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09.15.2005 -- ARGENTINA: Mendoza, wine country, fiesta, hostels and hiking ski country --
Argentina: Mendoza, wine country, fiesta, hostels and hiking ski country
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October 13, 2005
In our last journal entry, we were headed to Mendoza in Argentina. Well, we made it and had a great time. We mentioned that it is the wine country and the number of bodegas (vineyards) on the way into town supports that. The wine was good, but we have to say that the South African wine has been our favorite so far. Mendoza is a city with a population around 2 million, but you´d never guess it. There were few, if any, high rise buildings. There were lots of neighborhood parks and a huge park on the west side of town that was usually full of people. Mendoza is an easy city to be a tourist in... the locals are laid back and friendly and we could walk around hassle free.
We had a hard time getting used to the siestas, which are a part of life there. Many stores, businesses and schools closed around 1 pm and didn´t open again until 4-5 pm. They then stayed open until around 8-9 pm. Late nights are usual with people starting dinner around 10 pm and restaurants still hopping after 1 am. We did manage one late night staying out until 1:30 am. We were proud of ourselves and rolled into the hostal being careful not to awaken our bunkmates. Turns out, they were just waking up from a nap and were getting ready to go out on the town. We decided at that point that we were ok with being lame.
In researching Mendoza, we read that there were no problems finding accomodation except during grape harvesting time and summer holiday. Well, turns out this wasn´t the case. We arrived on a Friday afternoon and learned rooms would be scarce to come by. That weekend was not only a long weekend for Argentinians, but there was also a big medical conference in town as well as a mountain biking competition. As a result, we had to be creative to find a place to sleep. At one point, we were ready to sleep on the floor of a basement store room of one of the hostals. This room was known as "the dungeon". Turned out, they had 2 beds open up that night.
The woman, Anna, that helped us out of "the dungeon" was the girlfriend of a guy, Kevin, who helped us out with a room the night before. Both were incredibly helpful not only in finding us a place to sleep in Mendoza, but also recommending one of our favorite places so far...San Antonio Refugio. It is a rustic lodge in the Andes mountain range just west of Mendoza. The lodge is set at the base of a huge bowl of snowy peaks with a small ski area within an hour's walk up the dirt road.
The day we arrived at San Antonio was sunny with a bright blue sky - not a cloud in sight. So, as the mountains were calling, we headed out in the snow to hike one of the peaks. Crazy thing is, we started our hike at 11:30 am. Vanessa, our hostess, assured us it was ok and we would have no problems with unexpected weather. It was so good to be hiking in the mountains! We also visited the ski area for an afternoon to sit on the deck and have a couple cervezas. The ski area is old school with small ski-in / ski-out cabins and a great atmosphere. Unfortunately, the snow wasn't worth a ski.
San Antonio lodge itself was fantastic. It had bunk rooms with wood floors, lots of wool blankets and great mountain views. The water was straight off the mountains and safe for drinking from the tap. The food...wow. We paid 30 pesos each (just over $10) per night for a bed, breakfast and dinner. For an extra 10 pesos (just over $3) Vanessa would send us out with a lunch consisting of a huge, tasty sandwich, a juice box, granola bar and a piece of fruit. The place was hard to leave.
We made the transition back to Mendoza gradually with a horseback riding trip in the foothills followed by a BBQ. We stayed one more night in Mendoza at Hostal Independencia, which is owned by an Argentinian who lived in Aspen for 12 years. When he returned to Argentina, he bought the hostal and started a company that does heliskiing and expeditions in the Andes.
The next day, we got on a bus headed for Buenos Aires. We needed to catch a plane to Peru to meet up with Liz, Maggie's sister, and Lynette, a friend from Austin. Upon arrival at the bus terminal in Buenos Aires, we asked the information desk about options and costs of getting to the airport. As both the airport bus and a taxi cost about the same (45 - 50) pesos, we opted for a taxi. We made sure the driver used his meter, but also let him know we would pay no more than 50 pesos for the ride. We did notice the meter was a little sporadic and Todd noticed the driver messing with some wires at his side. We´re not sure, but we think he was the source of the sporatic meter. We didn´t pay more than 50 pesos to the cabbie, but he did get us by having us pay 2 tolls. We only ended up paying 5 extra pesos, but will be more careful upon our return to Buenos Aires. The scams are endless!
All said and done, we made it to the airport in time for our flight. Next stop...Peru.
Cheers.
-- Todd & Maggie
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