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Published: February 26th 2008
Andes Mountains..
... beautiful Mountains ... 3-4 years ago Nathan went to watch Halifax play Otley in the Yorkshire Cup Final in Harrogate. Nathan was well and truly "corporate" Nathan by this point in his life.
When he got to Claro Road - Nathan met a number of old Yorkshire RFU and North of England RFU acquaintences. Most notably Doug Gillet (now the late Doug Gillet) who was Chairman of Selectors for Yorkshire U21s in the 2 years that Nathan was part of the squad.
Doug "recognised" Nathan but told him that he had put a "hell of lot of weight on - particularly in your face". Sort of since this time - Nathan has been a bit paranoid that he is getting older and fatter. He doesn´t like this (who does?!).
Consider this as guidance when writing your multiple comments to this blog eh? Even his own mother has commented that Nathan "definitely looks like he has been enjoying himself" ... even senior clients too ... he gets upset very easily and Lizzy is tired of lying to him that he isn´t putting on weight. OK?
Anyways.
Things were looking up for our intrepid adventurers. Out of the BA swealter and
The YMCA ...
continued to turn up in the oddest places across South America into the cool of the Andes foothills - in Mendoza on the western border of Argentina (mid way up)....
Day 53 - February 22nd 2008 - Mendoza, Argentina We had always been looking forward to Mendoza. Sun, adventure and wine. Who could ask for more? In addition - this is one of the places where we had been saving our pennies for a little luxury. The Villagio Boutique Hotel in Mendoza was nice - but we expected better things once we adventured out into the Vines ...
Today we had arranged ourselves some White Water Rafting on the Mendoza River. We got picked up at 09:00 (again - a time with an 0 at the beginning) and set off.
One of the (American) passengers told us tales of Aconcagua Base Camp. The Joe Simpson element of us (admittedly this element is confined to a small piece of our brains which is hidden behind the don´t be stupid element) quivered. The don´t be stupid element laughed. We all moved on.
Several people die each year going to Aconcagua totally unprepared. Call it a nasty from of Natural Selection (the same sort which is in play in
Codo
... stop it now ... aren´t you supposed to be at work or something ... or looking after Leo? Machu Picchu where 6 or so people die each year falling off the edge ... which is very, very clearly the edge of a very big drop).
Got to the site after a little meandering - and got our kit and safety briefing. We think we looked pretty cool in our kit. The photos came out well.
We had a great time rafting on the Grade 3 to 4 stretch - Nathan steered at the front for most of the way - Lizzy nearly fell in very seriously once but was held in by the girls nearby. The boys (who clearly had been paid off by Nathan) didn´t move.
Office hands came in to play - even after a 7 week absence. We got blisters.
Had lunch, played with the dogs - and then went back into Mendoza. Nathan was starting to feel a little unwell ... there were some concerns that his constitution (which to date has been 100%) was under attack. He´s ashamed to say that he went to sleep in the hotel for a siesta. Lizzy refused to do the same and set off to try and pay a deposit for horse riding.
Light Lunch
... for Betsy and Nath. 38 plates. As a starter. That evening we went to the main street in Mendoza - and again were turned away at 8pm for dinner as everywhere was not yet OPEN!
Had to settle for the worst pizza in the history of pizza (today we agreed with TJ that pizza was not a cool thing to be eating in South America). Got to bed at 22:30.
Whine or Wine?
Today was the first day that neither Lizzy or Nathan had drunk alcohol. In 53 days. Pretty bad really. Nathan was also under the weather - and although he tends to battle through these bouts of under the weatherness ... he struggled.
Unfortunately - it was a Whine Day today. Day 54 - February 23rd 2008 - Mendoza, Argentina Today was going to be a wine day. No doubt. We were headed for the vineyards of Mendoza. Yummy!!!
In true Martin Llewellyn style - we got up early to earn our beers. At 09:00 we were running around the main park in Mendoza. A beautiful sunny day with blue sky. And cool. Interval training. It felt good.
Fitter not fatter. Yeah ... right.
Got very
... One ... More ... Mouthful ...
... you ... can ... do ... it ... red - and the receptionist (Sami - again - would struggle) asked if we were ok. Felt embarrassed.
Set off to Club Tapiz. A hotel attached to one of the most popular (and "best") vineyards in Mendoza. The security guard looked confused. The receptionist (Carla) also looked confused. We had no reservation. Oh good.
The system had failed us. We were there a day early and on the wrong day. See you tomorrow we said.
So we headed for Finca Adalgisa and were met by Jessica (Sami ... would ... struggle). The Finca turned out to be a beautiful little hotel with around 5 rooms. Again - they looked quite confused. Again - we had no reservation. Thankfully - there was room and we were shown to our "suite".
Aran - a Dutch expat was superb. He sat us down and explained the facilities. He then booked us lunch and 2 wine tastings at some local vineyards. He gave us a map, 2 bicycles and pointed us in the right direction. Things were finally "go".
First stop - Clos de Chacras in Chacras de Coria, the small village outside Mendoza City. The Sami would struggle
...Hmmm.... WINE!!!!
... at Cavas de Carno Mendoza factor was once more very high in this boutique vineyard - one of the first in the area when the Swiss mason Bautista Gargantini and the Italian Juan Giol set up shop at the back end of the 1800s.
The vineyard had been in and out of the family - and was now back in since Argentinian wine had been in fashion. Like most vineyards around here - they focus on fine wine as they can´t compete with major producers like Alta Vista and Norton.
Which is a bit odd as their premium bottle of wine costs 6 pounds (35 pesos) a bottle direct from the vine yard. Just shows what the tax man and shipping man does to us eh?
We´d like to think that we can taste wine - and taste black currants, thyme, red currants, strawberries. I´ve got birds, singing ... I´m running through a field on a summer´s afternoon. But we can´t. We just can´t and damn we´ve tried ...
It´s sort of red ... or white ... and nice ... or not nice. Sorry Mark ... sorry Mum(s) ... sorry Christopher ... we are pretty poor at this sort of thing.
Taking us through the Wine Motions ..
.. at Bodega El Lagar de Carmelo Patti, Mendoza From Clos de Chacras we tasted the following wines:
Cavas de Crianza (Merlot - 2006) - 25 pesos (4 pounds). It was red and it was nice.
Cavas de Crianza (Malbec - 2006) - 30 pesos (5 pounds). It was red and it was nice.
Cavas de Crianza (Blend of Malbec, Merlot and Cab Sav). It was red and a little bit nicer as it had won a competition or two. Interestingly enough this meant it was a little more expensive (35 pesos - 6 pounds). For that reason and for only that reason.
We were due at the next place (Cava de Cano) so we got on our bikes. We got there and were shown to our "lunch". Lunch is a term often used for a light, mid day (ish) meal ... Clearly - this was another of those places showing off. Our starter was 38 dishes of things. Fruit, meats, breads, salads etc. etc. ... in addition we were then given empanadas, spaghetti and a variety of other things. Oh - and a bottle of vino ("unoaked" ... and red ... it was nice).
More than two hours later ... we managed to haul
Finca Adalgisa´s Wine
... and grapes ... and Cat .... ourselves out of there ... with several purchases (presents - which you´ll have to wait for). Needless to say the weight and baggage thing just got really interesting.....
Got to the final place a little more drunk ... Bodega El Lagar de Carmelo Patti. Here we were shown the differences between the various years of wine and the distinct tastes. How wine mellows and changes flavour with age. As a result - we can reveal that the 2007 Merlot wasn´t as nice as the 2006 Merlot which wasn´t as good as the 2005 Merlot. But they were all red.
At this vineyard we got talking to a British couple, Debbie and Brett who are on a 12 month Honeymoon. Interestingly enough - they had been to Easter Island - and had stayed in the very hotel and the very room that we are staying in from the 27th ...
They mentioned that their bike ride had taken them all the way from Mendoza City itself ... a good 20 km away. They also mentioned that they were going back to watch France vs. England (which Nathan had forgotten about ...). Because they simply weren´t going to be
Betsy T
... slightly drunk ... able to get home in time - we invited them to our place to watch it ...
Hence we ended up watching the game - in French (TV Monde) and laughing at a good deal of "oh la la". We also had another 2 bottles of vino (tinto ... red)
A brill day was concluded by waving Brett and Debbie off in a taxi (with their bikes in the back) ... and watching Insomnia on the TV ...
Is this what travelling is all about?
Whine or Wine?
I think you know the answer. 4 vine yards (including Finca Adalgisa) and a lot of food ... today was without a shadow of a doubt a wine day. Day 55 - February 24th 2008 - Mendoza, Argentina Woken by Nathan´s mobile phone. It´s a picture of his Mum outside Buckingham Palace.
After a hearty breakie we set off to Club Tapiz. The guard at the gate was very entertained by these two gringos reappearing after yesterday´s escapades.
Shown around this fabulous place by Fabio (45%!o(MISSING)f Argentinians are of direct Italian descent). Got to our room - and sort of got lazy
Enough for an Entire Week..
... at The Lowe ... (Club Tapiz, Mendoza) ... we picked up books that we had bought in BA ... and went to the pool ... and read them ...
Next thing we realise is that it is time to go to our 8pm wine tasting with Carla and the other guests. Apart from only 2 other guests turned up. Stan and Jean Gelber - from California USA.
Getting to know Stan and Jean a little better was fun - and we ended up having dinner with them. Stan is one of the world´s pioneers in Database Management and Communications Management (he also went to University with Larry Ellison which is pretty cool). Of course - being the diligent IT Executives ourselves we were able to have in depth conversations around these subjects. Chiggles in particular would have been very proud.
Went to bed and promised ourselves that we would need to earn some more beer/wine by going running in the morning.
Whine or Wine?
Lazy but you have to call today a Wine day.
Stan and Jean are wine buffs - and they taught us many things.
In addition we had a bottle of Malbec from the room (courtesy of Here we go ..
... pool, wine, sun (mostly - admittedly not here) ... Betsy Heaven ... (Club Tapiz, Mendoza, Argie Land) Club Tapiz), another type of red one and a type of white one at the tasting and also a red one which Jean had never tasted at dinner... we are getting to understand quite a lot you know ...
Day 56 - February 25th 2008 - Mendoza, Argentina Got up with a bit of a hangover - and didn´t go running.
The horrors of "11 Days of Worry" returned this morning when Nathan went to check in online for our Easter Island flight at LAN.com. Nathan wasn´t on the flight. The confirmation number only had one name ... and it was Betsy T´s name.
Of course - Nathan kept his cool and didn´t panic.
Lizzy (to Nathan´s shame) rang LAN and got the altered number. Nathan was on the flight and we checked ourselves in for the flight to Easter Island. Only 2 days to go!
The sun shone again today. So we didn´t go to any more vineyards. We sat by the pool (Betsy T) or did the initial version of the BA blog (NS). Betsy did the editing and then went back to the pool. Nathan thinks that she wasn´t taking
That´s the way ...
... down in one son (Cavas Wine Lodge, Mendoza, Argie Land) her duties seriously enough.
This evening we went to Cavas Wine Lodge. A beautiful, beautiful vineyard and hotel complex 20 minutes from Club Tapiz.
Over dinner Lizzy explained to Nathan that she was thinking about buying a vineyard in Argie Land. Let´s give it a few days before we decide whether she is being serious.
As Nathan understands it - Lizzy was talking to an Argie Lander by the pool - who was telling her that a square metre of land (with building) is 500 Euros in Argie Land. That means a 100 metre square plot - with house is 50,000 Euros (are you keeping up?). In addition - a fully functioning vineyard is 200,000 Euros ...
If she is being serious then she may be approaching you soon with an offer of a business venture. My advice would be to snap her hand off ... she is really very savvy. Just so long as there is a pool.
Had a bottle of (nice) red wine at dinner - from the Cavas vineyard. The waitress poured herself a glass first to taste it before asking Nathan to taste it for himself. They must do this
Looking good ...
... "naturals" you might say kind of thing in posh places. Lizzy refused to pour the waitress´s (unfinished) glass back into the bottle.
Oh yes - and Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer was on the music playlist.
Anyway - the meal was exceptional and then we played chess, solitaire and draughts whilst we waited for our taxi. Taxi was 20 pesos cheaper on the way back. Must be downhill.
Whine or Wine?
Wine day.
The wine tasting was very full at Tapiz today. We had a white one and a red one. And then at Club Tapiz we had a red one. We also finished that bottle of red off which we had been drinking courtesy of Club Tapiz in the room. Day 57 - February 26th 2008 - Mendoza, Argentina Cody ... Cody ... Cody ....
It´s enough to make certain members of our party break out into a cold sweat.
Today we went horse riding. Nathan was a little nervous about this in truth as the last time he was on a horse (named Cody) there was an altercation. Nevertheless - he took charge and tamed the wild beast and went anyway.
This
A Gaucho and a Guide
... horse riding, (Mendoza, Argie Land) is not a joke - but the horse that Nathan was riding today was called "Bayo Loco" - quite literally "Crazy Grey". Nathan thought they were actually joking ... but they weren´t.
The tour guide (Emiliano) was a great bloke, really friendly and really keen to get to know us. The Gaucho (Orlando) was also the real deal - and he told us stories with the guide translating about the strengths of each horse. The Grandmother of Lizzy´s horse (sedately named "India") was stolen and ridden away by a thief. The police fatally wounded the horse during the chase - but the horse carried on for 3km before dropping down dead ... that´s a strong horse ...!
It all passed off without incident (although the Crazy Horse wheezed and snorted a lot under Nathan´s 95kg - there was no evil stare though - which is always good in these situation ... believe me)
Emiliano also taught us how to prepare "Mate". The tea type drink that they are into around here ...
Nathan was actually more interested in playing with the multiple dogs that the Gaucho had on his farm. They liked to fetch stones ... as much as Barney likes to fetch his tennis ball ...
Saw that "anonymous" had added a comment to our BA blog (but we deleted it for them being too cowardly to add their real name). It read "Oh the English "sense of humour"". We take this as a very big complement indeed. A bit like being called a clown by the opposition´s coach.
Whine or Wine?
No alcohol today as yet - but we are heading out with Brett and Debbie this evening so this won´t last.
Let´s call it a wine day anyway.
Have been to the supermarket to stock up on essentials prior to our flying to Easter Island tomorrow. Lizzy has bought 2 litres of red wine to take with us for a total of 1 pound - get in! It therefore looks like this wine thing may well continue....
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tom
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Big thanks to Eduardo
...for clearing up the issues surrounding the tower with no name in the Torres del Paine National Park. Check back a couple of pages for the full story - 10/10 for detail. tower two sadly still sadly remailn nameless though...