Mar Chiquita is the immense lagoon in the flood-stricken landscape where Simona’s confinement is suddenly disrupted. As the Arroyo Salado swells until the river and lagoon seem to merge, the flood tears away the wire fence around the estancia, setting in motion the events that may free her.

Setting and the Flood

The lagoon appears in Simona’s account of relentless January rain. The Arroyo Salado, large despite its name, rises so far that no land can be distinguished between the river and Mar Chiquita. The familiar boundaries of the estancia disappear into water: the road is gone, the cattle break loose, and the fence that had helped keep Simona imprisoned is swept away.

Role in Simona’s Escape

The flood is at once a natural disaster and a reversal in Simona’s circumstances. Renato takes her with him in a jeep to rescue cattle trapped by the fallen fence near the riverbank. The torrent carries away some animals, while the fallen fence prevents others from being swept into the river’s center. As Renato wades into the emergency to save the cattle, Simona watches from the vehicle—and then suddenly loses sight of him. Mar Chiquita thus belongs to a scene in which overwhelming water breaks the enclosure that had defined Simona’s world, though the immediate outcome remains uncertain.