This post follows on from: Chile – Atacama! Possibly no other city is as closely associated with a grape variety as Mendoza: it is the world capital of wines made from the Malbec grape. While plantings of the variety diminished in France, they burgeoned in western Argentina to the point that the Malbecs of Mendoza have a cult following. The …
Patagonia – Chilean Lakes
This post follows on from: Argentinean Lakes The Google satellite map below (click to enlarge) shows the extensive lakes system in northern Patagonia, stretching from Bariloche in the east (Argentina) to Puerto Varas in the west (Chile). The snow-capped Andes and various volcanoes are quite apparent. In the west, Puerto Montt is a major port, with sea connections past the …
Patagonia – Argentinean Lakes
This post follows on from: Glacier Country The Google satellite map below (click to enlarge) shows the eastern section of the extensive lakes system in northern Patagonia. The region is at a similar latitude to Hobart and is surprisingly lush and green, with landscapes reminiscent of the European Alps. We flew into Bariloche (San Carlos de Bariloche) and spent two …
El Calafate – Glacier Country!
This post follows on from: Torres del Paine Calafate and El Calafate The Calafate berry is symbolic to Patagonia, being indigenous to the region. Around a metre tall, the bushy plants produce edible berries that look a little like blueberries and have a taste that some describe as hinting of black currant, mulberry and/or blackberry. You will find them in …
Torres Del Paine National Park
This post follows on from: Tierra Del Fuego and Cape Horn Patagonia Patagonia is one of those mystery places: we know the name but we don’t really know much about it or where it actually is. Patagonia isn’t a country but a region on the southern tip of South America. It is large – a little bigger than South Australia …
Tierra Del Fuego and Cape Horn
This post follows on from: Four weeks visiting Patagonia, Atacama and Mendoza Ushuaia Ushuaia is at latitude 550 South, the same as Macquarie Island, making it well south of Hobart at 430. Naively we expected a small isolated settlement in freezing barrenness. Yet we found a thriving tourist hub of 60,000 people with good infrastructure, interesting architecture and a bustling port …
Four Weeks Visiting Patagonia, Atacama and Mendoza
This post follows on from: Cazuelas and Empanadas On the 12th of March 2017, sixteen of us started a four week tour of the southern parts of South America. Everyone in the group knew each other, all friends of ours. It was a private tour organised for us by our Melbourne travel agent, Natural Focus Safaris. It would be one …
Cazuelas and Empanadas
This post follows on from: Buenos Aires – The Food! In this post we give two recipes inspired by what we ate in Argentina. However, they are as much methods as they are recipes, meaning you can use them as guides to your own versions. Our recipes are not traditional by any means but hopefully you will enjoy them if …
Barbecues Galore!
Click here for: Buenos Aires – The City! One reason for going to Buenos Aires is to eat! There is a definite Argentinean cuisine, with many of the dishes and customs duplicated in some form or other in neighbouring South American countries. The Spanish and Italian influences on the cuisine are clear, though there is less of an indigenous impact …
A European City in the Southern Hemisphere!
A five-week tour of southern South America We flew to Buenos Aires mid-March, 2017. It would be the start of a five-week tour covering the huge region of Patagonia (in both southern Argentina and southern Chile), the Atacama Desert in northern Chile and the wine region of Mendoza in north-west Argentina. We will make a series of blog posts covering …