Wine and Dine

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From Valparaiso I headed back into Argentina to the city of Mendoza. I left on an early morning bus to cross The Andes. I was told by some friends that the bus ride would be unforgettable. They were right. Outside of Santiago, the road leading to the Andes crossing is lined by trees and rivers. The Andes are gorgeous. Following the road twisting and turning we climbed high into the mountains to a tunnel that would lead us to the Argentinian side. We passed mountains covered with snowcaps. The immense features of The Andes are breathtaking. The phrase "The grass is greener on the other side" defenitely applies for The Andes. The Chilean side is covered with grass and blooming trees while the Argentinian side is filled with red stone mountains.

I met up with Etan in Mendoza. It was good to see a familiar face. I had been looking forward to Mendoza because I had heard of all of the great wine that came from the region. Seventy percent of Argentinian wine is produced in Mendoza. Our arrival to the city was perfect. It was the start of the Vendimia Wine Festival, celebrating Mendozas first harvest of the season. It was a bit of an eye opener. When you think of wines and vineyards you usually think of a small town in the hills. The city of Mendoza is the second or third largest city in Argentina.

For two nights Etan and I went out to taste wines. For $20 pesos, more or less $6US, you were given tickets for 8 flights of wine. Each flight was about half a glass. In two nights we must have drank at least 20 cups. Malbec after Malbec after Malbec. It was amazing.

During the day we rented bikes from our friend Mr. Hugo. To anyone reading this considering doing a bike tour of the vineyards in Mendoza, do it with Mr. Hugo!! Not Bikes and Wines!! We road around to vineyards tatings wines, chocolates and liquors throughout the day. It was amazing. How could it get any better?

I´ll tell you how! So far, I can say this trip has been all about timing. Our last night in Mendoza we saw Manu Chao play in front of a packed football stadium. Thousands of Argentinian fans chanting with so much energy. More energy than I had every experience at any other concert. It really was an incredible night.

There was only one day in Mendoza that will always leave a sour taste in my mouth. Etan and I decided to find some hiking the area. We were told to head to Potrerillos. We arrived by bus, walked around and realized there was nothing there. After hitchiking a couple of kilometers away from town we hiked through some hills. It really was nothing special. We hitchhiked back to town and decided we would leave on an earlier bus. The 5:15 bus did not let us on because it was "full". The 6:30 bus never came. The 7:15 bus never came. It was not until about 8:50 when a bus finaly showed up. There were about twenty of us waiting by then. Etan and I pushed ourselves to the front, showed our tickets and marched onto the bus. We found our seats on the floor as all of the seats were taken. About fifteen others were not allowed onto the bus. Even now, I wonder what happened to them. Whether or not another bus came. They were left in the dark, in the middle of nowhere.

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