Argentina Revisited

Here is a selection of film photos that we really like (for one reason or another), from our trip to Argentina in January. Hope you enjoy them...

Been Ages... Part 2

Update number two.


My turn! The fam came up for my graduation. I love it when they visit!

Meghan lives in Vancouver, so she wasn't visiting, but Liz was. I love it when she visits as well, and was very happy they were both there!

My Mom was also there, but thought three pictures of me in my regalia would have been overkill. Anyhow, my Mom was here for five days and I showed her around the city. This was taken on Granville Island. The weather was gorgeous!

Mom and fountain.

After the family had all left, Meg's good friend Hilary came for a visit. Again, the weather was beautiful, so we went on a bike ride to a park to play some bocce and sip some brews.

Magical.

Flagpole Throw, Shawnigan Lake, 2009.

Been Ages... Part 1

Recently realized it had been close to three months since updating this badboy, so here is an update.


Went to the island (Vancouver Island, that is) and went on a hike through the Mystic Vail...this is Meghan in a Mystical Paradise.

I wasn't acting Mystical in this photo, but was feeling the Mystic Vibes regardless.

Reminds me of Super Mario Bros. Very trim!

Seems that Dog should have a helmet on! And maybe a rain slicker as well.

Went to California for my sister's graduation. It was a lovely day all around... Congrats Katie!!

The day after the aforementioned graduation, we headed to Catalina for a little rest and relaxation (and some beers).

BBH! That's Big Buck Hunter for those that aren't in the know. Next time you are in Avalon, head to The Marlin Club and play you some huntin' games.

Artwork in The Marlin Club's WC.

Nothing wrong with a steak every now and then. The creamed corn looks like throw-up. Sorry 'bout that...

Dogmania!

No, we didn't get a dog... But we did this 1,000 piece 'DOGMANIA' puzzle, courtesy of Ravensberger!

Whistler (and Squamish) Vibrations

Went to Whistler on Saturday and stayed the night with Andy and Nikki in Squamish that night. Any day of snowboarding at Whistler is amazing, but this day pretty much took the cake. Loads of snow the previous week, sunshine, good company, and cold temperatures made for a perfect day. The only imperfect thing was the fact it was so crowded...didn't matter, we had a blast anyway. Thanks to Andy and Nikki for the wonderful hospitality and for taking us to the Grizzly!!! We owe you one!


The crew...Mark, Meghan, Nikki, and Andy.

The line! Didn't matter though...look at all that lovely snow in the background!

So they have this gondola at Whistler now, that connects the Whistler Peak with the Blackcomb Peak...pretty freaky stuff. We had to ride it. This thing stretches for an eternity, and is supported by only four towers. The valley between the towers is massive...and the drop is ridiculous. Photos, obviously, cannot do it justice. Ride it when you get the chance.

The drop. Each gondola holds 20 people, and some of them have glass bottoms; ours didn't unfortunately. Check out how small the gondola looks in the upper left hand corner of this photo.

This ones for you Dean & Melissa...ahhh, such good memories!

The Grizzly Bar & Grrrill Pub, Squamish, BC. As your attorney I advise you to have some drinks at this place as soon as humanly possible. You must experience it for yourself.

Video of the Peak 2 Peak Gondola in Whistler.

Portland is a fun place.

We went to Portland a couple weeks back, to visit Stevie & Monica. Jeff & Natalie live there as well, and Travis, Jim, and Dean & Melissa all came to enjoy good company in a nice setting. Portland really is a nice setting for a reunion of sorts. Some of these photos are Stevie's, and can be found on his blog, and probably on Facebook as well. But figured might as well post them to one more place on the World Wide Web.


The most yummiest cupcakes we've ever had.

Here is your ultimate tourist shot, out front of Voodoo Doughnuts. The maple bar with bacon on top is fun to eat.

Posse up!

Meghan and Mark down by the schoolyard. Forgot the name of this place, so schoolyard will have to suffice.

It snowed in Portland. Been a very snowy winter.

Meghan Poppins!

The Blazers blew the Lakers out on this night. That's okay though, they just better hope they don't play the Lakers in the playoffs.

Crappy photo (thanks Stevie) of Mark in Laker gear in front of the Rose Garden. Yeah, there was some heckling...

Day Nine

Our ninth day in Argentina, and our second day in Mendoza, was all about the vino. Actually, most days were about the vino as we sipped some pretty much everyday, but this day was completely dedicated to the vino. The greater Mendoza region has three or four main areas where grapes are grown; the most popular (Valle de Uco) was too far for a day trip, but two regions, Maipu and Lujan de Cuyo, were nearby. The Mendoza wine country is amazing...tiny tree-lined roads (some of which were dirt) characterize most of the region, and amazing stories and wine at each of them. We hit five wineries/vineyards, or maybe it was four...who knows? Either way, this was definitely a highlight of the trip. Who doesn't like tasting wine???


This is right out front of our B&B...most of the streets in Mendoza are this beautiful.

Yep, it is everywhere.

You must look very closely to see the sign in the middle. It says 3,287 (or 3,289 - can't look that close). Anyway, this is the kilometer number...this highway is very large. It goes from tip to tip.

En route to our first winery in Maipu. Vineyards on the left and right...you don't need to look closely.

Yep, another self-portrait; this is our first wine experience in Mendoza, Argentina, South America. This winery said they were the oldest in the region, dating back to the 1800's (can't remember what year, precisely).

Mark and sign de Familia Cecchin.

A beautiful tree-lined street in Maipu. This was the most lovely and serene drive. A lovely and serene moment tambien. We miss it very much.

Another self-portrait, which includes some grapes.

This was the second or third winery we visited. It is called Familia Di Tommaso, and dates to 1869. They also said they were the oldest winery in the region; guess they all say that. Anyhow, these brick VATs (that line the room) are original (from 1869 or so), and they still age wine in them. After they spend some quality time in these brick VATs, its off to oak barrels to finish the aging process.

This is a room that is used for nothing more than a stop along the winery tour. They used to age wine in here and you could see the crystals, etc. on the walls from the tannins [sic]...or something like that. Either way, its a real nice room.

We should have purchased one of these bottles as they were going for about 90 pesos or something, which is only like $25 or $30. We wouldn't have brought it back, instead we'd have drank it at a special dinner, but oh well. Anyway, this particular Malbec (Don Angelo) is quite rare...they only produced 4,000 bottles or so. If you purchase one, the winemaker writes all the details of the wine and signs the bottle with a wax marker or whatever. Quite neat...too bad the picture is a bit out of focus.

More wine, more self-portraiture!

This was our final stop, and boy was it a doosey [sic]. So we park and this dude comes out to greet us, stating "I am Christiano, welcome to my house". He was wearing a white cloth sort of robe, along with some greasy hair and some sandals. He instructed us to go on HIS wine tour and to meet him on the patio to try some wine. Real weird situation. The place was gorgeous, and I'm sure it was handed down to him at some point by his father or grand-father or something. Whoever founded it is probably rolling over in his/her grave.

This is the patio at Christiano's house/winery. It was a real nice setup, but a bit too modern, especially considering there were some serious Euro beats going on, real loud. It actually wasn't so much the music, but the volume level of the music that was too much. There were a number of other groups on the patio (prior to this picture being taken), and Christiano would come up to them and put his hand on their shoulders and make sure they were comfortable; at one point we noticed him stumble as if one had had a little too much of the vino. Anyhow, upon our departure, Christiano invited us to come back when his house/winery closed, at 19:30, for dinner. We did not go back. As for Christiano, a nice guy, but lots of cocaine is suspected.

We wondered around the city and had dinner at some point. This extravagant light situation is at the main plaza in el Ciudad de Mendoza.

We had lunch at the Familia Di Tommaso winery. A lovely location for a lunch, with a babbling brook running beside us...it provided very pleasant sounds.