A Ride Through the Andes

Yesterday, we had quite the once-in-a-lifetime experience! We left Santiago in the morning on a double decker bus to Mendoza, Argentina. To get there, we had to cross the Andes Mountains, some of the highest in the world, on a two-lane road. It was by far the best bus ride I've ever been on. Within an hour, we were climbing up, eventually getting to 3,000 meters. To give you some reference, Mount Marcy, the Adirondacks highest mountain, is 1,629 m. We were still low compared to some of the giants surrounding us on every side, including Mount Aconcagua, the range's highest peak (6,962 m).

It was both a beautiful and scary experience, as some of the roads did not have a wide shoulder as we were making some very sharp turns. I was lucky enough to snag a front seat on the second deck, so I could see over the ledge as we were climbing!

Once we arrived in Mendoza last night, we took a walk to the largest square in the city and ate dinner at a wonderful restaurant. Our waiter, Mario, treated us like family. He told us poems, took pictures with us, and even let me go inside the kitchen to rub elbows with our chefs.

Today, we went to three places: a local winery, an olive oil factory and a delicacies producer. I'm going to talk more about these three places tonight! Hasta luego!