All the leaves are brown

It must be some kind of record. This is supposed to be a desert. Wettest desert we have ever been to. Waking up to rain for the past 3 days, our departure from Mendoza has been on hold. Each night we pack up our stuff in anticipation of an early start, only to awake to the pitter-patter of raindrops. Having learned our lesson from our last mission into the Andes, we want/need a good stretch of weather for the ride over the Andes and into Chile. No doubt the rain here is snow and wind up there. Ah well, the endless coffee here at the Chimbas hostel makes it easier to pass the rainy mornings. And of course, blogging J


So that’s been our life for the past few days. Every walk to our favourite wine store, our favourite downtown cafe, our favourite plaza, is supposed be “the last one”, but then gets repeated the next day. However, it hasn’t been a total loss. The extra time has given us a chance to do a few things. Amy blew her flip flops – a critical piece of travel gear – the other day, and this wait provided her with a chance to shop for some new ones. Having somewhat “particular preferences”, finding just the right pair is no easy task and would likely have been impossible until the next big city.


Another fortunate outcome of our Mendoza holding pattern was an opportunity to see the Argentine health system in action. For the past little while Amy has been dealing with a “personal health issue” that has been more of an irritant than an emergency. But, given the extra time, we decided to try our luck going to a clinica and finding a doctor who could get her the prescription/meds she needed. Fearing a major and/or expensive health-system epic, of the sort we might expect even in Canada, we were shocked to learn of a clinic a 2-minute walk from our hostel, and then further shocked to get through the front counter more or less instantly, then really shocked to have her in the doctor’s office a few minutes later, only to be really really shocked when he hands her the stuff she needed after a quick exam – all for the outrageous cost of 16 bucks. We were in and out in under an hour with meds in hand. Score one for the Argentine health system!


Things definitely have a melancholy feel to them at the moment. While Mendoza and environs has been wonderful to us, it is time to leave. Fall is in the air, and the leaves are turning. How does that song go? “All the leaves are brown, and the sky is grey....” Everyone we know and love has left including Amy’s parents, and, as not mentioned previously, our good friends from Nelson, Steve and Amy + kids. They have been travelling South America for the past several months and after a long series of e-mails of the “where are you going to be in a month?” sort, our paths finally crossed on the streets of Mendoza. It was during the parental visit so time was tight and we couldn’t spend as much time together as we would have liked. But the lunch followed by dinner was a great catch-up and reminded us of our lives back home. Drinkie-poos at Jackson’s this Friday! (insider Nelson joke...sorry everyone else).


Hmm, while writing this, the sun has come out!  Forecast says tomorrow is the beginning of a decent stretch of weather. Tomorrow we ride! We actually have to, rain or shine (or snow). With every passing day we are reminded that our 90-day visas for Argentina are coming to an end soon. Has it been 90 days already? Wow. One last wine and cheese...