short and we could certainly have done more exploring. However, Patagonia was calling!

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