Mendoza

(May 3-6)

From Buenos Aires we went straight to Mendoza with a night bus. On the way to the bus station, a couple tried to rob us, with the usual trick of the pigeon shit. It works like this: they throw something white-ish at you from behind, like shaving soap, to make you believe a flock of  birds (pigeons?) shitted on you. They do not go easy on it, you get a lot of shit/soap. Then a woman comes and tells you that you are dirty and she offers to clean you with a towel and some water. She will barely clean some of the white stuff, but likely it will clean your pockets. This is an old trick and the antidote is easy enough: just do not stop, keep on walking. We luckily realized what was happening and we just moved on to the station, where we finally cleaned the dirt. Unfortunately I did not manage to clean the stain from my jacket. God knows what was that white stuff. 

Mendoza was a wine break, for us. Smaller and much more relaxed than Buenos Aires, it offers a few outdoor excursions and wine tasting tours. We got a bike and did a couple of vineyards with it, Norton and Bonfanti. I liked the second tour much better. But the real highlight was the lunch in this wine region. Finally, after one month in Argentina, I managed to have a meal with character. It is called Mario, I mean I actually do not know how the place is called. For that matters I do not even know if it has a name. What I can tell you is that the place is just in front of the Norton vineyards entrance. You will likely not notice it, if you do not know that it exists (we were recommended by our hostel staff). The place does not even have a tiled floor, it is very simple. No menu, just one or two entries heating up on the fireplace. We went for a meet stew and it was great. I mean, the taste was simple enough, but it seemed so genuine after one month of anonymous meat dishes with potatoes. Great, it made me feel better. Ok, the bottle of wine helped, as well. I would have been happy with the bill even without eating, just for the atmosphere. 

I was so envious of Mario's hat.