La Vida Errabunda

The sun was warm as we got off bus #10 at el camino de vino the wineries of Maipu, just outside of Mendoza. It was shaping up to a summer day, despite the fall season. Nobody in their right mind would bike from winery to winery in Napa Valley. But in Maipu and the carefree mind of Argentina, why not? We rented our bikes with baskets before noon, and started off with map in hand and plan in mind. Our first winery included free wine. The wine was perhaps the worst thing to ever to touch my lips; I don't think it was even worth being free. But the winery was pretty and included a tour of fabcrica de vino wine factory. Copa gratis In the dry desert of Mendoza, olive grow aplenty. The olive oil farm we went to included not only plenty of delicious oils and tapenades, but also liqours. We tried some absinthe, which brought tears to eyes and cleared sinuses. Absinthe flames We road the long journey (about 8 km) up to Di Tommaso, a beautiful family-owned winery....

Cielos con sol, alergias malas y muchas fuentes. Sunny skies, bad allergies and many fountains. Our Media Trip to Mendoza was part of our program, meaning Carolina was coming with us, a nice hotel, and planes. Oh, the luxurious ways of traveling. We landed in the desert of Mendoza in early afternoon. It hardly ever has rain, which makes it perfect for growing the Malbec grapes. It was a clear day, but not refreshing. As soon as we got to the hotel, we already noticed problems with our allergies. The city has many trees to try and help the problem, but our city bodies just couldn't handle all the fall air. After check-in and a rest, we went to the media conglomerate for a tour and meeting, Diario Uno. It is made up of a daily newspaper, an online version, a TV station and a radio station. We discussed the media climate in Mendoza, which is relatively free of the controlling government advertisements. It was the most zen building I have ever seen for a newsroom and very pretty...

Within two days, it was a perfect contrast of city and country life in Argentina. On Sunday, my family and I enjoyed a few of the many ferias around the city. Shopping, eating, and enjoying the summer weather (thought it's supposedly fall). A city day meant a trip to the Recoleta Cemetery, just a few blocks from my apartment. My family didn't understand why I insisted we go, until they saw the beauty of the place that holds thousands of the wealthiest Argentinian's bodies. Wyatt even enjoyed it for a while I also wanted to my family to see Eva Duarte-Peron's final resting place. Perhaps the most famous women from Argentina ever, the country still has a love affair with her, as the fresh flowers, rosaries, and prays showed on her small mausoleum. Eva's tomb Dinner meant one thing: la carne . It was time my parents experienced the legendairy (yes, that is a pun) meat. For any tourist, a necessary stop is La Cabrera. After ordering th...

Well, hello parents! My family landed Thursday morning, and our activities started on Friday. As grand master planner and main Spanish speaker, I was in charge of navigating, translating, and relaying the funny moments (my mother laughs, looks at me, and then asks what was funny). La Reserva Ecologia is an oasis on the edge of the city, next to Puerto Madero. We rented some bikes and navigated the busy calles streets to the protected area. View of Reserva from parrillas de la calle street parrillas in Puerto Madero  The area was full of beautiful birds, annoying bugs, and had a cool breeze off of the Rio de La Plata . We got to ride along the ugly red river, and I told my parents the significance of the river en la historia de Buenos Aires the history of Buenos Aires. This includes the shipping port and the dumping of the bodies during the military regime. Mom and Dad at Milión, famous bar Mom and I at dinner along Puerto Madero  On Saturday, my mother a...

Everyone says it's a must go. I never expected to have reverse culture shock in Buenos Aires. Almost everyone at La Bomba de Tiempo, a drum show, was speaking English. Eighty percent were American and most of them students like ourselves. Ashley and I were out of our element; where were we? It certainly didn't feel like Argentina. But when the drummers came out, and the people around us melted away. The show happens every Monday and is an absolute blast. The music is upbeat, invigorating, and easy to dance to. The guest performer was a new-age mix of Chilean and Mexican music. I could describe it as drug music, though that might be unfair to the band. It was still good, just much less energetic, more sit and ponder life. Ashley and I were getting down in the crowd, practicing our Bolivian dance moves. We were wrapped up in the drumming excitement and hitting every beat.   Great entertainment, a decent crowd, but most of all a typical Porteño exper...

Seven more weeks. It hit us hard when we came back from Buenos Aires. Seven weeks, so much to do, so little time. After grooming our bucket list, we've already knocked quite few off. Dinner at Rigoletto, an Italian restaurants very popular with locals. We got comped champagne at the end for no reason (expect for being Americans). Museo de los Desparecidos Desparecido Museum In the military regime between 1976 to 1983, more than 30,000 people are kidnapped for being "dissidents." They were tortured, killed, and there family members had no idea where they were. It's a huge dark circle in the Argentinian history, and because it's still recent, many people alive still remember there friends and family members disappearing without cause. The building where they kept the prisoners We toured the area where the military kept the people. It was extremely sobering and the intricacies of the regime was amazing. They would drug people and then take them in planes...