We arrived in Mendoza on Saturday afternoon after a 7 hr bus trip through the Andes. Apart from the screening of the most blatant religious propaganda on the bus (in the form of a movie called Fireproof, which makes Twilight look subtle), it was a really nice bus ride with spectacular views and comfy seats which reclined to about 150°.

This is day 5 in Mendoza and we love it. Here is why:

1. Our hostel - Mendoza Inn. Even though the sheets don´t fit the beds and are torn, the bathroom features the space economical shower over toilet, fruit loops are served for breaky and we were too scared to use the laundry because it looked filthier than our clothes - this hostel has kind of made our stay here. With 24/7 reggae beats, the pool, the bar and the laid back staff, there has been some awesome parties and we´ve met a lot of random people including the most stereotypical Canadian girls who got chastised by the local police for walking down the street in their bikinis, a random Austrian cat that spent most days gluing his hiking boots back together for another solo trek into some national park and some Aussie dudes which are travelling to Buenos Aires with us tonight.

2. Activities. We have down a wine and bike tour and gone white water rafting and zip lining but those are just a few of the activities on offer. It was my first rafting experience and I loved it. Will post photos soon.

3. The food. There are dozens of restaurants which spill out onto the street serving whatever kind of fare you could want. We have eaten Japanese, Peruvian, Middle Eastern and Chilean in the time we have been here and it has all been amazing.

4. The chilled vibe. In case it hasn´t come through in this post already, Mendoza has a totally chilled vibe and it seems people really like to live well - eating out, drinking and shopping. I must admit that I hit the boutiques pretty hard yesterday and blew a fair bit of cash as clothes are not cheap here. Was kinda awkward walking back into the hostel laden with shopping bags!

5. Last but not least - the wine! It´s so cheap and you can pick up a decent bottle from any mini-mart. For example, we ordered a bottle of Malbec in a restaurant and it cost 35 pesos which is about $7! Even when we went for the more expensive options, they were only about 50-60 pesos, so $10-$12. When we tell people we meet how much alcohol in Australia costs, they are pretty shocked. Bloody taxes...

Fast facts:

Seventy percent of the region´s wine is made in Mendoza. The local specialty is called Malbec, from the french words "mal bouche" (bad mouth) because the grape variety didn´t grow very well in France.

It rarely rains and the weather is dry as the Andes block the humidity coming from the Pacific Ocean. It feels ten times hotter because of this!

1,500 lorry trucks per day transport goods through Mendoza from Buenos Aires to Santiago. It is quite scary when the tracks pass on the motorway.