Andes crossing - Santiago to Mendoza

Crossing the border from Chile to Argentina by road through the Andes overnight was a little arduous, and having a 2 hour delay waiting at the bus station didn't help, but bought some visual rewards in the early hours of the morning with the rising if the sun. Getting out of the bus for border processing high up in the Andes at about 3am is a surreal experience, the air is crisp and it's extremely cold - I'm layered up with clothing including my gore-tex jacket. Jill and I held the customs line up which was a little awkward, I think this was due to our reciprocity fee paperwork. Checking of this paper work at borders other than Ministro Pistarini Airport has only been in place for about a week, and as we'd already crossed in and out of the Argentinian border once already I think the they were trying to work out the validity of our multiple crossings and the correct days remaining as this is our second entry into the country.
There are many older tradition style villages and houses along the road, although I didn't take any pictures through the not so pristine bus window. We arrive at Mendoza at about 9am, the sun is belting down, it's already very warm so the first thing I need to do is strip out of my layers of clothing and prepare for a look around the city.





Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Cholula, Mexico

Image
Cholula is a city and district located in the center west of the state of Puebla, next to the city of Puebla de Zaragoza, in central Mexico. Cholula is best known for its Great Pyramid, with the Nuestra Señora de los Remedios sanctuary on top and its numerous churches. The city and district are divided into two, San Pedro Cholula and San Andrés Cholula, which together are officially called the Distrito Cholula de Rivadavia. The pyramid is small part of the archeological zone of Cholula, which is estimated at 154 hectares (380 acres).  Building of the pyramid began in the pre Classic period and over time was built over six times to its final dimensions of 120 metres on each side at the base and eighteen meters tall.  This base is four times the size of that of the Great Pyramid of Giza and is the largest pyramid base in the Americas.  Two of the stages of construction use talud-tablero architecture which was also used in Teotihuacan.  Some of the pyramid constructions have had burials,
Read more

Mitla, Mexico

Image
An archeological site is within the modern municipality of San Pablo Villa de Mitla, Mitla was the main religious centre. The name Mitla is derived from the Nahuatl name Mictlán, which was the place of the dead or underworld. Its Zapotec name is Lyobaa, which means “place of rest.” The name Mictlán was Hispanicized to Mitla by the Spanish. The construction of Mitla as a ceremonial centre began in 850, and the city was still being expanded when the Spaniards arrived and destroyed it.  The oldest group of buildings has been dated to between 450 and 700 CE and shows architectural features similar to those found at the earlier Monte Alban. The steps to the main ceremonial hall ... Inside the ceremonial hall ... Inner courtyard, the stonework is amazing ... Underground, inside one of the burial chambers ...
Read more

Argentina

After travelling for some time Jill and I safely arrive in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Must say, Aerolineas Argentinas probably isn't the most luxurious airline with whom I've travelled. Facilities seemed a little dated, I'm not saying it's old but it's possible the aircraft I was on may have actually been one that Jesus used when he was a traveller. Although, I did appreciate the old style leg room and the service was exceptional. Weird feeling having left Australia 7:30pm last night, and while on the plain had dinner, a sleep, then breakfast, land in Buenos Aires and find it's 7:00pm last night ...... again! However, this visit is just a quick stop over (return to Buenos Aires late next week) before leaving for Santiago, Chile early tomorrow morning. Hopefully I'll have adjusted to the time zone by then.
Read more