So from San Juan we had the most awesome drive ever. We journeyed North, then West and finally South (deliberately so that we could drive through this incredible Valley). The mountains were enormous, some of them snow capped and very dry, shades of grey, green and reds. The Valley below was lush and green and went on for ever. Our road ran along this stretch and for hours we saw nobody. When a car did finally pass everyone waved as if to say, "Hello lonesome traveler". At one point we stopped the car and Nigel decided he would try and climb one of the mountains. Half and hour later, he had been out of my sight for a while and I was starting to panic, he popped his head up and waved from about 100 meters up!!!
Our journey ended in Mendoza, a big city famous for it`s vineyards. It unfortunately took us an hour and a half to find our hostel, as who every build the city ran out of street names and just used the same ones over again. So our hostel on the corner of 'Juan B Justo' and 'Avenue St Martin' could have been in a number of locations!! Needless to say, me being to map reader got a fair bit of abuse for the unfathomable system!!
A couple of lazy days were topped off with a brilliant cycling tour of a few vineyards and little artisans out in the countryside. We were touring with, among others, a group of young English guys from Barnes (!) who, at one of the stops, having devoured a few shots of a special brew Absynth were a bit daft on their clapped out bikes!
From Mendoza we took the bus over the border to Chile, where we have relaxed in Santiago for a couple of days before our flight tonight. New Zealand HERE WE COME........!
