Category: SouthAmerica
-
More than 3 days on the Quilatoa Loop
One of the highlights of visiting Ecuador is trekking the Quilatoa Loop – about 25 miles in 3 days of steep terrain at high altitude (9300 ft) through pastures, canyons, and small towns with hostels. We love hiking, but after reading countless harrowing trip reports and being aware of the limitations of traveling with a…
-
Las Lagunas Saraguro Homestay
We weren’t quite sure what to do with ourselves after arriving in the small community of Las Lagunas outside Saraguro, Ecuador. Set in the verdant Southern highlands, the scenery was stunning and our accommodation was charming with its rough-hewn wood furniture and thick woolen blankets (and even enough outlets to charge all our devices.) But…
-
Market Days in Cuenca
It took us 10 days to write about the piles of beautiful vegetables and fruit in (and spilling out of) the Ecuadorian markets. In a country straddling the equator where you can drive from the coast to 14,000 feet above sea level in less than 4 hours, each elevation is finely tuned to growing its…
-
Iguazu
At the crossroads of Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay lies Iguazu Falls and 3 tips for future travelers. The first day we sat down to lunch and thought the many coatis (relatives of the raccoon) were really cute as they waited for scraps of food to fall. A quick hop onto our table via an empty…
-
15. Terraza de Los Andes Cabernet Sauvignon
Terraza de Los Andes Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 ($11 at restaurant) A perfect match for an indulgent dinner of boquerones (sardines served on a bed of tomatoes and onions), a huge serving of entraña (skirt steak), french fries, and dessert of flan mixto (flan served with dulce de leche and whipped cream). This smorgasbord was courtesy…
-
14. Doña Paula Syrah 2008
In the past 2 months, the subway of Buenos Aires has been shut down 7 times by striking workers looking for independent union representation. While waiting for what we hoped we the right bus we were passed over constantly by Bus 24 that was too full to stuff any more passengers in. On board, the…
-
13. Santa Julia Malbec 2008
Busing around Argentina puts Greyhound to shame. The bus terminals are reminiscent of airports with their full-service cafes, general lack of vagrants, and high level of cleanliness. As for the buses, riding is a revelation from the air conditioned waiting rooms to the seats that recline fully into a bed for overnight travel to the…
-
12. Bodega Norton Malbec D.O.C. 2009
After a day of biking vineyards, we wanted to enjoy some wineries without physical exertion. The first obstacle to visiting the renowned wineries of Lujan de Cuyo is finding their phone number, calling the winery, and scheduling a tour. The second obstacle is getting there on time. Technically, tour agencies can arrange all of this…
-
11. Carinae Malbec Rose 2008
Mendoza produces 70% of Argentina’s wine and 14% of the worlds. But at first glance, it’s a surprise anything can grow here, let alone fields upon fields of grapes. One winery tour guide informed us that it had not rained in 2 months. The grapes grow thanks to generations of irrigation from the nearby Andes…
-
10. Finca Flichman Malbec Robles
Finca Flichman Malbec Robles 2008 ($8 in restaurant, $4 in store) Another great value wine enjoyed at a Mendoza restaurant. This Malbec is less fruity than the typical entry-level young Malbec, and you can taste the oakiness (roble in Spanish). There is a lingering taste of spiciness after each sip, and it goes surprisingly well…