Hotel Portico Del Valle Uspallata

... winter gloves.

We stopped to take a walk into the glaciers once we neared the border and let Salina run around in the snow for the first time. She was ecstatic - having a blast running back and forth slinding in the snow - see the video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=2Qmw3n0Ws94




Once we got that energy and rest from the cold, windy drive we got back on the road ...

... tombs or should I say mausoleums are amazing! You can reserve your resting place here only if you are incredibly rich or have done something dramatic or special for the country. There were tombs of conquistadors and generals and presidents and dictators. Some small and modest and others ginormous and totally over the top. It was a labyrinth of concrete structures that was in a way a bit freaky. You could look into ...

... right next to you... especially, when she's been wearing the same ratty clothes for weeks on end and after the bike accient. So me scarred with hole-y shirts, next to the beautiful Argentine women? There's no comparison... booo...] Mendoza is a very chilled town/city with loads of nice parks/plazas to relax, watch a street performer, drink mate and just generally chill out. You can tell that Chile and Argentina have a ...

... at deep discounts following the Argentinian economic crisis of 2001. Our hostel, as per Mendoza standards, is very nice. Pool, attached restaurant lounge, BBQ pit, and a great neighborhood all make it one of the nicest we've been to. After check-in we searched for a wine tour, only to find out it is a holiday weekend in Argentina. Day of the Virgin is traditionally a time for families put up their Arbol de Feliz (Christmas ...

... finally salary as a pension. What he then went on to point out was that their salary is made up of extras and their basic salary is the one that is used to calculate the pension.. This means that they may only finish up with 40% or less. Anyway, teachers strikes seem to be prevalent. Just a thought, but what are the odds on 2 watches getting flat batteries at the same time. Mine packed up 2 wks into the trip and Dru's, 3 wks.

... that periodically channels water down every street in open drains *hazard for blind, drunk, or blind drunk people*. One day we treated ourselves for a 'tendor libre' - an all you can eat meat BBQ - yum! They don't really do veg here but the best meat ever so when in Rome... One the last day we went horse riding in the foothills of the Andes. Tim's horse was called 'gringo', a Spanish word for tourists from North America, because it had fair hair. The morning ...

... compared to me. I did pick it up pretty quickly and didnīt fall over on the first few runs. Once I got some confidence we moved on to slope C which was longer and steeper. After this it got more difficult (at least for me) as we moved on to slope B, a blue run. After falling over a few times we had a quick break for lunch and headed back to slope B before getting on the chair lift all the way up to slope G. We skied along the blue run down to the bottom which ...

... who managed not to get wet. Marcos managed to step on all the slippery stones and fall in). The best part of the trek was walking back and bumping into a dog race organised by the local village. It seems they do this most Sundays as a hobby. It was great to see how they made the dogs run by chasing a piece of cloth tied onto a string on a static bicycle. The video "Dog Racing in Uspallata 2" shows they guy at the bicycle.

... was great fun, and we are looking forward to try it again in a different place. The level was just sufficient for beginners with 2.5 level water, which impresses at moments. A level 3 might be better next time round. Marcos and Ed were at the front of the boat leading the rowing, but were so involved in chatting about South America that the guide usually needed to shout the instructions a couple of times, much to his frustration. After the wet ...

... having anything of any of the above and just took his guitar and kept escaping to the garden not giving a **** about what was going on. In any case the hostel is a good place, mostly clean and friendly staff (just dont leave valuables around...isnt that the rule everywhere anyway!) No problem getting on the bus given we bought the tickets the day before, but the early one did drop all the workers of the different campings, hotels, and rafting places ...