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A group of 24 Northwest College photography students, faculty and community members traveled from winter to summer as they spent spring break south of the equator in Uruguay.

NWC photography Professor Anthony Polvere along with his wife Helena DeFina led the trip.

“My personal connection to Uruguay is through my wife’s family,” said Polvere. “Her mother was born in Colonia, Uruguay and her father immigrated there from Italy in the 1950s. We had traveled the country for three weeks and visited family as well in May 2003 and when it became my turn to choose a place to go for our annual trip, it seemed like a good choice. I was particularly interested in having the students experience the similarities that exist between our own cowboy culture and the gaucho’s lifestyle. My expectations were more than exceeded when we got the opportunity to attend the Fiesta de la patria Gaucha, Uruguay’s biggest festival dedicated to the lifestyle of the gauchos. The students seemed to enjoy it very much. For me, the highlight was getting to dance a tango with my wife.”

The group flew into Montevideo, the nation’s capital, on March 4. A day trip by bus included the resort city of Punta del Esta.

Other stops included Colonia and a day trip to Argentina’s capital, Buenos Aires. The final days included Tacuarembo for the gaucho festival and a ride in parade of at least 1,800 horses and riders.

A show of photographs by participants is scheduled to open on Thursday, May 4 in the Orendorff building’s SinClair Gallery.
A gaucho dressed in traditional attire sips yerba mate, a green tea, from a gourd at the gaucho festival in Tacuarembo, Uruguay. — Photograph by Michael Reimer
> More photographs here
Northwest College photography students ride in a gaucho parade in Tacuarembo. — Photograph by David Vaughan
Northwest College students, faculty and community members on the spring break trip wave to the crowd as they ride in a wagon during the gaucho festival parade, which included more than 1,800 horses with riders. — Photograph by David Vaughan
NWC photo student Rachel Devine dances with a tango dancer in Montevideo, Uruguay.
— Photograph by Kyle Morgan