Day 172: Mendoza

This morning I got up early and joined a tour through the Andes. When I got into the small bus, I realized that this was a Spanish tour... I was the only English speaker on the bus, which was filled with old people. Luckily, the guide spoke English and was willing to speak to me in English after he got done talking to the rest of the group.

The drive up into the Andes was amazing on the N7 Route. We first made a stop in some small town. I am not sure why we stopped here, we were only about an hour into the drive, and the town was completely shut down because it was so early in the morning; I just walked around in the freezing cold until the bus departed again.

When then stopped off at what they called a ski resort, which is what I would call a hill with a ski lift on hit. It was rather amusing.

The drive was really beautiful. You can see how a glacier had carved out a strong wall in the past and the spread of various colors in the mountains' rock looked like a paint factory had exploded; reds and browns, bright white snow, and even bright yellow sulfur rock. As we drove through the mountain valley, we ducked through multiple tunnels that took us through parts of the mountains and hugged the mountain snow Mendoza river the whole way up. On the other side of the river was the Transandine Railway, which is no longer in service because of landslides and lack of funding and stretches from Mendoza, Argentina to Los Andes, Chile. I would have loved to have taken that train into Chile.

We made our next stop at a glacier. I am not sure if it was actually a glacier or not, I think it is just what the guide wanted us to think. I didn't see what you would  picture when you think of a glacier. Regardless, it was an amazing view of the snow capped Andes.

We then made a stop for lunch at an old railroad station town that used to be a popular stop for travelers with a population of 200. After an avalanche that destroyed parts of the town and railroad, the population now stands at 7. This avalanche was no ordinary avalanche, it looks like a missile hit the mountain and blew a quarter of it up with large boulders spread throughout the mountainside and part of the town.

(Notice how the wind has carved away at the snow)

After we had lunch, we made our way back to Mendoza, stopping off at a bridge that was built by the Andes Army. This bridge is all that remains of a fort Picheuta Small Fort where the first battle was fought between the Andes Army and the Realist Army.

After visiting the bridge, we stopped off at the Puente Del Inca, which used to be a establishment of sorts that was famous for the healing powers that the waters contain because of the mix of thermal waters and the high concentration of sulfur. Above this formation, is the Incan Church, which used to be right next to a famous hotel, which was destroyed by an avalanche in 1965. Seems like this area isn't too lucky. The Puente was pretty cool, because it is an old building that was built into the sulfur rocks and the rocks look like they are dripping away like the hot wax of a candle.

I ended up getting back to the hostel late that night, making it back just in time for dinner. The hostel put on a BBQ for everyone; I can't say no to Argentine beef and wine!. They had the meating cooking outside, while we socialized over some Malbec in the dining area. It is amazing that they can take a slab of meat, so absolutely nothing is added to it aside from cooking it on their outdoor open air grill with coals, and produce some of the best meat I have ever had (yes, no marinating, spices, or juices). After four rounds of beef and countless of wine, believe it or not, we had had our fill.