Today ranked as one of the coolest in a long line of cool days. We had a fantastic breakfast,,,the only folks in the restaurant so great service. I had decided to look for a gaucho knife so we went in to Bento Gonzalvez where we had been told there was a small store selling knives…Closed. So we went driving around looking at the countryside and taking some nice pictures that we’ll post. Went back to the store where we picked out some things including a knife that was OK. Unfortunately for the shopkeeper her credit card machine was not working. While struggling with credit cards I asked where I might find a vintage knife.
She sent us to a guy with “original hand-made” knives. So off we went to Montebello with no real idea where we were going . Just looking for a guy with old knives.
After looking around we stopped at the police office to ask. The woman spoke not a word of English and only a little more Spanish but somehow we conveyed “artisanal knives” and her face lit up. She drew a crude map and told us the shop was 3 km up a dirt road. Again…off we went. Reached 3.2 km and saw no shops but stopped at a house and asked and the guy responded “aqui!” and called his friend. Ext thing we are going around to a blacksmith shop that looked like something from the 19th century. Huge bellows and furnace, hand run drill presses and foot powered grinders. He walked us around and “explained everything in Portugese…not a word of English or Spanish. He took a piece of iron and started to heat it and hammer it and in about a half hour there was a crude knife blade. It takes about 3 days for him to make a knife so he showed us ones he had made…magnificent 12” blade and exotic handle. Not an antique but beautiful. I bought one for far less than a kitchen knife and it will be one of my prizes for many years.
Then back to the hotel for wine and then a fantastic dinner and now off to bed. Tomorrow we head to Iguassu
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