We’ve met more incredible women on this journey than we could ever have dreamed to and though their passions, interests and lives vary beyond belief there seems to be one resounding likeness; they’re rarely still long enough to hear the praise and enjoy the reverie. We’ve gotten together with some influential women to hear their stories. Welcome to the ‘influential, not influencer’ series where we celebrate the fierce and fashionable, the wild and wonderful and the bold and brilliant woman.
To start the series rolling we’ve got Belinda; the charming redhead we met at Port Eliot festival last summer. She’s got one hell of a story having ditched the Corporate London life to become a cowboy out in the hills of Argentina.
- So tell us a bit about yourself, whereabouts in the world are you right now and what is it that you do there?
I’m in Argentina, in the Sierras Chicas, which are mountains right in the middle of the country in the province of Córdoba - a beautiful and undiscovered gem amongst foreign travellers. I work on an estancia (ranch) - we farm Aberdeen Angus beef and we also have lots of guests who visit us to experience life on a working cattle farm in rural Argentina, and to ride our incredible horses. When people think of Argentina they often think of beef and gauchos (South American cowboys) - I look after our (mostly English speaking) guests and ride out with them and our gauchos - who don’t speak any English - and give them a glimpse of the gaucho lifestyle.
- How did you find yourself in Argentina and how does it compare to your life previously spent in the UK? What exactly is it about this lifestyle that sets your heart on fire?
I first came to Estancia Los Potreros as a guest for a riding holiday with friends in 2014. I loved it so much I went back to the UK and decided to walk away from my corporate career (probably the easiest decision I’ve ever made). I returned a year later as a volunteer riding guide. I’d been working in The City 10 years and was rather disenchanted with the corporate job and lifestyle that I had fallen into (by accident rather than design). What was initially supposed to be a 9 month career break: a chance to travel around South America and also to spend more time at the estancia - riding wonderful horses in stunning surroundings, turned into a drastic career change.
I very quickly realised that I had no desire to get back into the rat race - to sit behind a computer day in and day out, to keep playing corporate snakes and ladders, grasping for the next rung and its ‘perks’. The wide open spaces, vast skies and dramatic weather, as well as the warmth and generosity of everyone I met, reminded me of the best bits of my childhood in East Africa and I fell hopelessly in love with Argentina. I liked feeling physically tired at the end of the day, rather than simply drained by another slog in the office followed by the scrum of commuting on the underground. I liked living rather ‘off the grid’ away from the constant beeps of a mobile phone. I discovered that I was far happier living a simpler, less materialistic life and learned to take each day as it comes, to expect the unexpected, to live more spontaneously and to value the important (often simple) things in life, to chase my dreams and not to dwell on the ‘what ifs’ …
I guided here for 8 months, then arranged to do something similar in Ecuador. While I was there I pitched a job proposal to the owners of the estancia for a permanent position, which would take some of the pressure off them in terms of hosting guests and managing the volunteer guides, but would also allow me to continue to indulge my inner gaucho! I’ve been here permanently for almost 3 years now.
- What's the biggest challenge you find yourself facing regularly and, conversely, what's the best part of your day?
Initially the biggest challenge was convincing the gauchos - who are tough, macho and have been practically born and raised on horseback, that I deserved to be taken seriously. Conversely these days it’s reining myself in and making sure that if we’re out working cows with guests they have a chance to get involved … the temptation to just gallop after some frisky calves that are making a break for freedom and bring them back into the herd is huge. Instead We have to depend on the guest’s riding ability and explain to them what they need to try to do to herd them back up. However, it’s great when we have guests who ride well because then we can really work with the boys as a team. Likewise, when we’re closed it’s just me and the boys, rounding up our horses that are on their holidays to check they ‘re ok, and it’s amazing to ride out (without thinking about whether guests are safe and enjoying themselves or needing to find a ‘guest friendly’ route) to get the job done. It gives me the chance to enjoy being surrounded by the most stunning scenery on my incredibly brave little mare, have a laugh and probably a competition to see who can round up the most horses. However, one of the nicest things about this job is being able to help and teach less confident riders and seeing them gain in confidence over the course of their stay. Having guests come back from your ride bursting with excitement and enthusiasm for any number of reasons - because they loved their horse, or tried their first canter, or we were lucky enough to see a lot of condors up close - is probably the best part of the job. It’s wonderful to see people falling in love with the estancia, Argentina, and its culture!
- What lead you to Port Eliot Festival last summer?
Great friends of mine are perennial Port Eliot attendees. I’d been once before a few years ago and loved it, and this year I was back in the UK for a holiday and the dates coincided with the festival, so I unearthed my tiny tent and dusted of the cobwebs… it seemed like too good an opportunity to miss; spending a long, lazy weekend relaxing with friends (and some quality time with my super energetic godson), without any of the distractions and demands of their daily lives getting the way, in a beautiful setting, with G&T’s on tap and the chance to dance the night away! Plus it’s the polar opposite of my life in Argentina where my days off are usually spent trying to train one of my horses, playing a couple of chukkas of polo at a friend’s little club or simply enjoying a cold beer and an ‘asado’ (Argentine BBQ) … although all this is often followed by some enthusiastic dancing, so I suppose they’re not too dissimilar.
- Belinda, what's your favourite song to get up to in the morning?
I don’t want to sound too clichéd, but bird song … I usually wake up as the sun comes up, to the sound of the birds in the trees and horses in the garden. But if I need a bit of extra encouragement to get out of bed the local cuarteto music, with a really fast hip shaking beat, is difficult to ignore.
- Now to your red special edition Sailaway. What drew you to that particular dress and, in three words, let us know how wearing it makes you feel.
To be honest all the dresses were beautiful, but this one was just so vibrant and I’ve always loved red! On the estancia I’m usually in jeans or 'bombachas de campo’ (tough canvas trousers that the gauchos wear) and shirts, with a boina (beret) … great for my job but not exactly glamorous. This dress is so gorgeously floaty and flirty, every time I chuck it on (at the risk of sounding like a Shania Twain song) it makes me feel “like a woman”!
Words: Maddie Meddings
