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Published: July 30th 2006
ouch!
This was a familiar position for both of usAs we were too early to try snowboarding in Ushuaia and Bariloche, we decided to try one last time in a resort called Las Leñas just south of Mendoza. We found out that by staying in a little town called Malargue, we can get 50% off the price of our lift passes. This was appealing as we knew we would need a lesson or two. Nick and Sally were with us and being seasoned pro skiers, they were keen to hit the slopes too.
To get there from Bariloche we had to get an overnight bus North to San Rafael and change from there. We got to San Rafael at 4am and had no choice but to sit in the bus station cafe for a couple of hours to get out of the cold. This would not have been too bad if the cafe didnt smell like an onion (fried) factory. I like the smell of onions but this was unbearable and all our clothes and bags stank afterwards. At least we got plenty of space on the next bus to Malargue ,-)
When we arrived, hearing that there was snow on the resort, we shopped around for hire gear and
Our first time on the chair lift
We collapsed in a heap at the top trying to get off ..... was well funny. prepared for our first ever day snowboarding. Las Leñas is known in argentina for being the more up market of ski resorts (fit for a duke) but by staying in Malargue, we managed to do it really cheaply. The resort is only an hour and a half away from Malargue by bus and we hired gear, bought 2 days lift pass and a 2 hour lesson on the first day for about 50 pound each all in!! Happy days.
We had lots of fun! The lesson was cool, just us two and the instructor was totally knarley ;-) Our only problem was that the snow was not great, they needed more badly. In the morning it was really icy which can be extremely painful when you are learning! By the end of the second day we were both turning which felt great! It came at a price though .... neither of us could move some of our muscles for a few days after, not to mention some serious bruises. We loved it though and hope to do some more in Santiago before we leave the continent.
We booked our bus to Mendoza which left at midnight so instead of waiting
around bored in a hostel, the four of us went to a restaurant with ambitions of eating a giant argentinian steak and guzzling loads of lovely argentinian red wine. We were not dissapointed, and the restaurant owner was completely barmy! He didnt have menus for a start (which didnt matter too much as we all knew what we wanted), and made the prices up as he went along ..... no matter, it all seemed reasonable. The crazy fool then brought out the steaks on a giant hob type thing for us to check they were done enough for us, good photo opportunity! He used his 6 year old son as a waiter as well! Great meal (cafe express its called).
Gray x
Hostels in Malargue are quite sparce so we ended up sharing a room with 2 DISGUSTING men! They left man hair all over the bathroom, snorted and grunted all throught the night and one day we came back from a day on the slopes to find they had left us an unwelcome present ...... a pair of white skidded pants on the floor!! Bleurghhhh!!! We nicknamed them the Neanderthal men!!
Lynny xx
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Nick and Sally
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We have hijcked you blog and we´re sending it to our friends aswell - keep it up and have fun in Peru!