Sunday, October 24, 2010
Wine Time
Yesterday we hit up the vineyards.
From the tasteful and subtle Mayan temple homage:
To the little brick hacienda alongside the dry river bed:
And the wide-open mission style tasting room and restaurant:
Jim and I had AMPLE opportunity to practice our standing side-by-side poses, and I think it's really starting to pay off...
From the tasteful and subtle Mayan temple homage:
To the little brick hacienda alongside the dry river bed:
And the wide-open mission style tasting room and restaurant:
Jim and I had AMPLE opportunity to practice our standing side-by-side poses, and I think it's really starting to pay off...
Making it work: The next level
We arrived in Mendoza the other day, which is the heart of wine country. Now lined with sycamores and surrounded by vineyards, Mendoza was originally a desert and receives less than 6 inches of rain a year!
How do they grow thick rows of tall trees on every single street? you may ask. Through a mountain-top dam that acts as a reservoir and sends water through a citywide network of canals. Some might see genius. But these American eyes see "lawsuit!"
How do they grow thick rows of tall trees on every single street? you may ask. Through a mountain-top dam that acts as a reservoir and sends water through a citywide network of canals. Some might see genius. But these American eyes see "lawsuit!"
Thursday, October 21, 2010
This week, on a very special episode of Viva Argentina..
Join Corinne and Jim has they put aside their usual merriment, and tackle the big issues. In this episode, Jim is forced to face the consequences after he is convicted of the felonious charge of butchering of Argentine spanish.
Settling into his new life in the 114-year-old Ushuaia prison is difficult. Since the town was founded as a penal colony lo those many years ago, the prison has housed the worst offenders in the country. To this day, they leave whole corridors untouched, so that the decay of the structures may match the decay of the souls housed within.
Adjusting was difficult for Jim. Escape was tempting, as the landscape opened itself to him fully. The harsh climate made a prison fence unnecessary, and the open access to the bay and Andes mocked him.
Life seemed hopeless, but then! What's this? He catches a fleeting glimpse of a new caseworker.
Compassionate and kind, Corinne was able to look beyond Jim's criminal history and see the man inside. A man who meant not to kill the Spanish language, but to LEARN it. And had SHE not ordered some type of red meat when she had meant to get fish? Had SHE not stared blankly at a tour guide when told she had won some type of lottery she did not know she had even entered??
He was no more guilty of homicide than she!
So they ran away together and lived on an island in Beagle Channel, never to return!
Settling into his new life in the 114-year-old Ushuaia prison is difficult. Since the town was founded as a penal colony lo those many years ago, the prison has housed the worst offenders in the country. To this day, they leave whole corridors untouched, so that the decay of the structures may match the decay of the souls housed within.
Adjusting was difficult for Jim. Escape was tempting, as the landscape opened itself to him fully. The harsh climate made a prison fence unnecessary, and the open access to the bay and Andes mocked him.
Life seemed hopeless, but then! What's this? He catches a fleeting glimpse of a new caseworker.
Compassionate and kind, Corinne was able to look beyond Jim's criminal history and see the man inside. A man who meant not to kill the Spanish language, but to LEARN it. And had SHE not ordered some type of red meat when she had meant to get fish? Had SHE not stared blankly at a tour guide when told she had won some type of lottery she did not know she had even entered??
He was no more guilty of homicide than she!
So they ran away together and lived on an island in Beagle Channel, never to return!
EDITOR'S NOTE: That prison was so freakin' creepy it made Alcatraz look like a country club.
Happy Feet is real!!
We stopped at Penguin Island, and it was way cuter than I expected. Just like the animals at the Buenos Aires Zoo, they came thisclose to us. Unlike the animals at the Buenos Aures Zoo, they were penguins - not gigantic aquatic rats. I'm not trying to tell the Zoo what to do. I'm just saying that something other than GIGANTIC AQUATIC RATS might draw in more visitors.
For example, some of this:
Or a little of this:
Might get more of this:
For example, some of this:
Or a little of this:
Might get more of this:
"This" being smiles, rather than dry heaving.
Jim gets the lay of the land
We canoed down a river for a little less than an hour, and then we carried our boats into the Beagle Channel for some ocean paddling.
It's not that I'm not in shape - I'm clearly in phenomenal shape. Like, female gladiator shape. And weight-lifting world champion shape. Total Beast shape. But I'm really sore today...
It was a lot more arduous than it looks!
It's not that I'm not in shape - I'm clearly in phenomenal shape. Like, female gladiator shape. And weight-lifting world champion shape. Total Beast shape. But I'm really sore today...
It was a lot more arduous than it looks!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)