Malbecs,Syrahs and Cabernets...Oh MY!!

No trip to Argentina would be complete without a trip up to "Wine Country": Mendoza. I only had a few days, so I signed up right away to do a tour of some of the vineyards!

First, we went to a small, family-owned Bodega...
Grapes, grapes, and more grapes! The cellarThe wine from this particular bodega sells for $6 in Mendoza and $60 in the US. Sigh. If only I had room in the mochila (back pack). Hello! Christmas Presents!

Then we visited a MUCH larger winery... Huge oak barrels!And more tasting...the best part!
We also visited a place that makes Olive Oil. Oh yes, and there were samples. I´m talking bread drizzled with Olive Oil and sundried tomatoes. Sarah was definately in her happy place that day.
Olive Trees.

"Nuclear-Free Zone"

Took a day trip outside of Bariloche to the "hippie" town of El Bolson. Cute little town filled with Alternative lifestyle folks who have declared it a "Nuclear Free Zone" and and "Ecological Municipality.¨
The Artisan Fair

3 days. No Escape.

I can´t believe that I forgot to mention how I got from Lima Peru to Buenos Aires, Argentina in time to meet Nil....3 days by bus. Oh yes people. You heard me right. 3 days.

Have you ever had to sit anywhere for 72 hours straight? Let alone with a bunch of A.D.D. Peruvians who are constantly screaming demands at the bus driver who can´t hear them because they are too lazy to get out of their seats...so just continue to yell. "Volume." "Movie." "Music." Ayyyyyyyyyy.

Anyway, I looked out the window on the third day to this sunset over the mountains in Chile. Made it all worth it!

A little slice of Patagonia

After Buenos Aires, I headed South to the beginning of the Patagonia region of Argentina. I originally wasn´t going to travel that far South, but I am soooooo glad that I did! There were some of the most stunning views of my entire trip.

Bariloche, Argentina

The view from my hostal balconySunsetFilled with log buildings, chocolate shops, and stunning views of snow capped mountains, Bariloche is what I have always envisioned Switzerland would look like!Mmmm. I bought some chocolate here.

Argentina is all about the wine . My second night at the hostal they had a Wine-Tasting Party where everyone brought a different bottle of wine and we sampled them all! MY favorite? The Malbec.


The next day a friend from Holland and I rented bikes and did the 30k circuit around the lakes (that sadly all used to be glaciers).


We went through a very SMALL town called Colonia Suiza (Swiss Colony). Hmmmm, so there is some Swiss influence in Bariloche. I knew it!!
OK. The telephone booth was even made out of logs. Cou ld this place get any cuter?
Best ice cream I have EVER had.

We got lost a few times. This was not the right trail and we had to walk our bikes a little. But who could complain with views like this?
Also while we were lost, we found a bridge across one of the lakes!
The most famous and EXPENSIVE hotel in all of Argentina. $450 per night. Yeah.....just passing through.

A visitor!

So, for those of you who didn´t already know, I had my first (and well, let´s be honest, ONLY) visitor to South America! Yipppeeee! Watch out Buenos Aires! Boston Nil is in the house!! I think we walked through every square inch of Buenos Aires while he was here! But vale la pena! (that was another test to see if you all have been reading my blog faithfully!)

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Playing with the birds in Parque Congreso. A dangerous game. I snickered at Nil when he didn't want to come close because he was afraid they would poop on him...and then I saw a very sad couple walking away and wiping each others shirts off.

Me making friends with the birds....
and Nil making a special friend.

Another picture from Plaza Congreso

The next day we were off to San Telmo for the weekend Antiques Fair. It was filled with amazing shops, outdoor performers, and lots of music!

Such as....a Sidewalk tango band. I´m still curious how they got the piano out there?The little puppet man... The dancing puppet man...Antique shops...Serious tango shows...And an assortmant of "special" visitors...
That night we went out for a mouth watering steak dinner with some friends, Dave from Boston and Abby from Mexico.

Maureen: I know I know I said once that I couldn't understand why you love steak so much. How they all just taste the same to me. I take it back. I take it ALL back. I also feel you might die of happiness if you came to Argentina...This was not the steak from our amazing dinner that night, but at another very good "Paradilla" (grillhouse). I had eaten steak three days in a row at that point, so opted for pasta! Typical breakfast in Buenos Aires. Media Lunas...basically really softy and chewy croissants with honey or sugar brushed across the top. Yummmmm. They are also very big on coffee. There is a little outdoor cafe on practically every corner.

Buenos Aires is covered with amazing artork and colorful murals. In a city that can seem very European, I think this gives it that distinctive latin feel...It´s just scary...very scary. How did they know he was coming?

Our day in La Boca strolling down calle Caminito. Probably the most colorful neighborhood in Buenos Aires. Taking a break to watch some tango.I don{t know if you know this about him, but Nil gets very serious when he is performing.Oh. I cannot neglect to show you a glimpse of the traffic in Buenos Aires. INSANE.Avenue 9 de Julio. Cutting down the center of the city and with something like 14 lanes, it may very well be the world's widest avenue!
Puente de la Mujer. It was designed to represent a couple dancing tango. Professional dog walker. You see these all over Buenos Aires and I really think they could give Ceasar the Dog Whisperer a run for his money. This one had about 13 dogs with him!!
And the moment you all have been waiting for. The rose-colored presedential palace where Madonna....er...Evita stood on the balcony and wowed the crowds.
Guards outside the palace.
Plaza de Mayo

I loved these old subway trains!

And of course we visited the famous Recoleta cemetary where Argentina´s richest and most elite are buried.

And this of course meant miss Evita herself!

A cool monument that opens during the day and closes in the evening like a real flower
Outside an art museum Dtriking a pose in the Botanical Gardens.We did our best to try to keep up with the pace of Buenos Aires, but maybe we are both just getting old! They don´t go out to eat dinner until 11pm or later and then go out to the bars around 2. For me, after a heavy steak dinner at 11:00 I´m pretty much comatose...so it was hard!

Just in case you forgot where you were...

This night we befriended some Brazilians and actually stayed up with everyone else until the sun rose. We were then completely useless the entire next day.