Motorcycle Explorer October 2014 Issue 2 | Page 20

Camping it up ...
T
he following forty-eight hours saw a
heightened, high energy welcome given to us
from a biking couple Maria and Diego. They
were members of the ‘Viejos Coyotes’
motorcycle club, translating as old wild dogs.
We were served tender Argentinian beef at their
house and invited to a motorcycle meet of
numerous biking clubs, all good friends coming
together. This turned into an asado, a
spectacular South American barbeque to you
and me. An entire cordero – lamb was slow
roasted for hours on end against the licking
flames of an open fire. In our combined seventy-
seven years, neither of us had ever tasted
anything so tantalisingly good.
W
ith hardly a moment to digest the plates of
food consumed, the afternoon saw us salsa
dancing with everyone, drinking and being
treated as honorary guests at the motorcycle
event. Upon receiving a special commemorative
biking plaque, I reached for the best of my
limited Latin American vocabulary and managed
to deliver a small but heartfelt thank you speech
in Spanish. I prayed that I’d been understood
when seeing the audience cheering and
clapping. Many were curiously excited about
our bikes. We were given motorcycle
memorabilia and bike-related gifts from our
newfound friends. People made such a fantastic
fuss of us, they had well and truly taken us into
the fold.
A
rgentinian hospitality is overwhelming.
There were tears in my eyes when I saw Maria
and Diego go glassy-eyed conveying their warm
farewell to us, and swallowed the knot in my
throat. What a kindhearted and selfless couple.
Diego remarked that it’s not common for
“peoples on big bikes to wave” as they ride past,
let alone pull up to introduce themselves in their
local town. I was saddened by that remark. His
parting words to me were “You are a lovely
human” and to us both, “We are friends for
eternity”. I loved Diego’s concerted effort to
talk English to us during our stay. After Jason
had showered before taking us to the local bar
on our final evening with them, Diego enquired
if Jason would like to “borrow any perfume”
meaning aftershave. Beforehand, he’d broached
me to specifically learn the difference between
borrow and lend. This man was sweet to the
core and melted my heart. Good first
encounters are everything when you’re
travelling and I hope we had made the same
Twowheeelednomad.com
Magazine / April, 2013 9