Vino y Libertad!

Wine and liberty! I heard this phrase repeated multiple times last night at Mendoza's famous annual Festival de Vendimia, or rather, grape harvest festival. Mendoza, Argentina, also known as Wine Country, is famous for its multiple bodegas and exquisite wines. I was fortunate enough to try only a few of the wines, and although only $2.50/bottle, they could certainly put any other red wine to the test. A group of six Wisconsinites went for the weekend to celebrate the Vendimia because we had heard it was quite the production. The rumors were true! There were people everywhere, and the parade we went to on Friday night certainly was quite the production! It was certainly unlike any parade I have ever witnessed in Wisconsin, and there were people of all ages, from child to grandparent, going crazy over the grapes that were being thrown from the floats. The floats were all amazing, and they all had the same thing: beauty queens and grapes. Along with the annual festival of vendimia is an extreme beauty pageant, where wineries from all over the country come and bring their prettiest girls to compete and one will become La Reina (the Queen) of Vendimia. This year was especially important because Argentina is celebrating its bicentenario, or 200 years of independence from Europe, hence the common phrase, "vino y libertad."

I was startled when I first saw them throwing bunches of green and red grapes from the floats, and then pears, peaches and apples. But these became the norm until I saw a float with racks of meat and one of the guys toss pieces of rib-like meat out into the masses of people! Only minutes after that I witnessed Ellie getting pegged in the side with a huge muskmelon! It certainly is quite the event, and the people that are throwing the grapes, peaches, melons, etc are all beauty queens! The parade simply consists of float after float of these beautiful, young women and it is quite the sight to see them chucking melons at you.

The next night is the main show, where there is a theater-like production followed by the crowning of the queen. Unfortunately when we went to buy tickets they had just sold out, but we discovered that you can go watch it from the cerros, or the hills. So after spending the day walking through the park, getting lunch, and checking out the super cheap leather at the artisan market, we all came back and took much needed showers, went and bought some bread, cheese, fruit and wine for dinner, and toted it up to the cerro via taxi. The announcer was really loud, and we were sitting merely on a sheet to cover the gravel underneath, but thanks to the long day, heat, and a few glasses of vino, the six Americans were asleep before the crowning of the queen.

Unfortunately we were unable to see the stage from where we were sitting, so we did not feel like we were missing out on a whole lot. Although it certainly was cool to be a part of such an event!

The reason we had gotten such simple amenities for dinner last night was due to the fact that we each ate almost an entire animal for lunch. We went to a parrilla, or a restaurant-grill, and we shared two "Parrillas para dos" which included everything-from chicken to beef to liver to kidney... etc. There was just a little bit of everything on these grills, and I was a little overwhelmed when they brought out a separate table just for the parrilla. I was brave and tried a little bit of everything, and while some of it was good, most of it tasted and felt exactly as it should, due to what it was. For example, the kidney. It looked and had the exact texture of a kidney. I also gave the intestines a shot, and to get a better look at what they look like, here's a photo:
All in all, we had an interesting lunch and were all laughing afterward.

And now for a couple quick notes on Argentinian life from the little I observed, and some traits that make them different from our beloved Chileans:
1) A lot more European.
2) Slightly more "cultured" and better-dressed.
3) Stay out even later (6 or 7 in the morning)
4) Very cheap leather (there were genuine leather belts for $5 and less!)
5) H-O-T! Not only was Mendoza a lot warmer than Santiago, but it was also very humid. Something I haven't felt in a long time!
6) Alfajores are delicious. An Argentine cookie specialty!
7) Grocery stores are a lot fewer and far between and have a much poorer produce selection.
8) Drainage system (only in Mendoza) on the sides of all the streets. Misstep and fall 2 feet!
9) Most hostels have A/C. No indoor heating or cooling in Chile!
10) You can easily go to Argentina with less than $100 and have enough money to last you for 4 or 5 days if you spend wisely!

All in all it was a fun and exciting weekend in Mendoza, and I hope to go back soon and see what else Argentina has to offer! Here is a short video clip of part of the parade on Friday night to get a little taste:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQ3srJPfBOs

Until next time!