Our pace has slowed somewhat here in Mendoza. Amy wasn’t well again today but we are also starting to get the hang of Argentinean time. Basically, things are open from 8am till about midday. Then they close until about 4 or 5pm and remain open until 8 or 8.30pm. The streets only really come alive with people out and about after 6pm and most people wouldn’t head to dinner till 9ish. It is taking us some time to get used to but it is actually a really nice way to do things.
We had a very slow start to the day, taking our time to get up and ready, having another sugar filled breakfast (they do like their sweets here, we have yet to come across a breakfast food item without sugar in it) and then doing some planning for the coming weeks of the trip. All that done, we headed out for some lunch and to have another go at posting our box home.
Lunch was great, freshly made local hamburgers. They had plenty of salad on them, along with egg, good beef patties and of course ham and cheese. Everything in Argentina that isn’t sugar filled seems to have ham and cheese on it – actually we have even seen sweet glazed croissants filled with ham and cheese. It is really good ham and cheese, but there is only so much jamon y queso one can eat without getting mighty sick of it.
We then had another go at the post office, thinking third time lucky. From our previous trips we had worked out which type of post office we had to find, we had secured the appropriate box and had the right documentation. It was even a week day and in the usual business hours and having asked three separate people for directions and times we were feeling confident. Only problem, apparently you can only send international parcels between 8am and 12.30! Honestly, who could possibly have thought it would be this difficult to send a parcel!!!!
We headed back towards our hostel (carrying the f*ing box) deciding to stop for cake. While we had sampled a good selection of cakes at the market the other day, we had never managed to actually sit down in a café and try one of the fantastic selection they have on display. We chose three gorgeous looking pieces, but they didn’t really live up to the expectation. Unfortunately, they just like things here oversweet, it was all a bit much.
Heading back to the hostel we stopped in at a very small museum. It is basically dedicated to General San Martin who was instrumental in the battles between Argentina and Chile about the border. Much of the action took place from Mendoza. It was really interesting, particularly getting close up views of the ornate uniforms and the old weapons. Then Amy (who was ahead of me and Anna) said she wasn’t going into the next section without us because it was too creepy.
The next section was a series of life size dioramas, filled with appropriately costumed figures. However the figures were basically made of rag filled stockings with masks and wigs on. This meant they were life sized but somehow had an incredibly creepy atmosphere. The first one was a chapel scene complete with a bleeding Christ figure which made it even creepier. It was a little too like a horror movie, so we passed through reasonably quickly.
We dropped Amy back at the hostel and Anna and I headed off into town. We bought bus tickets for tomorrow then went in search of food. We had a bit of a wander and a detour and as a result, we ended up at the local central markets. They were fantastic, filled with stalls selling fresh veggies, fresh meat and fish, delicatessen items and a range of cooked things. We chose chicken quarters which were roasted over coals and served with chips or salad. There was some confusion as Anna and I tried to convey that we wanted to take the food away which lead to a bit of delay but we eventually got it back to the hostel and it really was an absolutely delicious meal, one of the best. I think we might be back there for lunch tomorrow!
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