Argentina

This weekend I travelled to a city in Argentina called Mendoza. The trip was different from others in a lot of ways not only because it took place in a different country. It was mainly different because I did not travel with gringos (Americans) but with Chileans. This weekend we had Monday free because of it being a holiday and so there was a group of Chileans from my volunteer work who decided to go to Mendoza and invited me along.

Obviously I was thrilled to have the privilege of spending a long weekend with Chileans, speaking Spanish, and hanging with a group that for once wasn’t tourists. The trip to Mendoza is both beautiful and a bit dangerous because one has to cross the Andes and this involves narrow roads and crazy turns at ridiculously high altitudes. At the top of the mountain range we had to get out of the car and go through customs.

Chileans love to go to Mendoza because it is known to be both very beautiful as well as cheap. For example, we found a hostel for all of us for about ten dollars a night. In addition the food is incredible and also very inexpensive. Usually when tourists and Chileans go to Mendoza they make a point of eating meat every night because it is said that the red meat in Argentina is the best in the world. After trying the beef there my first night I am prone to agree – I can say that it was one of the best meals I have ever eaten in my entire life. When I asked why the meat is so different, the Argentine waiter told me that it is because the cows only eat the natural grasses in the valleys in Argentina and because the meat that is served in restaurants is always fresh, never more than one day old.

During this weekend I felt like I was on vacation instead of feeling like a tourist. We slept in, walked around and explored the city, talked a lot over coffee and meals, went to the movies and generally just hung out. I feel lucky that they invited me along and the more that I am in Chile the more I realize how hard it is going to be to leave now that I am feeling more at home, getting accustomed to the language, and making new friends.