Lake District, Argentina

San Martin de Los Andes
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We crossed the border into Argentina easily enough having travelled through forests of monkey trees and arrived in San Martin de los Andes. It had been described to us as a chocolate box setting and truly was.  A compact town of alpine style wood and stone buildings on the edge of a lake and surrounded by forested hills.  Beyond the lake there were distant snow capped mountains just to add to the spectacular views.  The next day we hired mountain bikes and headed off around the lake, just a gentle climb on a paved road to start.  The sun was shining and not a cloud in the sky.  After about 5 miles along the lake we then turned off on to a rough road that climbed steeply through forest.  It was hard work in the heat and we had to walk some sections as it was hard to cycle on the steep road as there was a lot of gravel and stones.  We reached the top and descended until we were able to glimpse the lake again and even more snow capped mountains.  We chose a shady spot for lunch before the descent.  It was a lot easier going down the road and we had time to head to one of the lakeside beaches for respite before returning the bikes.  It was great to cycle and get beyond the town and see some of the stunning views of the lake, forest and mountains.  Back in San Martin we treated ourselves to a dish of raspberry, white chocolate and dark chocolate ice cream, with fresh fruit and cream in a well known chocolate shop called Abuela Goye.  A taste of things to come as we reached Bariloche, renowned for it's abundance of shops dedicated to high quality chocolates in every shape and flavour imaginable.  I have found heaven!!  Chocolate shops in Bariloche are as common as pubs in Ireland and preferable as I am more of a chocolate lover.  We stayed in a hostel on the 10th floor of an apartment block with stunning views over an immense lake and beyond to the snowy peaks of the Cerro Catedral ski area and celebrated New Year with lots of multi-national travellers in the hostel where everyone contributed a dish for dinner.