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| This family came in around 11:00PM. They were fun to talk to. The boys are 5 & 3. Check out their 2 iPads, burger, fries & Pepsi. It is summer for them, and in their culture, they take siestas and then stay up late!! |
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| We took a boat to a national park. Lots of birds to feed. |
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| We paid $20 extra to sit in the VIP section...top of the boat. It was worth every penny. Breakfast sandwich, coffee, sandwiches for lunch, dessert, wine, beer & soft drinks. We did feel as though we were in a zoo. There were only 5 of us in this section and the capacity was 45! |
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| Oh the views! The white cap mountain is a volcano. |
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| This was our English speaking guide's son, Augustine. He fell asleep and I helped hold him for a bit. He is Claire's age. |
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| Real Argentinians travel with their YERBA MATE case. It contains a gourd, mate leaves, straw and a thermos of hot water. It is a social drink and is shared by everyone in your group. We learned that you only say GRACIAS when you are on your last sip. Otherwise the cup or gourd continues around to all in your social group. |
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| Mike will try to copy this dish...curry, lamb & potatoes |
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| Really easy to get lost here. The hotel was built in the 40's. It reminds me of Yellowstone. |
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| The lounge and tea room area. Mike got a drink here last night and ran into a glass table he didn't see. He did a hop, skip and a jump and saved himself & the drink! |
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| Lemon Tart with fruit! |
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| The hike today was 7.5 miles with a 3300 foot elevation gain. |
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| Pictures just can't show how steep the trail was. |
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| Mike finds a place to put one of our cider labels. We are at the half way point. |
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| Our guide, Noel on the left, Felix from Ohio/Germany and Mike. The guys shared some yerba mata. |
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| Roca Negra....this was our half way point. Mike puts his shirt back on after trying to dry it out. He sweat through all of his clothes. At this point I was little worried that my hiking goal might kill him. His Apple watch said his highest heart rate was at 182. Maybe too high for a guy who turns 60 this month!! |
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| Made it to the "pink" house, another resting point before we head down, with a tune from Crosby/Stills/Nash to make us relax and breath deeply! |
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| Enjoyed a coffee and rest. |
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| Refugio Lopez - the pink house! |
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| Coming down was not easy either! |
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| Arrived in San Carlos Bariloche. The temperature changed from 95 F in Mendoza to 60 F in Bariloche. We signed up for a "difficult" 6 hour hike in the morning. Needless to say we are a little nervous. |
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| Acequia = Irrigation system. The Incas and Huarpes, natives north of Mendoza, used this method to transform the desert. They use water from four big rivers from the Andes Mountains. The mountains are too high and the moisture from the Pacific never make it to Mendoza. The wineries get water twice a month. Nearly ALL of the water comes from the mountains, it rarely rains & they don't like the rain! They want all of the roots to get the water, not the leaves. They also use the mountain water for drinking, bathing, gardens, yards, etc. They have strict government regulations about not wasting water. The water dept. uses helicopters to survey the area for people misusing water and a ticket can show up in the mail! |
