Gaiman is a small town in the Chubut Valley of Patagonia, and one of the most unexpected places in Argentina: a functioning Welsh colony where street signs appear in Welsh, chapels dot the landscape, and the afternoon tradition of a Welsh tea — with homemade cakes, scones, and bread — has been kept alive since the first settlers arrived in 1865.
The Welsh community came to Patagonia to escape anglicisation, seeking a place where they could preserve their language and culture. They found it here, in a valley of the Rio Chubut. Today the town still has Welsh speakers among the older generations, and the Welsh teahouses — Ty Gwyn, Plas y Coed, and others — serve afternoon tea in parlours decorated with photographs of the original settlers and prints of Wales. Princess Diana visited in 1995, which the locals are quietly proud of.
Beyond the tea, the Museo Histórico Regional Galés documents the Welsh migration, and a handful of red-brick chapels look transplanted from the Welsh valleys. The eccentric Parque el Desafío — a vast outdoor sculpture park built from recycled materials by a retired railway worker — is an entirely different kind of attraction. The Chubut Valley itself, green against the surrounding desert steppe, is worth exploring by bicycle or on foot. It is easily visited as a day trip from Trelew or Puerto Madryn.