crossing into Argentina

from 28 Oct 2006

We decided to leave Chile today. We will come back and see it properly another time, including the south, patagonia etc. So our bus to Mendoza Argentina left at 2pm.

We thought we were going to miss it, but actualy got there on time after lingering around the central markets for too long. Particularly fascinating, though slightly creepy were some shell fish that looked like live birds trying to escape their nest-tiny beaks coming out and moving from side to side.

The bus was pretty flash. we had been told about the beautiful busses, and sure enough it had loads of leg room, a set of headphones for each passenger to watch the dvds they put on, and a waiter brought is drinks and snax!

As we climbed into the mopuntains the views were truely impressive. I was most impressed with the Portillo skifield which had a ski run actualy going over us as we drove thru mini tunnels! THe ski lift to get back up was also overhead and we went thru the thirty something switch backs. I couldn´t help but think how fun it would be to sit up there and wave at people in cars below.(or maybe throw snowballs at them..)

The border crossing was easy enough, it actualy felt a bit silly being lined up as they searched our bags though.

Upon arriving in Mendoza around 8pm i realised i had been robbed! Nothing at all major, just a couple af carribenas that had been hanging on the side of my pack. But i was pretty pissed off. I had fully expected to be robbed at some point over here, but crabs just seemed petty. And the only plcae they could have gone missing was at the border as the guards put it thru the x ray. I guess i was more surprised than anythig-this was supposed to be the ´safe´part of our journey..