It had been a long day of traveling. We left from Red Lodge about 7:30am MST, drove to the airport in Billings and then first flew to Denver. Our layover was long enough for a beer and some Mexican food in the airport before we boarded the next flight to Atlanta. The layover in Atlanta was long enough for me to call my brother Eric and let him know we were in the neighborhood. We found a crappy little sit-down restaurant in the international concourse. The food was bad but the vodka tonics were just the thing before boarding a 10-hour flight to the southern hemisphere. The plane we were to fly on apparently had some mechanical issues that could only be addressed in the maintenance hangar so we just sat waiting around in the airport listening to the gate agents promise us that there was an airplane being towed to our gate. Preparing to board a plane that can't move under its own power was a little disconcerting but we'd followed the crowd and boarded when it finally arrived at the gate. Shortly after take-off they served "dinner." We picked at ours and quickly downed a glass of Mad Fish Shiraz served in the convenient 187ml screw cap bottle. The wine was acidic and fruitless but had just enough alcohol to make us quickly fall asleep within minutes of the movie starting (something crappy where Russell Crowe inherits a French Chateau - even the setting wasn't enough to entertain us). Apparently we missed the snack service and the breakfast service because we awoke when they made us bring our "seats and trays into their upright and locked positions."
Our adventure to Argentina was envisioned in part because Clyde & Penny Holt, who are great customers of ours, have travelled extensively in Argentina and encouraged us to see the country first-hand. Clyde is responsible for a manufacturing plant in Neuquen (Patagonia region) and his plant manager, Rodolfo Gil is an Argentine originally from Mendoza. With Clyde and Rodolfo's assistance, we were connected with Rodolfo's daughter Lorena who lives in Mendoza and works in the wine tourism industry. Lorena planned the entire itinerary for our time in Mendoza, including lodging, transportation, winery tours, as well as lunch and dinner destinations. She also arranged for our in-country air travel (which is considerably cheaper to book there then from the U.S.). Remember the names Rodolfo and Lorena Gil as they play a great role in much of our trip.
Our continuing flight from Buenos Aires to Mendoza was not scheduled until 5:30pm so Rodolfo's assistant Daniela Martin had made arrangements for us to check into a hotel (NH Crillon) for the afternoon. This proved to be a great treat as a shower and change of clothes were a welcome perk after 24 hours of traveling. The other treat was that Clyde and Penny, who had been traveling in Argentina for the week prior, were also in Buenos Aires on the same day as they were departing for the U.S. that night. We had made plans to meet at the hotel and then have lunch together at one of Clyde's favorite spots, just a short walk from the hotel.
We met in the lobby and we're pleasantly surprised to also meet Rodolfo and his wife Elizabeth who had been traveling with Clyde and Penny and were also joining us for lunch. The six of us then proceeded to "Bengal," a hotel restaurant that appears to be undiscovered by tourists as it was filled with locals. The restaurant is owned and operated by an East-Indian and the menu was a fusion of Indian, Italian and Argentine cuisine. We ordered the "Degustation Menu" which consisted mostly of Italian dishes and some Indian. As Anne, commented in our journal, "It was divine!"Salad Caprese
with local Parma ham, cherry tomatoes, fresh basil and fresh local mozzarella
Ceviche
with calamari, shrimp and bay scallops
Zucchini Cannaloni
thinly sliced zucchini wrapped around ricotta cheese with a fresh tomato puree
Curried Chicken
over basmati rice
Lemon-Raspberry Sorbet
Tuna (Bonito)
with risotto, eggplant, zucchini and carrot
Dessert Medley
Flan, Malbec Poached Pears with Mascarpone, Lemon Meringue, Chocolate Lava Cake
For us to drink, Clyde ordered a Luigi Bosca Malbec-Petite Verdot, 2002, Mendoza. It was medium-bodied and all fruit (cherry, berry, with hints of meat and leather) and only $15! Elizabeth added some of her sparkling water (agua con gas) to her wine saying it was "cheap champagne." With dessert we enjoyed a bottle of Casa Boher Brut, NV. It was light and crisp, a nice contrast to the rich desserts. Elizabeth had a big smile on her face when we opened a real bottle of sparkling wine.
The only regret from lunch was that we didn't have more time to linger over the table. The conversation with the Gils was great. Elizabeth was eager to practice her English and Rodolfo was anxious to learn of how his daughters plans for us were materializing. We promised to give them a full report. Penny walked us backed to the hotel, we kissed on the cheek (as everyone does in Argentina) and hopped into our cab bound for the airport. As we drove through the city, we couldn't help but reflect on how grateful we were for Clyde & Penny's friendship and their encouragment of our adventure. If the rest of the trip was as enjoyable as lunch in Buenos Aires, we were in for a great ride!
