As a number of you said eloquently, no adventure is without its setbacks. So, let’s try and look at this situation from a positive viewpoint. Today was spent going back to the airport trying to resolve the situation with the car, and dealing with booking.com trying to get reimbursed. I have not yet received confirmation of the latter, and I may have to wait until we get back to resolve this issue.
As for the car, it’s a no-go. To Chile that is. Chile has been very erratic since the pandemic, randomly closing down borders on a whim, so car rental outfits do not want to chance their car getting stuck in a foreign country because the border might close, so they are not issuing permits. The alternative would have been to fly into Santiago and rent a car locally, but we have heard so many stories about travelers having to undergo subsequent PCR tests for COVID19 that it discouraged us. Also, our permit for Chile, which we had obtained on-line, states that we would be entering by car, which means it may get rejected if we flew in. Bottom line, we will have to save Chile for another trip.
I quickly canceled our hotel reservations there and ended up being stuck only with a $57 penalty. We can live with that. We were able to extend the car we are renting for several days, and I quickly reviewed tour books and maps to do some rerouting. There are several areas of interest to the north of here, and that’s where we will be heading. At least we have a plan, and we feel better.
Because of all the things we had to do, we have yet to visit Mendoza. As I had mentioned on Facebook yesterday, we are staying in an old country home, but it is several miles from town. The nearest town is Maipu. That’s where we stopped for lunch before heading to the airport.
Maipu's main square
We had some time after returning, so while I was planning the new route, Diane was able to sit by the pool and relax. We decided to do dinner at a nearby place that the owner of the “finca” had recommended. The place, called 07 Garage, was very cool. Everything was basic, and old, with grapevines overhead, old doors as tables, and pallets for flooring. Of course we are always the first for dinner. Here people do not dine until well after 9PM, so what the place lacked was its full vibe, but we were ultimately pleased just the same.
As for Mendoza, we will head into town tomorrow and plan to check out its highlights. It’s the fifth largest city in Argentina and it’s the wine capital of South America. Vineyards are everywhere , even at the airport. Malbec and Chardonnay the main varieties. There are also extensive olive fields. All and all it’s reminiscent of Italy.
No photos today, of course, other than these couple taken with my cell phone. More exciting ones will follow, I’m sure, so please stay tuned. And thank you for staying with us.
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