On The Road

---

Our battered suitcases were piled on the sidewalk again; we had longer ways to go. But no matter, the road is life. “ ( Jack Kerouac. On The Road.)



One of the great pleasures of the world is the road trip. Songs have been sung and books have been written about the primeval pleasure which is The Road Trip! Stress is the main result of this pleasure. If you want to test your relationship? Get in a car and traverse many a kilometer and see if you are still conversing at the other end.

Picking up our car at Buenos Aires airport we head west, the car is small and the journey is long but this adds to the adventure like one of the early sailors in their small crafts.

Driving through the flat Gaucho country with its pampas grass and stately homes we stop for lunch at ? the streets are deserted and shops closed it is siesta time: 1-30pm to 5pm. What a great custom, you have heard of mad dogs and Englishman go out in the midday sun, well not here not even in the winter sun.

After a hearty lunch of red meat and potatoes, topped off with red meat and potato chips. We cruise down the freeway to Rossario, the birth place of the Argentina flag. The roads here are like the US, two lane freeways, fantastic. The countryside is flat farming land, very dry at this time of the year, yet good stubbles of maize and sorghum grazed by cattle and the odd sheep.

After dodging the Argentina traffic we find our abode and settle down to a peaceful repose. After more red meat and an odd cerveza.

Day 2(sounds like dear diary) we head for Alta Gracia, the home of Che Guarvera. What a guy! Have you heard of him? Keith has fallen in love with him and wants to model himself on him, only problem is he doesn’t know Castro that well and can’t grow a goatee but can ride a motorbike.

Visited his house than stayed in a hotel which seemed like a scene from dirty dancing. 60s grandeur, a place where time has stayed still.

Day 3. The landscape has now changed and rugged mountains have appeared in our sight. Winding through The Central Sierras Sue claims she has spotted a condor, her claim strongly refuted by her fellow travelers, but stopping the car, on a sharp curve in the road, we alight to watch these glorious creatures effortlessly hang in the air surveying their domain.

Descending down the other side of the mountains we enter a fertile valley where we lunch by a stream and continue on through villages until at the other end rejoin the freeway and the endless plains again until we reach San Luis where we bed down for the night.

Day 4. Off to Mendoza, the major wine growing area of Argentina, Argentina is the 5^th biggest wine grower in the world and 80%!o(MISSING)f the vineyards are grown in Mendoza. We are staying at a vineyard 20kms outside Mendoza all very nice with vines out the front and snowcapped Andes Mountains for a back drop. Maybe I am becoming a touch blasé with the scenery of South America but does not quite cut it for me. Maybe it is a little too nice?

Day 5. Today we have decided to move on, we were going to spend a couple of relaxing days here and sleep, eat, write and romance but what the hell the mountains are calling and I wonder what is over that next hill. The Chile border is buried deep in the Andes and we have decided, rightly

Or wrongly, to go and find it.

What a great decision! Following the Mendoza River upstream, beside the old railway line, through tunnels carved through the cliffs, we ascend slowly but surely from 750m to 2500m. Red, yellow, grey, black and green stony mountains rise from the road with a dusting of snow on top as we follow the valley. Finally reaching Uspallata were we lunch on grilled goat washed down with local Marlbec red wine.

After lunch a decision is made to take a short cut back to Mendoza over the Mountains. Like a Shakespearean play. Always a great adventure tinged with some sorrow.

The road has turned to dirt as we climb another 500m through the scrubby bush to the top and wind and weave our way around the hairpin bends, landslides, narrow gapes sheer drops till we reach the plains of Mendoza.

Arriving back in Mendoza we are staying at The Hyatt for our last night on tour. The lodgings are quite adequate fitting for the end of our trip.

What a journey! we have seen unbelievable scenery, witnessed funny, sad, unusual, inspiring and downright weird people. Conquered our inadequacies but most of have become consumed by the sheer joy of that emotion called friendship. If you haven’t tasted it yet you won’t find it on the shelves it can only be acquired through the roller coaster of life. A ticket is necessary and most of all you must climb on board too share the ride.

O

---