This was to be my second visit to the Argentinian town of Mendoza, the first involved a five-day bender with some backpackers I'd met in Santiago, in which I saw nothing. I was determined that this time it would be different - I pledged to get drunk in the famous wineries in the Mendozan countryside instead.
True to my word, I found myself in the Maipu valley the next day. Myself and Estela had elected to spend a day visiting wineries and sampling pretty much everything that was on offer. Seeing as we'd be getting quite drunk, we decided the best mode of transport would be the good ol' bicycle.
These were rented from a jolly Argentinian named Mr. Hugo. In fact, he was so happy that I considered giving up life as an accountant and starting my very own bike rental business. The highlight was the winery of Familia Di Tommaso. This bodega has been producing quality wines since 1869 and you can still walk around the original wine cellars.
We were shown the original brick tanks that the wine was fermented in and walked through a storage tank that was originally used to hold up to 10,000 litres of the good stuff! I won't lie, I'm not a connoisseur, but the wines we tasted were great. They mainly do Malbec but one taster was a desert wine made from an original recipe created by the abuela (grandma) of the family.
Another good fact is that, unlike a lot of bodegas, they pick the grapes by hand instead of by machine. Thus, at harvest time, all the extended family and a few casual workers head out into the vineyard armed with nothing but large pairs of scissors. This would be fun if it wasn't 42°C in the shade.
Next up was Argentina's "second city", Cordoba. I was not overly impressed when we arrived in the middle of a thunderstorm to find that all the hostels were booked out. It turned out that there isn't really that much to do in Cordoba either except drink beer and eat asado (meat + barbecue). Life could be worse.
Outside the city there is some beautiful countryside with mountains and rivers. We spent a day exploring the countryside villages of Villa Carlos Paz and Cuesta Blanca. This is where we were introduced to the concept of the riverside beach, which they love over here. Someone buys a load of sand, tips it on the shore of a river and before you know it it's packed with Argentinians, eating ice cream and grilling various cuts of meat.
After some big city action in Mendoza and Cordoba, we felt like visiting the countryside. Estela had been recommended a little place called Mina Clavero, a riverside village with yet another riverside beach. It's a small place but big with holidaying Argentinians, so had a really lively atmosphere. It also became apparent that they don't get many international tourists - every time we spoke English people would stop what they were doing and look at us.
We spent a day hiking in the surrounding hills. Not only did this provide some lovely views, but there was also no end of freshwater streams to cool down in along the way.
The problem with streams is that I can never resist the urge to build a dam. This hindered our walking progress slightly.
That said, the main activity in Mina Clavero was eating lots of meat. I have to report that I had the best steak of my life in a Parilla restaurant in Mina Clavero. Thinking about it is making me hungry as I type...
Rounded off central Argentina with a trip to the town of Rosario. Guess what, they have a riverside beach. This one is a bit more special because the river in question is the Rio Parana, big enough to transport 300ft cargo ships, and the beach is on an island in the middle of it.
Other than that, they have a huge monument dedicated to Manuel Belgrano (liberator and designer of the Argentinian flag), wonderful ice cream and a magnificent creation called the Super Pancho.
The flag monument is spectacular - there is a tall tower with an elevator that you can ride to the top for some nice views across the city, some seriously large statues and an ever-burning torch. It is a bit over the top but a great sight nonetheless.
Ice cream is taken seriously by these people and this year saw the successful launch of the Rosario "Miss Ice cream" beauty pageant (I'm not making this up). Each girl was asked a number of questions, the last being "why do you want to be Rosario's Miss Ice cream?". Of the 16 contestants, 15 answered "because I love Rosario... and I love ice cream", as though they were the only contestant to think of this witty response (I promise I'm not making this up). The sixteenth contestant replied "because the prize is an all-expenses paid trip to Mendoza". She won!
Ahhh the Super Pancho. The backbone of this tasty snack is a standard hot dog. You then wrap the dog in crispy bacon, cover it with melted cheese, sprinkle tiny chips on top and garnish with a variety of spicy sauces. Costs about a pound. Since I discovered these, a day has not gone by without me eating one.
That was the whistle-stop tour of central Argentina. A 20-hour bus ride awaits - I'm heading North to see some waterfalls. Here are some more highlights.
It wasn't just wine tasting. I got stuck into some liquor tasting as well. This one was actually absinthe. I momentarily forgot how to ride my bicycle after the tasting session.
Why aren't all signs as informative as this?
Nice views from the mountains near Mina Clavero.
The town centre. It is a ghost town between the hours of 11am and 5pm while everyone is siesta-ing. You can eat steak at 2am though.
A nice view from the top of the mountains overlooking Mina Clavero.
The first thing I did in Rosario was rescue a cat that had got trapped on the top of some window bars. I am a friend to all cats.
Part two of the flag monument.
The flag monument by night...
...with its ever-burning torch.
The man himself - Manuel Belgrano.
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