Lake District region

We hired a car for the day to explore
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We left the sunshine of Mendoza for the  cooler weather of the Lake District. First stop San Martin de los Andes, a rich fashionable tourist town with picturesque Alpine style wooden buildings on the shores of a lake.  Our hostel for the first time had a kitchen, which after ninne weeks of eating out we were really excited at the prospect of cooking. That night we enjoyed the classic bangers and mash. We took a trip on the lake and hired a car for the day to explore and enjoy more lake and snow capped mountain views.

Viewpoint at Lake Traful..beautiful spot
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Three hours further south is the smaller town of Villa de Angostura. Despite two days of awful weather with rain and sleet we especially liked this town. The hostel was very friendly almost like staying with a family. We even got invited to eat with them at a birthday party. They BBQ´d a whole lamb for the celebration, which was melt in the mouth delicious. We also got to try mate, the Argentine tea complete with unique traditions and ceremonies. It uses a very rough sort of tea blend (which smells like a mixture of tobacco and tea) and its drunk from a special mate cup through a metal straw. It was ok, although a little bitter. Not sure it´ll even take off in the UK but the Argentines love it and they take their cup, straw and thermos everywhere.

Dusk
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After the rain we hired mountain bikes for the 30km round trip ride along the penninsula. It was serious off road biking, quite challenging and fantastic fun jumping over tree roots and spashing through puddles. Adding greatly to the entertainment were the yelps and squeels coming from Michelle as she bounced down the track. Michelle´s only complaint was that despite her best efforts she couldn´t avoid getting muddy.

Final stop on our tour of the vast Lake District was Bariloche the largest and best known town in the area. We enjoyed some fab 360 degree views and Michelle´s bravery on the trip continued with a ride on a chair lift. Pastries were a common theme throughout the Lake District ( well you´ve got to properly sample the local cuisine - M) and we topped off our visit to the region with drinks and nibbles at the 5 star Llao Llao Hotel.