After an epicly long bus journey from BA to Mendoza. We relaxed in a funky hostel offering great free breakfasts and a free glass of wine or two each evening. The scenery was dry dusty cold mountains, but no visible snow, this was our first indication of a below average winter of snow. We had hoped to stay in the St Benard mountain refuge, a popular ski tour base, but there was no answer to phones of emails so we assumed it must have closed down for the season. We visited some hot springs in a stunning location, marveled at some of the hideously inappropriate Argentine swimwear. We explored a bit on local buses but other than touristy wine tours we found the local area a bit dull so we left.