Mendoza Photos


My introduction to Mendoza was watching a bus load of rowdy teenagers hanging out of the windows and yelling, accompanied by what sounded like gunshots, but was probably firecrackers, drive by. When they came by the second time, they were pulled over by police and made to lie face down on the ground half a block ahead of me in the direction I was walking. A nice lady came over to me and gestured that I should turn around and head back the other way and I took her advice. Several times during the days I was in town, I felt like I was in a volatile place. I saw police in riot gear on a couple of occasions. It may have had to do with some soccer game. I'm not sure.

Mendoza is home to the vaunted bike wine tour. There are several bike rental shops right next to a slew of wineries. The idea is to rent a bike and then ride from one winery to the next, getting drunk along the way. The problem is that the main road the connects the winery is quite large and full of noxious truck exhaust fumes. Some of the side roads are quite nice and felt a bit like France. Overall, it was a pleasant, but it didn't really live up to the hype.