Bikes and Wine, what a combo!

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Got into Mendoza at 9am and it was SSSSSSSSOOOOOO cold! After my intial map reading skills deserting me (Iblame the lack of sllep on the bus) we finally reach our hostel. Its called Campo Base as a lot of tours to the highest mountain in South America Anacongua are run from here. The Hostel is described as very lively in the guide book, we go with an open mind.

Whilst waiting to checkin I start speaking to a Brazillian chap called Alan, as it was still early we decide to hit the Bodegas (wineries) that Mendoza is famous for that afternoon. We invite Alan along for the day and set off in search of the bus stop. Alans spanish proved invaluable when tring to locate the bus and where to get off. An hour or so later we arrive in the wine region and its a beaut day! Walking down to the Bodega recomended to us was so nice... The tour was already underway when we reached "Bodega Rural" it was in Spanish so proved interesting, not that wine making is rocket science. At the tour we bumped into Tom (from Zimbabwe) and Eddie (from Oz) they had been doing volunteer work in Peru and Tom provided me with all the best surfing spots. Gem being her usual self got chatting about wine to the host and blagged a free wine tasting at a wine bar in Mendoza.

After the tour it quickly became apparent that if we were to see many more Bodegas we needed a more efficient form of transport.Thankfully there were "Bikes and Wine" close to hand... Gem and I scooted along at a resonable pace, unfortunately old Alan wasnt fairing as well! We bumped into Tom and Eddie as we went, but so many of the bodegas were closed! After chatting to a couple of American blokes I found out about a small family run bodega not on the map.

The 5 of us together setoff in search of this, getting chased by dogs and seeing a dog eating another were some of the sights along the way. We eventually found it and it was def worth it, we learned about the wine and were tasting it all straight out of the vat. After all there time and tasting we felt obliged to buy a bottle for 5 pesos (a pound). We carried on looking for an Olive grove and a chocolate factory, the chocolate liquer was delicious! Brought the bikes back late, reckon it was Alans fault! The public transport is so cheap but I didnt have change so Gem and I ended up not paying, oops!

After a shower and change, we headed off for the Vines of Mendoza for our free wine tasting. It was amasing and we drank a good bit of premium Red, mainly Malbecs. Bumped into Tom and Eddie again and also got chatting to an Ozzi couple, we all went out for dinner and I had the best steak since being in Argie, it was formidable!

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