Malbec and its Aftermath in Mendoza

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Tuesday 4 June to Friday 7 June

The trip to Mendoza included some more eye popping views from the comfort of the bus. As we approached the Andes from Santiago there were spectacular mountain scenes and meandering rivers, surrounded by lush trees. On entering the mountain pass it began to take on a very different look. The foliage became less diverse and the land itself much drier.

We climbed the winding mountain roads. The higher we got, the more snow there was alongside the road and lining the mountainsides. There were a few moments of tummy flipping nerves as we took switchbacks over drops of several hundred feet. Not being the most comfortable with heights these days I was tempted not to look, but the views were too beautiful to miss.

I was then treated to the one and only English language film of the bus journey - sadly it was The Expendables 2 with all the action heroes of yesteryear, which you could interpret as all the "past it" action heroes. It killed time though, despite Sly Stallone's horrendous acting, and was worth it solely for Arnold Schwarzenegger's funniest line. This involved Bruce Willis screeching to a halt in a Smart Car to rescue him from a sea of gunfire...Arnie basically rips it's door off, jumps in the car and turns to Bruce Willis, saying "My shoe is bigger than this car!" It cracked me up!!! Ah, it's the little things...

After arriving into Mendoza, it was a 20 minute walk to the hostel - luckily I arrived in good time, so got to take advantage of the free wine hour from 7pm. This is very important for a girl from Yorkshire - anything free should never be missed, especially good wine!!! I also got to meet Manuela, the "loca" hostel owner, who was part German, part Kiwi and had been living in South America for 10 years. She looked like a chubbier version of Glenn Close, with short spiky blonde hair and the Fatal Attraction dual personality to go with it. She was full of stories and great fun - you just didn't want to get on the wrong side of her!

I spent my first full day in Mendoza checking out the city itself, which for an arid town was full of beautiful tree lined streets - all thanks to the amazing irrigation from the surrounding rivers.

The highlight of the day was my visit to Parque General San Martin, which is so far the most impressive city park I've experienced in South America. The Park itself was made up of tree-lined avenues, which at the time were a magical autumnal yellow. The colours were made all the more intense by the beautiful sunny day. At a small roundabout within the Park was the lovely Fuente de los Continentes, created by sculptor Jean Batiste Carpeaux. In Classical style, the fountain consists of figures from Atlantis - with alternating male and female figures, cherubs and floral patterns. The extra bit of reading I've done on it says that it seeks to represent each of the continents of America, Asia, Europe and Africa.

Picking one of the roads leading from this fountain I came upon the Park's lake where I took time out to relax on one of the benches. I allowed my mind to wander, enjoying the tranquillity and desperately trying to tan my supremely white legs. Sadly this failed, most likely because they're so white they just reflect the sunlight!!!

I also partook of one of the playground areas, jumping on one of the swings and reliving my childhood.

I spent pretty much all afternoon there before heading back to the hostel for dinner and more free wine. There were quite a few new people. This included American, Patrick O'Sullivan (aka Paddy) who was a walking cliché - a descendant of Irish immigrants, dressed like a cowboy, complete with double denim, a gingham shirt and the largest metal belt buckle known to man. We all assumed he was a Texan, but he was actually from New York. Nonetheless he was lots of fun and took all our teasing in good spirit. There was also Wolfgang from Germany (perhaps the coolest named person I've yet met); Afner from Israel, a bearded sweetheart who was an outrageous flirt; and others from Switzerland, America and Luxembourg whose names escape me.

The large amount of wine consumed led to a communal "need" to go out and paint the town red. So we hit Mendoza's dance floors, starting with a pretty awful bar that was all black, chrome and neon. It was also pretty much empty. It was here we got to view Afner's hysterical dance moves - a mix between Dad dancing and a stoned hippy. Paddy who couldn't dance at all and was shy of joining in was eventually persuaded on board as we threw down some hoedown moves to match his outfit. We even had a bit of a dance off with some locals.

We then chanced upon a much better establishment playing rock and indie music, which seemed to be where everyone in Mendoza went out. It was the complete antithesis of the previous place and was so full that you could hardly move. The party continued until about 7am - not unusual for Argentina - though not the greatest news for me. I was due to meet AJ from the Bariloche hostel to go and do a wine tour in Mapui at 9am...Ouch!

After just one hour's sleep, AJ arrived with two additions from his hostel (both from France). I somehow managed to get myself presentable and ate some breakfast, but admit that the last thing I wanted to do at this point was get on a bike in the hot sunshine and drink more alcohol. In retrospect I should've cried off and saved the wine tour for the following day, but as it was I chose to honour the meeting. Plus hindsight is always a great thing.

As a result, one of the things I'd most be looking forward to during my time in Argentina turned out to be a pretty rough day - all totally self-inflicted, I know! It also meant I didn't push enough with my desire to visit the olive oil factory, where they also did tastings. Any other day I would have, or at least decided to go off on my own to ensure I did everything I wanted to.

After arriving in Maipu and hiring a bike each, we set off on the 20-30 minute cycle ride to stop number 1. Overall, I was surprised that the landscapes we passed were so dry and devoid of colour. I suspect this was partly because of the seasonal dimension, being late autumn, and also what I'd learned about their reliance on irrigation. The vines were of course bare, having been recently harvested, and aside from the trees there was very little in the way other plants or flowers.

I did very much enjoy our time at the first winery - Familia de Tommaso. Here I learnt how to taste wine properly - checking its colour; swilling it round the glass to oxygenate it; smelling its aromas; and finally how to taste it with the whole of your mouth. It was a totally different way of experiencing wine. We tasted a Torrentes, a young Malbec, a Malbec Reserva and their dessert wine. They were all delicious, even in my hung over state. The only one I wasn't keen on was the dessert wine, but this is mainly because I just don't get on with dessert wines, full stop.

The tasting was followed by a tour of the winery where they told us something of the wine making process, including how the vines are cared for. At their winery one woman takes 2-3 months every year to prune and tie the vines on her own! We were also told about how wine growing in the region is made possible thanks to the irrigation system they have bringing water from the mountains - without this, Mendoza is basically a desert town.

We stayed here for a very disappointing lunch and then headed to the next winery, called Mavi. They had a stunning view from their balcony of the vineyards stretching out into the distance and backed by the Andes. Here we got to pick 3 of 8 wines to enjoy at our own leisure. With the heat of the day burning into me I had to give up the ghost at this point. With the time we'd taken at each place it wasn't going be that long until sundown either and I didn't fancy the idea of cycling back without lights in a country where they drive like maniacs. So at this point I said my goodbyes and got on my bike.

For my last day in Mendoza I stayed in the city, exploring some more of the local neighbourhoods and chatting more with Manuela back at the hostel. I discovered she had plans to relocate to Mexico very soon and run a hostel there in partnership with her friend.

Later that evening it was time to board the bus again and head further north to Cordoba. I had my best bus experience ever. Having decided to treat myself to a Full Cama bed, I not only go a more plush seat, but being a new bus there was an individual TV in the back of the seat in front. This worked via a touch screen and allowed you to watch a film of your choice. A great treat as they were also in English. You also had the option to draw a curtain across between you and your neighbour, to basically have your own compartment. I felt it'd be rude to do this first though, so it ended up remaining open.

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Photos

Autumnal Magic
Beautiful golden leaves in the trees lining avenues of Parque General San Martin, Mendoza

Greek Goddess
Fuente de los Continentes in Parque General San Martin, Mendoza

Cherubic Charm
Fuente de los Continentes in Parque General San Martin, Mendoza

Greek Gods!
Fuente de los Continentes in Parque General San Martin, Mendoza

Lazing by the Lake
Parque General San Martin, Mendoza

Prettiness in the Park
Parque General San Martin, Mendoza

Where the Wine Things Grow!
Vineyard views from Mendoza

Little Vines all in a Row
Vineyard views from Mendoza and Mavi Winery

The End of Autumn
Vineyard views from Mendoza and Mavi Winery