Whirlwind wine tour of Mendoza and Santiago...

I’m going down to Buenos Aires, then Mendoza, then on to Santiago in a seven day whirlwind wine trip. Water/produce consumption, electrical modulations, etc. are concerns.

Boberto?

When?

I don’t think you will have a problem with produce in Argentina and Chile, I eat salad and drink fruit juice routinely here. Water shouldn’t be a problem either and you can buy bottled water at every corner anyway.

Re: outlets everything seems to be working right off the bat here, be it all my European stuff or my Us laptop - you’ll need an adapter though, they have the same kind of prongs as in the US but tilted instead of straight.

Not sure what else you’d want to know.

Just to echo Guillaume’s experience, we had no problems with water or produce when we were in BsAs last summer. We drank bottled water, but we used the tap to brush our teeth and we ate produce from the little greenmarket below our B&B every morning.

Guillaume and I disagree about the dangers from street crime in BsAs. Steve and I had no problems, but two of the visitors at our B&B, including one who was a seasoned world traveler, had serious problems. At a couple of nicer restaurants with outdoor seating (including one of the best Parillas in town) a helpful employee all but soldered my purse to the heavy table. It’s not uncommon to be buzzed in and out of a nice restaurant. I’m not trying to be alarmist, but I do think it’s doubly important to be aware of your surroundings and take precautions with your passport.

I leave on the 13th of April for Buenos Aires (out of NWK) with about an hour layover in DFW. (Bill, can you smuggle 'ritas into the lounge?)

I’ll spend the night in BA and then fly into Mendoza on the 14th.

We’re being dined out by our host in BsAs, so hopefully the day will pass without incident. Once in Mendoza I don’t think I will have too much to worry about. In Santiago I will resume my big city alert consciousness.

[foilhat.gif]

Mark,

No issues with food or water. If you want to play it extra sae, just but bottled H20.

Go to your local Radio Shack and pick up one of those universal adapters for wall outlets.

As for safety, that issue is really a Russian Roulette. You will most likely be perfectly safe and ok or you may have the slight chance of running into a problem. On our honeymoon trip we were absolutely fine; yet the high end spa-like resort we stayed in out in Mendoza was assaulted by armed gunmen a few months after we were there. The stormed in during a wedding reception and basically looted everyone present. Again, it’s not the norm, but it can certainly happen. Be aware of your surroundings, try to use your spanish as much as possible, don’t carry unnecessary amounts of cash and leave any nice jewelry at home.

I’m sure you’ll be fine.

Re: security I think it depends a lot on what you do. Very often it’s the opposite of what you’re used to, i.e. there might be more risk in high-end resorts (which are 200% safe in other parts of the world) because the robbers know that’s where the money is. Since I’m backpacking it’s usually not a problem for me :slight_smile:

Another aspect is traveling by bus, and here I have really not heard anything bad about it.

Last point: the streets of BsAs. Indeed they seem a bit more dangerous than the last time I was here. I heard numerous reports. Some funny examples: I came one morning to breakfast and the people already there were talking about street crime - everybody had a story to tell - one guy got pick-pocketed in the subway (rookie mistake), a girl has bird poo sprayed on her shoulder and then people offered some help to clean it and stole her bag (another rookie mistake), another one was with her mother in a taxi when a guy grabbed the mother’s gold necklace through the open window and tried to get away with it - he couldn’t (why would you wear a gold necklace in BsAs - whatever).

Anyhow, about half an hour after this discussion I was on my computer in the hostel lobby (behind closed doors with a bell), a guy comes in, looks around, I was a bit suscipious of him already. He comes to me, starts to speak very fast in Spanish, I say I don’t understand, he gets closer and tries to sell me some kind of towel that he puts right in front of my nose, I say no, he walks away straight for the door. At that point I pretty much knew something had happened and scanned the table - my cell was missing - he had done a little magic trick on me, getting my phone while putting the towel in his bag. I sprinted for the door, caught up with him around the corner and got my phone back. I was still nonplussed that he did that right in the middle of the hotel lobby… on the other hand a brazilian girl left her macbook charging all day and for everyone to use (wifi) and 2 weeks later it was still there… the luck of the draw, I guess.

On the other hand I’ve walked the streets at night, coming back from the cinema, went to football games and came back by bus at 1am, went clubbing and drinking numerous times… and nothing happened. Actually after one year spent in every corner of the world the cell phone story was the first incident I had, and the most dangerous place I’ve been to during the past year was New York by far.

But my point stays the same as ever anyway: you’re abroad, you’re a tourist, therefore you’re a target. Keep a low profile and everything will be fine.

Enjoy Argentina!

There is a good restuarant in Puerto Madero called Happenings and one in Santiago called El Otro Sitio. I have been to Argentina and Chile (several times) and never had any issues. I even jogged alone in the parks there with no worries. Just use city mentality and you should be fine.

My physician wanted me to take a malaria preventative. Is that a realistic concern?

Seriously: no.

If you really do BsAs → Mendoza → Santiago, there’s really no place with any kind of risk on your route.