Mendoza is in the west of Argentina, in the desert region of Cuyo . This is the winemaking center, thanks to which it is famous . In addition, Mendoza is located near Mount Aconcagua, the highest outside the Himalayas . In 2008, . National Geogrphic included the city in the top 10 historical directions of the world . Such an estimate may seem strange: the city has little that remains of the old architecture and not so many museums . But somehow Mendoza is very pleasant, and this is a great place to just relax , leisurely spending time, tasting asado and sipping the famous and the whole country here Malbek . And this is not to mention the mountains where more active travelers can go from here .
How to get to Mendoza
A large bus terminal is located a couple of kilometers from the city center and daily buses connect the city with most destinations, including San Carlos de Bariloche and Ca nyatago de Chile . The trip takes 7 hours from the last, but the road through the Andes is stunningly picturesque . Sometimes it's true that the passes are closed due to snowfall, and the bus from Santiago de Chile to Mendoza is not accessible ( this is probably from late May to early September) . In this case, the city has a small airport of El Plumerillo, which accepts flights from Buenos Aires and Santiago de Chile, as well as Bariloche, Salta and Iguazu .
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A little history
Mendoza was founded in 1561, but later moved a bit to the east. It was a quiet and unremarkable city, an intermediate parking on trade routes through the mountains. Two centuries it was Chilean. In 1861, a powerful earthquake destroyed it almost completely, but Mendoza rebuilt in record time. Today it is a city of about 115,000 people and is so fertile that it has been nicknamed "the land of sun and good wine."
Entertainment, excursions and attractions Mendoza
The city is located in an extremely arid region, and therefore a very extensive irrigation system has been developed in Mendoza . The city is permeated with channels that utsya one hand almost every street, through them, to bridge for pedestrians and vehicles . Sometimes these channels even bottled fed river .In Mendoza, about 80 thousand . trees are planted, and in combination with wide avenues this creates a beautiful peaceful atmosphere thanks to which Mendoza contrasts with most of the rather pretty naked cities of Argentina . And to the west of the city there are snow-capped mountain peaks .
- Ride on a charming German city trolley bus and a "shopping tram" bus, which really looks like a retro tour. The "shopping streetcar" walks along a small ring, circling the most "appetizing" shopping places.
- Visit the most famous wine bar of the city - "Vines of Mendoza", which is just around the corner from the Hyatt Hotel. In the evenings on Thursday, the bar holds wine and tapas parties
- Climb to the highest building in the city - Gomez - and take photos of the city's roofs.
- Join paragliding (parapentes in Spanish). In Mendoza, you can do this daily.
- Do skiing in the winter season at Pentententes (the biggest slope) or Los Pucujos (slope for beginners).
The main square of the city is Independence Square. This is the best starting point for any walk through the old part of Mendoza. The area is covered with beautiful buildings, on the first floors of which many restaurants are open, and street shows often take place. The city's museum of modern art is also located here. In the evening the buildings on the square are beautifully illuminated, like the big coat of arms of the city.
But perhaps the most beautiful square of Mendoza is the Plaza of Spain. Here you can admire the many Spanish and Andalusian motifs in the decoration of buildings, and on the wall in the center - read the illustrated text telling about Spanish colonization. At the top of the wall is a magnificent statue.
San Martin Park - a large green space, which is good for walking and cycling .There is a zoo in the north-west corner, but because of the small cells where the animals are kept, the spectacle is not very encouraging . Behind the zoo begins a path that leads to the hill of Glory, where a large statue depicting Jose de San -Martin, who ruled the city in the early 19th century and from Mendoza went to the Andean campaign, to conquer the country's independence . From the hill, there is a nice view of the city and the mountains, it is especially beautiful at sunset .
Central Park is more modern , he is in ten vartalah from Independence Square. This park is a vivid contrast to the more traditional and famous San Martin Park. The central one is much less beautiful, but there are several fountains and green hills, so you can often see artists with easels
There are several museums in Mendoza, including the Cornelio Moyano Natural History Museum and the Historical Museum grounds in the square Pedro del Castillo. The National Wine Museum gives an opportunity to learn more about the history of winemaking in the region, but it is located in Maypu, about 17 km from the city.
A lot of vineries ("Bodegas") offer excursions to tourists. Tastings are regularly held here: it is enough to look into the section of cultural news of a local newspaper or ask local people to get on some one. For this purpose, it is best to go to Mendoza in March and April, during harvesting. Visiting a distillery usually requires pre-booking. The largest of them also conduct pedestrian tours through vineyards (for example, Norton and Routini).
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Mendoza Neighborhoods
Casa de Fader, a historic house museum, occupies a 1890 mansion built where the artist Fernando Fader once lived. The house is located in Major Drummond, 14 km from Mendoza. In the mansion you can see a good selection of works by Fader and visit it for free
About an hour's drive from Mendoza is Kacheuta, where there is a so-called water park, a large system of heated swimming pools in the air. You can get to Cacheut by bus and spend all day here, taking with you some food and frying it for free on the grill
A pleasant half-day trip is a trip to the top of the Arco hill, which is located north-west of the city ( it can easily be distinguished by the set of antennas with which the hill is stuck). From the top you can see both the foothills of the Andes and the broad plains of the province of Mendoza. Here is the paraglider base. This is a very popular place among the townspeople in the weekend, and the whole walking tour takes about 3, 5 hours. At the end you can see the church in Callao, the local version of Lourdes the size of the avengang.
And the highest peak of the continent of Aconcagua gives active recreation lovers not only good opportunities for climbing and walking. This mountain near the Chilean border would be the highest in the world, if not for the Himalayas. Any city travel agency organizes trips here (although you might as well go to the park by bus on your own).
Another specific type of recreation in the vicinity of Mendoza is the wine bike tour . You can go to the wine tour and by bus , but it's much more interesting to rent a bicycle and a map, and then try not to fly out of the saddle after all the tasted . The typical route includes visiting the best distilleries such as Tempus Alba, Viña el Serno, and "Karinae" .On the way, you will also find wine shops (good, for example, "Vinoteca la Botella"), where not only wine is sold, but also olive oil and even juice .
Events Mendoza
The city often hosts festivals , which are usually free of charge. Each - thematic, and almost everyone will have songs, dances and benches in the squares where you can buy food. The largest of them is a harvest festival that takes place annually since 1936. This is the famous "La Vendimia", which lasts for 3 months already. The peak of the festival falls on the end of February - the beginning of March, when the festivities are especially magnificent, and the queen of the holiday is chosen for them.