MENDOZA – ARGENTINA’S WINE-MAKING CAPITAL

After that long Bus-ride, we needed a good shower and good meal. Got both. Found a fantastic Italian restaurant a few blocks from our Hotel that had been recommended by a Canadian woman on our bus who lives in Mendoza, and this recommendation was confirmed by a listing in Fodor’s travel guide. Walking to the restaurant at "9:30pm", we couldn’t help but notice how light it was out still – when does it get dark around here (10pm?)? Walked into the huge restaurant and it was empty; but, staff said they were open. So we sat down, and immediately got pleasant and attentive service. Had marinated/grilled squid for appetizer, grilled Goat and an mozzarella-encrusted grilled salmon for entrée, along with a nice Sauvignon Blanc to drink. Meanwhile people started arriving during our meal and place filled up fast. Also, they were apparently conducting some kind of wine tasting, and near the end of our meal gave out free glasses of great red wine. Best of all, couldn’t believe how cheap the meal was (Mendoza is apparently far less expensive than even Buenos Aires – amazing). Next morning, we slept in a bit, but awoke in time for the included Breakfast. Then, on the direction/recommendation of a knowledgeable young lady who worked at the front desk, we took a local bus ride for 45mins. (and 50cents), to the nearby town of Maipu, where many of the Wine Bodega’s are located close to each other. There we rented Bicycles for about $10, and rode thru the countryside among the grape vineyards, from Bodega to Bodega tasting wonderful wines. During the day, we found out that we had passed thru a timezone, so Mendoza was an hour earlier, and we hadn't realized the night before. No wonder it had been so light out at "9:30pm" and restaurant had been empty until well after "10pm". Silly us. Anyway, had a Great day! In the evening we went to another really good restaurant, this time a quaint and quirky Spanish Tapa’s style place. Another wonderful and cheap meal! Next morning, it was back to our travels, catching an 8:30am international bus, west through the Andes Mountains (a bit hair-raising of a ride), across the border (and immigration) into Chile, arriving at our destination of Valparaiso Chile on schedule at about 4:30pm. This time, no problems with the bus ride – thank God!