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Published: August 6th 2007
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The Long Road There
But with Nelson's commentary, the journey flew by. I know this is going to be a bit of a shock to you all, but we have become rather fond of Argentine wine! Mendoza is probably the most famous part of the country, but right on our doorstep is the lesser known Cafayate region. We thought we'd give it a go for the weekend and had such a good time, this blog is going to be spread over a few entries!
To get there we had two options, one to take the bus, and the other to hire a remis or taxi from opposite the teleferico station. The cost for the former was around 50 pesos, whilst the latter, including pick-up from home, a running commentary and photo stops whenever we wanted, was 90 pesos. We decided to travel in Nelson's Peugeot rather then El Indio's bus! What a good choice it was.
Nelson arrived half an hour early but, rather than disturb us at 9.30am, he sat patiently outside the house until we were ready. We were soon on our way and the first short stop was outside the town of Mercedes. It is famous locally for its religious carvings and a huge wooden carving of Christ
on the Cross sits at the entrance to the town. It's a bit bizarre but worth the photo.
A bit further along the road we came across a bunch of gauchos in full regalia on their way to a 25 May parade. Nelson stopped them and asked if we could take photos. They were happy to oblige.
Next up were the numerous tobacco plantations. Some of them are very traditional and hang the tobacco leaves over the fence to dry. It was quite extraordinary.
Soon we reached the deserted mining outpost of Alemania. In Spanish that means Germany, but Nelson didn't think there were any German connections there at all. It was a beautiful spot though, and our entry into the spectacular Quebrada de Las Conchas. This valley of reds, ochres and browns was a feast to the eyes. Nelson stopped several times for us to wonder at the scenery and we decided it would be a good idea to visit again on an excursion from Cafayate.
Once you get to Cafayate itself, you soon get an idea of the amount of vineyards which surround the place. They are everywhere! Nelson wanted to take us to
You're Blocking the Road!
Friendly gauchos on their way. one but we wanted to get into our hostel room and go exploring for ourselves in the afternoon. So that's what we did. It was great having our own private guide and chauffeur who ensured we arrived feeling fresh and raring to go.
Our room at Hostal El Balcon wasn't ready though. Instead of making us wait, they sent us off to their sister hostel, El Angel. It was much quieter and cheaper so we don't quite understand the business sense in doing this. Who were we to complain though.
But complain we did, in the evening, when the temperature dropped dramatically and we were VERY cold. There's no natural gas and therefore no heating in most places. Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!
Anyway, it wasn't too bad really. It's amazing what a few blankets, some warming locro and a bottle of red can do for the soul!
The town of Cafayate was lovely, nestled at the foot of the mountains and overflowing with fine wine. Such is the fame of their major product, you can even have wine-flavoured ice cream - and we did! The white Torrontes was tasty but my favourite was the red cabernet which really got
Tobacco
Trish inspects the tobacco drying in the fields. It was quite a sight to see the traditional methods still in use. my tastebuds going!
So now you can look forward to further weblogs of our vineyard tours, the excursion back into the Quebrada, and our mountain trekking along the Rio Colorado. I'll get working on them soon!
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