Third time is truly a charm and we - finally - succeeded in booking a night at a real Estancia - Santa Rita outside of Lobos on Pampas. Santa Rita was built in 1790 by the Ezcurra family who sold it to senator Carboni in 1890 whose grandchildren then sold it to Isabel Duggan and Franklin Nüdemberg in 1988.
The estancia was in dire need of restoration after more than 70 years of negligence. Today the former staff building is almost completely restored and the main building (picture) is partially restored. The resoration is financed by having a few visitors at a time.
We got to Santa Rita on Tuesday afternoon after a 90-minute bus ride and a 40-minute cab ride on a very wet dirt road. We were greeted with wine and then a 45-minute horse ride around the 200 ha property.
We had the opportunity to hang out with one of the owners, Sr. Franklin Nüdemberg, who gave us a quick tour of the buildings and it's history. We learned that there are secret tunnels under the property, from the main building to the stables, to make an easy escape if attacked. Scary!
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