Our room at Estancia Peuma Hue. The name, in a mix of Spanish and native Mapuche, meaning something like “Ranch of Dreams,” or “Sweet Dreams Ranch.” It fits.After four days of ribeyes, Malbecs, and empanadas, we are now at a plant-based, gluten-free health resort. It’s time.A quick post-lunch kayak tour around Lago Gutiérrez. Once we established that I should steer (and paddle), it was smooth sailing.
We were sad to leave Mendoza this morning, but we both agreed it was the perfect amount of time; another full day of food and wine would have been too much. Dinner at Brindillas was the perfect cap to that leg of the trip. From the plane we could see Aconcagua, South America’s highest peak.
We found an amazing coffee shop in Bariloche, then drove to the Estancia and have been appreciating the setting, right in the middle of Argentina’s oldest national park, Parque Nacional Nahuel Huapi. Tomorrow we’re looking forward to hiking in the morning and horseback riding in the afternoon.
🚲🏔️🤙🏼 Biking along the paved and protected bike path in Mendoza, overlooking vineyards and the Andes🍋🌞😎 The most refreshing and tart lemonade featuring fresh mint, a poolside treat to cool off after our ride🍽️🫛😋 Potato pillows at Brindillas, one of many delicious courses we enjoyed
Qué tal?! Drew let me take over his blog today, our last in Mendoza before we head to Bariloche.
After two wonderful days of delicious food and wine, we decided to have a more active day. We rented bikes and, despite their janky handlebars, limited braking capacity, and wobbly frames, enjoyed a leisurely ride throughout sunny southern Mendoza. Investment in the area is evidenced by many new construction sites, mostly new gated communities and some new wineries. I expect if we are able to return to Mendoza someday, it may look quite different.
We have enjoyed so much good food and wine already on the trip. The most unique elements of the cuisine here are the fresh herbs, fruits, and vegetables. Most all are picked from onsite gardens or restaurant-owned farms. Though the oregano oil (with tomato ice cream) at La Zonda and fresh basil topping (over risotto) at Casarena were special, the simple mint sprig in our lemonades may prove most memorable. Perfection after a hot bike ride!
Our Mendoza experience concluded with another world class restaurant, Brindillas. The ten-course tasting menu offered a wine pairing, which Drew did. The chef worked hard to modify each dish to accommodate my Celiac, including GF table side bread. The space was simple. The food was marvelous. Best still was the company.
Inside our hotel, Entre Cielos.The cellar at the first winery, Alta Vista. In the adjacent room is the owner’s private collection, a walk-in cage full of dust-covered bottles. He visits from France only a few times a year.The second stop, Cruzat, does only sparkling wines. This will not be a rosé—the pink is from Pinot noir grapes, but the machine behind it will clarify the color after the first fermentation. We did a blind tasting later and this was my favorite.
Our guide Eugencia is a native Mendocina, and has been in wine and hospitality her whole life. She explained to us everything about Mendoza’s history, the winemaking process, and the regional irrigation (all meltwater from the mountains, carefully rationed by land parcel). And we explained to her what is the big deal with Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce (“… kind of like if Messi dated Eva Perón”). We finished with another amazing lunch with pairings at the final stop, Casarena.
Tomorrow we have a free day, and may try to rent bikes. There’s a brand new protected bike path running from our hotel to downtown Mendoza, and passing a bunch of wineries; I’ve been jealous of all the cyclists we’ve seen!
Giant oak door at our hotel, Mio Buenos Aires.View into a mausoleum, Cementerio de la Recoleta.Steaks at Don Julio. A must-visit.
Our first impression of BA is of vibrant energy. The people are friendly and open; the food and nightlife are exciting and you can see tango dancers in the streets. People LOVE Messi and Evita. We had amazing coffee at Tónico Cafe and walked around the central business / tourism district.
But, politics and the economy are top of mind for everyone, with inflation still very high (20% per month). US dollars are in demand, and tipping with US bills is appreciated everywhere. Memories of the Junta’s political violence are still fresh, just a generation ago. Protests against the current government are not going on now, but will return once summer ends. Still, overall the city is lively and the mood is positive.
Tomorrow we fly to Mendoza, and we’re both super excited for lunch at Zonda Cocina de Paisaje, which some friends recently visited and recommended very highly.
Our honeymoon will not be shot on iPhone. At least not exclusively. My sister-in-law lent us her camera! She’s a photographer and is letting us use one of her old cameras on our trip. I say “old,” but it’s a professional-grade camera in great shape. We’re super grateful for her generosity, and excited to be amateur photographers during our travels.
She also gave us a brand new strap and a fresh SD card. We’ll pick up another SD card, so we’ll have 256 GB to fill, and I’ll be posting photos here during and after our trip.
We asked what we owed her for everything, and she laughed and said, “You owe me one camera, one strap, and one SD card. Just take care of everything and have fun.” We will.
It’s good to be in New York. Years ago, I was traveling here often enough to start keeping a MetroCard in my wallet year-round. The card is so useful to have on hand, and so noticeably unnoticeable in its thinness, that I was never tempted to remove it from my wallet.
These days I’m in NYC less frequently, but still I haven’t considered ditching my MetroCard. It’s not only the inconvenience of buying a new one for each trip. When I open my wallet and pull out that blue and yellow card, it still gives me a little jolt of happy energy to be here, to know my way around, and to feel familiar, if not native.
All transit systems have issues, but for me New York’s subway works great, and is so far ahead of transit in Chicago and other US cities that I never take it for granted. Nearly every trip I’ve ever taken on the NYC subway has been to or from someplace exciting. Being here it still feels like an adventure. When I’m not here, seeing the MetroCard in my wallet reminds me of what I love about the city, makes me look forward to coming back.
sabbatiblog 