Awww, What a Cute Little Virgin

On Sunday, four days ago, I drove with Nestor and his son Mati to Luján, a dusty, almost Mexican-esque town 70 km west of Buenos Aires that is home to a famed cathedral that is the desination of an annual October pilgrimmage. The pilgrims walk from B.A. to Luján alongside the provincial highway that joins the two, a habit which, considering Argentina's previously noted bipolar driving habits, shows an abiding faith in god's tenderness. The cathedral (above) is an attractive, if anonymous, pink affair, with tons of trinket shops lining the arcade that runs to its front doors. My favorite tchotkee? Little Virgin Mary statuettes that, like mood rings, vary color according to the heat and humidity.

But why Luján? Because of a certain team of intransigent horses, Nestor tells me. Apparently, the Virgin Mary housed inside the cathedral was sent from Europe to Argentina to be the centerpiece of a cathedral in the west of Argentina. However, after being sent by horsedrawn carriage from B.A., the horses refused to go further when they arrived in Luján. Someone apparently got the bright idea of removing the all of 17" tall statue of the Virgin Mary from the carriage and, shockingly, the horses volunteered to go on their way. But with the Mary back on the carriage, the ponies again resorted to a Bartleby, the Scrivener vibe: "I'd rather not." Off and on they tried, always with the same result. And so the Virgin stayed in Luján. I have no idea if this story is the least bit true, but I like it very much.

My second favorite site in Luján: the transportation museum, which houses a plane, the Plus Ultra (right), that flew a multipart journey from Spain to Argentina, via Africa. The crew chief? None other than brother of the former Spanish fascist dictator Franco.