We took the overnight bus from Buenos Aires to Mendoza. The company was called Andesmar and it was very nice. We had the front two seats upstairs so we had a nice view of the road ahead. The seats were black leather and reclined all the way back to almost flat. There was a pillow and a blanket on our seats. Not long after we had set off the man came around with a tray full of sweets and Bingo tickets! So we attempted to play Bingo and did very well considering he was saying the numbers in Spanish. We didnt win but I was quite close I only need two more numbers. After the excitment of Bingo he put a film on the TV which suprisingly was in English with Spanish subtitles. It was about a gymnast but we didnt really watch it. Whilst the film was playing the man brought us round a tray and some food, we expecting them to feed us. The tray had on it what looked like a small ham sandwich and some cold vegetables and a cake and some crackers. I didnt like the look of the ham sandwich it looked a bit plastic so I tucked into the cake. Halfwway through the cake the man brought round a silver tray each, this was the hot part of the meal. Once again we werent expecting it as we thought the other tray was it but this one had chicken in gravy with vegetables inside, YUM! I said yes to the pepsi the man held in front of me but Sarah tried her best to ask for some water, the third time he understood her. The meal was cleared away and then to our suprise again he brought around glasses of champagne! We were definitely travelling in style. After that we settled down for the night and it was a very compfortable night. We awoke to a nice cup of tea before arriving in Mendoza at 9am.

There was a lady at the bus station to meet us, to make sure we got in a taxi ok to the hostel. We arrived in time for free breakfast so we helped ourselves to some toast. We were in a 5 bed dorm, the beds have bright green and orange duvets. We had a nice hot shower to freshen up and then went for a walk around the block as our hostel is in the main shopping area. We had lunch in a little cafe and then went back to the hostel as we were booked on the wine tasting activity.

We got on the bus and drove to the first winery. We got out and looked at the bare grape vines as they had already been harvested. He explained how their wine is organic and how they make it. We got to taste one white wine and one red wine before getting back on the bus to the next place. Now the next place was a bit suprising as it was a olive oil factory not a winery! The girl explained for ages how they make olive oil by pressing the olives and the difference between extra virgin olive oil and plain olive oil. We then looked around the factory to see them pressing the olives. We then went into another room where we could taste the different oils on pieces of bread. They also had raisens to taste as they sold those as well. After that it was back on the bus to the next winery. This next one was a posh one, it had marble floors and leather sofas. Once again we were shown around and saw the barrels where the wine is stored before trying the wine. Here we tried one white wine and two red wines. As there was still quite a lot of time left we visited an extra place on the way back. It was a chocolate liquor factory. The lady there was very funny, she didnt speak very good English so instead did lots of actions to describe the products, we understood her though so it worked. We tried some chocolate liquor and chocolate spread before returning to the hostel.

We were in our room when two guys came in. They put there stuff on a bed had a shower and then went out again. The didnt come back again until 7am the next morning! By that time we were up as we were going on the mountain excursion that left at 7:30am. We got on the bus and drove into the Andes mountain range. The guide was very good at explaining about the rock formations and different colours. Along the way we stopped to look at lakes, bridges, formations and hot springs as well as for a cup of tea. We also went for an hours walk through the mountains before going for lunch in a ski hotel. After that we had a long drive back to the hostel. It was very cold in the mountains at one point I had 6 layers on and I also got to wear my bear hat for the first time. Sarah bought a new hat on the way, a pink one with a bobble at the top and ear flaps. We looked so cool!! After our long day we were quite tired so we headed to bed. The boys were in the room but as we were getting ready for bed they were getting ready to go out again. Once again they spent the whole night out and returned at 8am as we were getting up! It was quite nice tho as it meant we had the room to ourselves!