Mendoza - Argentina

MENDOZA – ARGENTINA
Having packed up our bags in Santiago we headed for the bus station for an overnight coach to Mendoza, a beautiful town in Argentina on the eastern side of the Andes Mountains. After a quick McDonalds fix (you never know what that on board bus meal was going to be like) we boarded the coach and off we set at 10.30pm. We sat on the top deck right at the front of the bus so had front row views of the drive up the mountain which was a little hairy as we wound our way up the tight road past oncoming trucks and buses, as well as racing through narrow tunnels – it’s best to close your eyes on this trip.......as V did! We hit the Argentinean border post near the top of the mountain range at 1.30am and had to get off in the freezing cold to queue and have our passports checked and once the formalities were over with we jumped back on the bus to complete the journey. At 4.30am the lights on the coach came on and we stopped at a station and people started to disembark. We were only due to arrive at 6.30am so we assumed this must have been a stop somewhere on the way, but soon enough we were ushered off the coach and into the freezing empty station. We could hear the pumping music from a nearby club, and as much as the need to get warm told us to go join the party, our better judgement said no..... so we wrapped up on a bench and watched Kung fu Panda on the Archos to pass time.

OUR FIRST ARGENTINIEN STEAKS:
The coffee shops opened around 7am so we quickly made ourselves at home inside and helped ourselves to cappuccinos and pizza for breakfast and played cards to will the time away. By 10am it was time to catch a couple of taxi’s and head into Mendoza to our apartment, where we had been given permission to dump our bags early. We had to set off for a walk to see the town, to kill time until we were actually allowed to check in at 1pm. The plan was to go and see the main park which is apparently beautiful. On our walk we heard the screeching of tyres as a taxi piled into a small car crossing his road. There are very few traffic lights in Mendoza, and most intersections operate on yield signs which are more of a stand-off system as drivers dare to take the gap. It is the craziest system we have ever seen and results in many flare ups and much beeping of horns. Who knows what the accident figures are in this pretty little town but based on our minimal experience they must be huge!

Anyway after that excitement and still feeling tired after hardly any sleep we decided to ditch the park idea and hit one of the many steakhouse restaurants we had passed. This country is famous for its beef and I don’t think we could wait any longer so we sat down outside the Tristan Barraza restaurant and ordered 5 steaks and a couple bottles of red wine – all this at 11.30am in the morning. The steaks were out of this world, and the wine easy drinking resulting in us ordering a couple of extra bottles. As we meandered our way back to our apartment we stopped at a street side cafe called Cafe del Teatro to sample some more red wine and a cheeseboard. By our 8th bottle of the day the fatigue had really set in and so we stumbled the last few blocks home to finally hit the sack and get some much needed rest. We eventually woke up around 10.30pm that evening and after quickly freshening up headed out get a taste of the local nightlife but found our neighbouring streets to be very quiet so landed up in a local pizzeria where we shared a quick pizza between us, and the last red wine of the day. Not a bad introduction to Mendoza!

A REST DAY:
It has been a pretty hectic trip so far, with lots of sightseeing and running around, not that we are complaining of course as it sure beats work ;-). Anyway on our second day we woke up pretty late and decided to have a relaxing day and recharge those batteries a bit. We spent most of the early afternoon watching movies and kicking back in our stunning apartment before finally we set out for a late lunch consisting of... yep you guessed it, steak and red wine at the lovely La Florencia restaurant (okay Georgie had chicken but 4 out of 5 ain’t bad!). Well this was the best one yet and was our favourite steak in South America so far – the red wine wasn’t too bad either. From there we booked our tickets at the local hostel for the bike riding wine tour the next day and then Georgie and Lara decided to head home for an afternoon nap. To get us in the mood for the festivities of the next day Shaun, V and I carried on to a wine tasting at one of the local tasting bars called the Vines. We were treated to 5 wines and duly smashed them all to finish off our afternoon before heading home.

After a rest we then walked back to our favourite street for dinner. We agreed that we should try something different this time, and so we passed on the steaks to broaden our horizons. Shaun and I were talked into some lamb ribs by our friendly waiter, who described them as “excellent” ........ what a disastrous mistake that was! The worst ribs you have ever seen or tasted in your life, and after a couple of bites these were pushed to the side of the table and we were kindly allowed to share Venetia’s chicken schnitzel. After our meal we noticed they served Don Pedro’s and we thought we would sample these to see how they compared to a South African Don Pedro. In a word ... Badly! They were awful, a tumbler of half ice cream, half cream, a double shot of whisky poured over the top with a small sprinkle of nuts to finish it off. Be sure to give them a wide berth if you are ever in Argentina! I guess by the law of averages we had to have a terrible meal at some stage, and this was certainly it. We walked off cursing our foolishness for deviating from the steak option, and swearing never to repeat that mistake.

THE GAMBLERS
While the girls headed home to watch movies, Shaun and I decided to hit the Hyatt hotel casino for a bit of gambling. Like a couple of high rollers we swaggered in and marched straight up to the blackjack tables. Most were pretty full but we saw a clear table round the corner and took our seats. Without a word spoken we threw 100 Argentinean peso’s onto the table for some chips (a whopping £15) and placed our first bet. To our surprise we were then dealt 3 cards straight up (for those who don’t know blackjack, you should only be dealt 2 cards to start). We looked at each other a little puzzled and then noticed the sign on the table which kindly pointed out that this was in fact a 3-card poker table. Trying not to look foolish we pretended to know what we were doing and carried on, until the croupier asked us if we wanted to increase our bets – or we think that’s what she said as she didn’t speak a word of English. We said “no” and expected another card to be dealt, but she simply smiled and swiped our cards and bets off the table. We quickly cashed in and hit the roulette!! That wasn’t much better and after being cleaned out within 15 minutes it was time to call it quits on an unlucky evening – at least Leise got a free beer...

BICYCLE WINE TOUR:
Wednesday was a perfect day, sunny and crystal clear with that deep blue sky. The tour bus picked us up at 9.30am sharp and after stopping at a few hostels to pick up some fellow travellers we headed out to the Mendoza wine region. On arrival we were greeted by the friendly staff, quickly briefed, and advised to go and choose our bikes, Not the greatest selection ever but we grabbed one each and rode off to our first estate. We started at the Museo del Vino estate which was only 600 meters around the corner, yet it took us half an hour as we managed to go the wrong way. The first tour was good but having done one you’ve done them all so we abandoned the group and went straight to the tasting! We then made the 12 kilometre ride to the last estate so we could work our way back, We made it about 10km’s along some seriously bumpy road and gravel paths before deciding to stop at the Vistandes winery for some lunch. The food was awesome and after a couple of glasses of wine we decided to work our way back from there and stopped at the Tempus Albay vineyard. We made our way up to the beautiful patio by following the loud yet inviting house tunes which were pumping from the sound system. We indulged in some Rose and red wine while enjoying the music, hot weather and stunning view of the Andes Mountains. We made friends with the owner who was great, it was like he’d known us his whole life and was keen to hear all about South Africa. After a while relaxing it was time to make our way back, enjoying the magnificent views of sprawling vineyards with the snow capped mountains in the background.

URUGUAY v ARGENTINA WORLD CUP QUALIFIER
We returned our bikes and waited for our taxis back into Mendoza, while drinking beer and becoming acquainted with our new Irish friends. I won’t lie, the bike saddles were not the greatest and everyone had seriously sore bums, and sported amusing walks – the girls also complained of sore “bits” but not sure what that means. We raced back to our apartment in time for a quick shower and then wandered several blocks to find a bar showing the Uruguay v Argentina World Cup qualifier. We eventually found a large bar with a big screen and settled down to a few pints and a dire game of football, which Argentina managed to sneak 1-0 with a late goal. And so our winning streak continued as the Argies qualified with us here (Chile qualified with us in Santiago, and Rio won the Olympic when we were there). Talk about lucky charms, our trip should be subsidised ;-). Unfortunately the Argentineans in Mendoza weren’t as excited about the football result as the Chileans were, so less dancing and singing in the streets this time.

We then headed to the restaurant across the road with our Irish friends and promptly ordered ....... yep, 7 steaks! As per tradition we consumed several bottles of red wine with our meal, which was excellent as usual. Then it was time for a nightcap and toast to Argentina’s qualification, so we hit the Irish pub for a few drinks. Thus ended our last night in Mendoza, and we enjoyed a leisurely walk through the park to our apartment to pack and get some sleep before our coach trip back to Santiago in the morning.

SANTIAGO FOR ONE NIGHT
We hailed down a couple of taxis early on Thursday and got to the bus station on time and ready for the long haul over the Andes to Chile. The coach ride was long but the view through the mountains was spectacular with snow capped jagged peaks, crystal clear rivers, and deep blue lakes. Passport control was a killer though and took a ridiculous 3 hours, but standing on top of the Andes in a snow storm enjoying the view made it interesting at least. We finally arrived in Santiago around 8pm and were picked up by our temporary landlord Floris again, who drove us to our new apartment for the night. We unloaded and went for a walk to pick up some Chinese food, and then caught as much sleep as possible before our 6.30am morning taxi to the airport.

And so we left for Buenos Aires on the 8.30am flight, with real excitement amongst all of us. V and I have been hyped about this city long before we even stated our trip so let’s hope it lives up to its reputation!

Mendoza highlights and lowlights:
- Steak and red wine, steak and red wine.............. amazing!
- The vineyards with the Andes Mountains in the background – breathtaking!
- Fresh milk at last, well done Argentina!
- Argentina qualifying for the 2010 World Cup
- The intersections here, what a nightmare – never hire a car in Mendoza!
- All the sad homeless dogs, wish we could give them all a bath and a bite to eat!