Sao Paulo – Admirals Club Lounge

It is 10.30pm and finally, I’m on my way home. What a week… ending in a quick ride to the airport, only to find it crowded and noisy. I decided to hang out in the Admirals Club lounge – you get free access when you are on International Business class. The lounge has that incredible 1980s airport décor of mauve and grey carpet with rosewood doors and marble… and because it is Friday, it looks like a refugee camp with all the business travelers going home. Yuck. Free drinks, though.

I just adore the Grand Hyatt Sao Paulo. The hotel put me in a suite this time, which was very lovely and spacious. The shower…. OMG the shower. Still the best shower I’ve ever had. Not only is the design pleasing, the rain shower is just at the perfect height for me, and the stall is so spacious. I love this hotel so much! Everyone was very warm and gracious, still the best service I’ve ever had.

This time, I flew into Sao Paulo from Buenos Aires. The airline was TAM, and it was kind of funny. I was not paying attention to the safety video, but when they spoke in English I looked up, and the video was with claymation-style puppets, like the old Thunderbird show or that recent movie Team America! Totally cute. It ends with them spelling out “Have A Nice Flight” in cute block letters. First class was nice service, but during it I decided to look at the in-flight entertainment. OMG, it was an old Star Trek episode, the one when that floating machine gets onto the Enterprise and it follows Captain Kirk to the bridge. Once it gets there, it starts to take control and it zaps Lt. Uhura, she loses her memory and has to learn English all over; Scotty is zapped dead. But not in English, it was in Spanish or Portugese, so I forgot how it ended. HILARIOUS. I wonder who they are marketing to…

Getting to the hotel was a chore. It was a 2-hr ride from the airport, the traffic was incredibly bad. Apparently there was a major storm and it just snarled everything. Once I got there, though, I totally relaxed – time for ME. The only free time that I truly had on the trip, other then the first afternoon in Mendoza (but I worked that night there). I didn’t work at all, went to the health club and then I had a massage at the spa, ending with room service. Dessert was incredible, just a huge hunk of pineapple with coconut sherbet. Simple, boy was it good. Mmmmmm.

For lunch they took me to Eau, which apparently was voted the best hotel restaurant in Brazil. It is French, yummy. For dessert we had the little cookies that are made with chocolate and Earl Grey tea. They were nice enough to send a little box to my room to take with me, very thoughtful. Of course I stole the soaps, they are from the Amazon and just amazing. I’m giving one to my mom.

Buenos Aires: what a great town. I really look forward to going back and checking it out. I saw so little of it! The new hotel will be amazing, I’m totally looking forward to staying in it. The official name is Palacio Duhau Park Hyatt Buenos Aires. Just wonderful. The neatest part of the trip was meeting Christophe again and his wife, who went to school at AFCENT in the Netherlands! Amazingly small world…

Looking forward to being home for a few days before going off to Australia, Hong Kong, Paris, Zurich and Lausanne. Should be fun!

Ok, time to take off soon. This lounge is incredibly cheesy… worst I’ve been to.

Buenos Aires

Wow. What a great city. Vibrant, beautiful buildings and streets, outdoor cafés and shops. It reminds me of a cross between Paris and Madrid, but with a Latin flavour. Neat.

I arrived at the Caesar Park - a hotel that will be our competition - and went for a quick walk. The new Park Hyatt will be just a block from here, and the streets have a neighborhood feel, yet there are high class stores nudged between modern and traditional European-style apartment buildings. Interesting. As I took a walk, I went down this little hallway called Alvear something or other (no, not the Alvear Palace). It was just a line of small shops built into a part of a building, kind of like a small mall. As I walked down, there were antique shops; a very hip and cute coffee shop; a stamp collector; at the end there was a neat outdoor patio and overlooking it a very small hip wine bar playing Eurolounge music, and another exit hallway - down which were a traditional Argentinian store with woolen rugs, etc and across a modern rustic furniture store in the Argentinian style (ie, simple wooden chairs with strong rope in a neat simple design as backing, etc). Neat place.

The Park Hyatt is literally a former palace, nestled between tree lined streets, expensive stores and apartment buildings. Reminds me of the Plaza in some ways how it is situated, although there is no "central park" across the street.

Can't wait to explore more... but bed for now.

Santiago de Chile

This trip has been a whirlwind. I arrived in Mendoza on Sunday. It was cloudy, and I was frustrated as I left my mobile phone in Santiago airport. It is lost! I cannot believe how difficult it is to do business travel without that phone. Luckily, I was able to call AT&T and have it deactivated and a new phone sent to me at home... I will get it once I get back to Chicago this week.

Mendoza is so lovely in the Summer! I love being in the summer in the southern hemisphere, it is February but it is warm! Cloudy in Mendoza and rainy at night... when I left the hotel for the airport, they had gotten enough rain to make the aqueducts completely full of rain water. It was amazing to see, very scary. You can understand the power of fast moving water when you see that. Usually the aqueducts are dry as the area, like the Wine Country of California or Australia, gets little rain.

Arriving in Santiago last night around 8pm was wonderful. The sun sets late this time of year, and it was just going down as I neared the city. The mountains are desert, similar to Arizona, and the setting sun made it just gorgeous. They are nearing completion of a superhigway to the airport and I got through customs-immigration and to the Hyatt in under 45 minutes. Amazing as the airport is far from the city and usually traffic and the construction makes it a 2 hr trip.

The city is so beautiful, glass skyrises, green trees and wide boulevards. It is like a combination of Vancouver and Los Angeles, clean and warm with mountains. Yum! The airport is nice too, new and very modern. Love it.

Now I am off to Buenos Aires, I have never been and am excited to see the city. I get in tonight and will be able to relax a bit, tomorrow is a full day to see the new Park Hyatt under construction and then to set the pricing. Should be good! Off to relax a bit...

Cancun, Mexico

A direct 3-hour 9-minute flight from Chicago, sometimes I wonder if the United States invaded Mexico here. The plane had not a single hispanic passenger (except for one flight attendant) and while waiting in customs line it was all white people. Yet once out of customs, the locals were everywhere looking to take you to your hotel/scuba dive/pyramid tour/adventure excursion/whatever.

Cancun airport is very modern, spacious, air conditioned and relatively nice. It is a shock to the system to exit into the heat - 91 degrees and 90 pct humidity of today. The hotel picked me up in the car and drove me to the hotel, a good 20 minutes along a slip of land and hotel after hotel. Most of the signs are in English, and many of the people walking along the route were Americans. It is like Florida!

The water is very clear and multi-coloured, but much of the beach has eroded due to the near miss of Hurricane Ivan. Work was all day, very tired. Looking forward to getting through the very long next several days... we'll see if I get any sun at all!

Mexico City

Very tired.   The city is very pretty in the area where the hotel is, it is wealthy and actually feels very European with many trees and cafés.   The weather is mild, partly sunny in the low 70s, with no humidity. 

There is a street called "Horacio" which has a park running through the centre of it.   There are pine trees that line the park and it is well manicured, and it goes for what seems like miles.  Just very beautiful.

Lots of nifty book stores and boutiques in the area, as well as the typical expensive stores (Armani, Gucci, Hugo Boss, etc.) that are on the main street.

I will definitely come back to check out the city when I have more time!

 

Villahermosa, Mexico

After two very full days of work, with essentially no free time, last night I took a look at the competitive hotels - and therefore my first look at the city.

Villahermosa is a green city, but largely industrial.   The Hyatt is an older building wedged on a small street off one of the city's two main roads.  Adjacent is another hotel (of obviously lower star quality) and a modern and very tall glass office building.   Across the main road is a beautiful large park with a lagoon and a museum housing some of the famous huge Olmec stone heads (I've seen them on tv before).   I plan on going there today.

The city has another main road that intersects; I can see this road rising above the trees from my window, it is very busy and crosses the city south to north.    Along this other road are some of the main shopping centres - nothing fancy, more like strip malls.    But at least all of the streets are lined by trees which is nice.

From the window of my room, which faces south, I can see the cathedral off in the distance.  I plan on taking a taxi there today to check it and the main plaza out.   But the rest of the city looks industrial and rather unattractive.     Villahermosa is an oil town, the headquarters of Pemex.    Scattered across the horizon are water towers, offfice buildings, radio towers, highway bridges and concrete houses.   

The hotel is very hip.   The rooms are modern, sleek, in cream colours and cherry furniture accented with brick red upholstery and red mexican patterned pillows.    The bathroom is small but has a glass stall with a rain showerhead and beige limestone with red granite vanity.  Surprisingly nice!    The lobby is still traditional but they plan on renovating this during the Fall. 

Today I plan on taking my time relaxing in the room, then going to the park and museum, then off to the cathedral, returning to go work out and then work in my room tonight.    The goal is to RELAX.   I leave for Mexico City tomorrow late morning...

 

Mérida
 
Conversion has gone VERY well, easily, I have budgeted much more time than needed.   The competitive site inspection, day one training and conversion could have all taken place in one – albeit long – day instead of two.   So I’ve taken advantage of the weather and enjoyed the afternoons by the pool and worked in the evenings until late.  
 
Today it has been sunny all day and no rain – for once.   Weather forecast is clear through the week.
 
A couple of funny things that have happened that I forget mentioning:
 
-         Driving back from Chichén Itza in the middle of the Yucatan brush hearing “Born in the U.S.A.” on the radio
-         On my first day orienting with the staff, I asked if anyone at the hotel had met the Pritzkers, the owners of Hyatt Corporation.   Rosario mentioned the closest they ever came was when one of the relatives brought a group of college students every year – from Michigan State University.   I nearly fell over.   She said they come every year and party in Mérida over spring break.
-         The nicest Wal-Mart in the world is just up the street.  It is so inoccuous that at first I didn’t even notice it – which for Wal-Mart is usually impossible.  It is make of limestone and the sign is just carved into the limestone, no tacky blue/white sign.   Inside it is very clean and, although obviously a Wal-Mart, not overstuffed and unpleasant as most of them are.
 
The heat and the humidity here are stifling.   I can’t imagine living in a climate of 90 degrees and 90 percent humidity for month after month.  The heat is ok, but the humidity makes it hard to breathe!
 
More work to do tonight, so I must sign off for now.   A full day of training tomorrow, then I leave for Villahermosa for a full day on Thursday with almost no free time. 
  
 

Chichén Itza
 
“On the immense plain of the northern Yucatan Peninsula, with neither mountains nor rivers to disturb the uniformity of the landscape, among the agaves, thorny bushes and short trees, stands monumental Chichén Itza, one of the most spectacular ceremonial centers in all antiquity.”   - Michelin Green Guide
 
The morning was clear, not a cloud in the sky.   I left for Chichén Itza around 10:30am, and after getting out of Mérida (I had no idea the city was so large, nor that there were so many one way streets) it was a rather uninteresting drive all the way to the ruins.    Rather flat with tall brush all the way there, very green.
 
 “On the immense plain of the northern Yucatan Peninsula, with neither mountains nor rivers to disturb the uniformity of the landscape, among the agaves, thorny bushes and short trees, stands monumental Chichén Itza, one of the most spectacular ceremonial centers in all antiquity.”
 
Nearing the ruins is, of course, a small town where you can eat and are panhandled souvenirs – I can’t tell you how often people came up to me on the street or even at the site saying “one dollar.”   All of the souvenirs were uninteresting and copies, that I saw.
 
There were so many tourists it was unbelieveable.  I was expecting to be disappointed, that the site would be overrun with them.   Well… 
 
After paying the entry fee ($9 US, which I thought was steep for México but obviously worth it), I walked down the long trail to the open yard where stood El Castillo.   To say it was spectacular would be an understatement.   The entire complex is so incredibly spacious that it takes hours to wander through it.   It was incredibly hot – by this time, a little after 12noon and definitely nearing 100 degrees.  I climbed El Castillo and nearly fainted by the top, it is so steep.   I relaxed and surveyed the incredible view – why here?   Chichén Itza is in the middle of the jungle and I am still amazed that anyone would build anything there.
 
It wasn’t spiritual as it was amazing.   The ruins are so complete and in such good condition that you could imagine the priests, priestesses, worshippers doing their daily duties.  Most fascinating was the ball court, which was much more massive than I expected.   The hoop on either side was at least 20 feet off the ground, not easy to get a ball into.   There are murals depicting the winner – or loser? – being decapitated and whose head is in the other’s hands.    Around the corner is the sacrificial altar which has skulls carved into it.   More macabre than I imagined.
 
The sacrifice well was very, very large, and I’m surprised that any civilization could have carved this out.   It was about the size of a large house, and apparently very deep.    I have pictures so check them out…
 
I spent over 3 hours wandering the site and just taking it all in, despite the heat.  I would have gone inside El Castillo but it was too hot to wait in line, and I wanted to beat the potential rain.   I did purchase a souvenir from someone I saw carving a totem, the only one who wasn’t trying to hock souvenirs for $1.   It cost me 100 pesos, about $9.   He was very appreciative and much more reserved than the other 90 young men trying to sell to me, and the fact that he was actually making them made me feel like I had something that wasn’t a machine copy, so I felt that experience was worth it.
 
The ride home was uneventful, and now as I recount the day’s events, a heavy storm has rolled in from the southeast.   The wind is incredibly heavy, and although it is only 6.30pm, it looks like night.   All of the trees are bending in the wind and even the windows in my hotel are bending slightly, the wind is loud enough to hear through the windows.    I think I’ll eat my dinner and watch the world fall apart… 
  
  
 

Mérida
 
Last night, I wandered the streets of Mérida as the rain subsided.   Paseo Montejo is a large tree lined boulevard with wide sidewalks and huge mansions – spectacularly beautiful, the mansions reminded me of New Orleans.   Not all of them are homes; in fact, Mexicana, ING and many restaurants take up shop in these former homes. 
 
At the end of the plaza was a little street festival called “Noche Mexicana.”  It was very charming with traditional musicians and dancers on stage, and beyond the seating were several booths with handicrafts, food and drink.  I had the best tostada I have ever had there, they must have deep fried the shell for a year it tasted so good.    I went to bed early, however, as I have a busy day ahead! 
 

Mérida, Mexico
 
This is the “capital” of the Yucatan, an old town that is the gateway to the Mayan culture.   To get here, you have to fly either through Mexico City or Cancun – on this trip, it was Mexico City.
 
The good part of the trip – no delays, I slept part way to Mexico City and nearly the entire way from Mexico City to Merida, and I was greeted at the airport and arrived quickly.
 
The bad part of the trip – screaming baby for at least half of the way to Mexico City; the Aeromexico gates for the flights to Merida were all together, and it made Southwest look organized and luxurious – I’ve never seen so many masses of people crowded in such a small space; it has rained nonstop since I arrived; and the hotel is average, a better fit compared to our hotels in the USA.
 
That being said, there seems to be a great deal of organization here about the Mayan culture and lots to do in Merida.  The staff gave me a great guide that says what is going on nightly, and tonight there is a traditional Mexican party happening in the centre of town.   As the rain seems to have subsided (perhaps only briefly), I think I will head down there.
 
Because it was raining, I went to OXXO (the Mexican 7-11) across the street and got some Sol beer and some chips to snack on to wait the weather out.   I was horrified to see at the Fiesta Americana next door is a Chili’s restaurant.  
 
Many more Americans here than I expected, about 10-15% of the flight here and there are many in the hotel.   It’s a weekend, so perhaps everyone is touring the Mayan ruins.  I guess I will find out tomorrow!
 
The airport is the nicest I’ve seen in Mexico.  It is small, but clean and I think relatively new.   Modern, good lighting, no trash or peeling paint.

Chicago

What an incredible city is Santiago.

On my last day in town, I took the day off and toured the city. I took the metro - only two years old, very clean and only C$320 (around 40 cents) one way - to the Centro. There, I went on a tour to...

La Maneda: home of the presidency, beautiful and well guarded
Museum of PreColumbian History: not huge, but some incredible artifacts
Place de los Armes: as usual, a beautiful Plaza with many old buildings and a bandshell
Mercado Central: market similar to those in Madrid, with restaurants, vegetables, fish
Bellavista: bohemian neighborhood with many art galleries and restaurants

At Place de los Armes, a concert was going on in the bandshell. The Santiago Instrumental Orchestra was playing a medley of Abba hits, which was a little unexpected but not bad.

Mercado Central is a cross between a flea market and an eatery, similar to Madrid's markets but also with a CampdenTown fleamarket built in. All the merchants kept trying to persuade me to eat at their restaurants, it got old so I left. When you cross the river, the flea market continues. Lots of produce and meats and nuts and fish as well as tshirts, pottery, incense, etc. It was cheap and I just made my way down the river until I got to the heart of Bellavista...

Bellavista is a colourful area, all the houses are painted different colours. Just beautiful, big trees. There are many neat restaurants and my full lunch with wine at one of th nicer places was C$9500, or US$15. Along Avendia Bellavista are many lapis lazuli vendors. The stone is indigenous to Chile and after a while you get bored seeing it, but it was neat to see all the vendors.

I then took the metro back to Las Condes - the very modern district where the Hyatt is - and went to Pune. It is such an incredible store, and I got my gifts there. Then I took a cab back, packed and headed home.

An incredible city... can't wait to go back. Beautiful, clean, great weather, safe...

Santiago

Last night I finally had some free time. The weather has been spectacular - the smog has been greatly reduced, and the sun is shining getting to a high of about 60 degrees. Incredible.

I walked up the street to a local shopping mall and it was like... a shopping mall. This country is so modern it is astonishing. They had a Laura Ashley, Polo Ralph Lauren, Hugo Boss, two Dunkin Donuts, a McDonalds, as well as some European brands - Zara, NRG, Lush, etc - on top of two department stores, a Carrefour (French grocery store) and a zillion cell phone stores. Chile may be far away, but it is certainly the most modern and safe place I've been to on my travels to Latin America so far.

The park is adjacent to this mall, so I walked up and looked at the incredible mountains as the sun started to fade. They are so HUGE. You can't miss them anywhere. It is like San Francisco being built on the edge of the Sierras, but the Sierras are 20,000 feet tall.

I walked through some of the adjacent streets to get a feeling for the neighborhood here. I am in "Las Condes" which, as I see on a map, is on the outer edge of the city. Modern, safe, everyone has cars and there are many high rise condo buildings.

Today I plan on taking the metro to the old town, then to an area called BellaVista across the river which is apparently very picturesque. I will then backtrack and go to Los Domenicos, which is a trade area with Chilean goods. Marcela, one of my colleagues here, took me to a very upscale store with nice Chilean things and if I can't find anything I like in Los Domenicos, I will go back there. My flight is at 8:30pm, so I better boogie...

Adios!

Hyatt Regency Santiago

A long week.

Santiago is an amazing city. I've only spent time at the Hyatt, with a little time at a local restaurant for dinner last night. But its appearance is a cross between Vancouver and Los Angeles. Vancouver for the modern buildings, green parks, and huge mountains literally adjacent to the city. Los Angeles for the smog, traffic and weather. Difference: the mountains are 20,000 feet tall and population is smaller than Los Angeles.

They have a drink here called Pisco Sour which is kind of like a liquor lemonade, very very good and not too sweet or tart. Very yummy. Last night at dinner I had a red wine known as "Carmenere" which apparently was brought from France to Chile, but was destroyed by a virus about 10 years ago. It now only exists in Chile and is a cross between a Merlot and a Cabernet Sauvignon. Delicious. For lunch I had the "Pastel de choclo" - a corn pie, which is a Chilean specialty. It is basically red meat, chicken, mushroom, onion and olives topped with corn bread and cooked in a crock. Delicious but quite heavy. Food and drinks: very good here!

The Hyatt Regency is a spectacular circular glass building with a floor to ceiling atrium that is 20 stories tall; there is also a rather vast garden and pool area behind it that makes it look like a resort, it is beautifully manicured. Neat hotel - the planned renovation will be spectacular, I saw the new rooms and they will be sleek, modern and simple. Love it.

I am fading fast. The weather is supposed to be good the rest of the days, and I get tomorrow afternoon and all day Friday to myself before I return to Chicago. I definitely want to come back here on vacation!

Santiago

Longest flight in history. Check this out:

Sat 14.00 hrs - arrive O'Hare Airport
Sat 14.10 hrs - check in and get to gate G23
Sat 15.00 hrs - gate change across airport to gate H18
Sat 16.00 hrs - flight delayed 1 1/2 hrs from 16.30 departure to 17.45 due to "weather"
Sat 18.00 hrs - flight departs for Dallas
Sat 20.15 hrs - flight arrives; flight to Santiago delayed until 22.10 departure
Sat 21.30 hrs - board plane
Sat 22.30 hrs - plane has malfunctioning fuel gauge
Sat 23.45 hrs - plane departs 1 1/2 hrs late
Sun 09.00 hrs - arrive in Santiago area, but smog; told we would circle for 45 mins
Sun 10.15 hrs - running out of gas, diverted to Mendoza, Argentina
Sun 11.30 hrs - land in Mendoza; refueling and checking weather in Santiago
Sun 11.45 hrs - told weather would not clear for 1 1/2 hrs; required to wait on plane
Sun 13.00 hrs - weather worsened; must stay in Argentina; airline talking to immigration
Sun 13.15 hrs - called Park Hyatt Mendoza, made reservation
Sun 14.00 hrs - still waiting for bus to terminal
Sun 14.30 hrs - in terminal, waiting to clear immigration; must return at 06.30 next day
Sun 15.00 hrs - arrive at Park Hyatt Mendoza
Mon 05.30 hrs - wake up
Mon 06.35 hrs - arrive at Mendoza Airport
Mon 07.35 hrs - flight crew arrives (!)
Mon 08.40 hrs - board plane
Mon 09.45 hrs - departure delayed due to unknown immigration problem on board
Mon 10.00 hrs - depart Mendoza
Mon 11.15 hrs - arrive Santiago
Mon 11.55 hrs - arrive Hyatt Regency Santiago

You count the hours. Long ass travel.

Good news: Mendoza as beautiful and wonderful as ever. Park Hyatt very accommodating. Santiago is warm, clear weather, city is very modern - similar to Vancouver but with 20,000 foot mountains. Long day of work today, work all week. Delayed return until Friday night so that I can see the city on Friday. More on it on Wednesday once I have energy!

Acapulco

A very cloudy morning. I don't think I'll get a chance to get much if any sun. I'll be the whitest person ever to leave Acapulco!

Schedule for today:

08.00 wake up!
08.30 go to health club
09.30 have breakfast
10.00 work on remaining outstanding items
11.00 go downstairs and check on things
12.00 begin packing for departure, post card for my niece, work
14.00 depart

hopefully there will be opportunity for some sun in between all of this!

Acapulco

Been in Acapulco for three days now. I've been working incredibly hard, it has not gone so well, but it is nearly over. Vacation starts tomorrow in California!

Weather has been sunny in the morning, rain late morning to early afternoon, then sun afternoon into the evening. Tomorrow I plan on going to the gym, then sitting in some sun and doing some final work before I leave for the airport around 1pm. The airport here is PINK. Very strange.

Ran into Julie Coker, the General Manager at the Hyatt Lodge in Oakbrook, yesterday at the pool. It was funny to see a familiar face so far away from home!

Humid night.... back to work.

Santiago International Airport - 7.30pm

I've just arrived in Santiago after a week in Argentina. It is such a beautiful country, but I'm also tired and ready to head home.

Two nights ago, I went to a leather shop to see if there was something I liked. A taxi took me there because it was far - about a 10 minute ride. After browsing for 20 minutes (they only sold jackets, what is up with that?!) they closed the store behind me as I walked down the street to call the hotel. OOPS! My cell phone can't call locally. I called Andy and had him keep me company (in Chicago) while I walked around the poorly lit city streets of Mendoza at night to find my way back home. No taxis were available. It was a bit unnerving, but as I collected my thoughts and remembered my city tour on day one and generally the direction from which the taxi dropped me off, I found my way back. 2 hours later! It was nice to walk around the town, however. Bustling with many college age kids.

Strange sight: I walked past a Shell gas station, and between the pumps and the mini-mart area was a SEATING AREA with umbrellas and seats. So you can have a coffee while you watch people pumping gas. It was packed with people. Bizarre - in any culture.

Last night the General Manager, Director of Sales and Reservations Manager took me to a restaurant near the hotel that was like a goods store. It had spices in glass boxes on the wall, a deli and a very nice wine room. And tables all over, so we ate inside this goods store. It was very nice, although the food was somewhat average.

I also tried this dessert called Dolce de Leche. It was delicious... they gave me a jar of it for my trip home!

Today I had a chance to take some photos as it was not raining. I will miss Argentina.

Tomorrow I will be home and glad to be. I am very tired, I have been traveling for two weeks living out of a suitcase. I look forward to relaxing over the weekend - and seeing Andy!

Mendoza

It is 5.30pm and I am on my way out the door to catch my ride to the airport. A good week of work, a lot to think about. I love this country so much!

I took a few photos today and can't wait to post them all so everyone can see. The mountains are full with snow, but they always get clouded as the sun gets higher in the sky so I don't have pictures of that.

The hotel gave me a gift... Dolce de Leche. It is kind of like caramel, wonderful stuff. Yum.

Ciao!

Park Hyatt Mendoza, Argentina

Wow. This is one of my favourite cities in the entire world.

Flying over the Andes was spectacular (although it was a bit unusual when the stewardess said "The Governement of Argentina wishes to inform you that it is required to spray an insecticide in the cabin prior to landing. This is non toxic and made of natural materials. Thank you." and then she sprayed the hallway). Landing at Mendoza airport was like landing at Lansing airport, it was so small!

I was picked up and driven through Mendoza. The city was so beautiful at twilight, there are antique lights all over and several squares which had art festivals. They have them every night! The architecture is like a cross between Spain and France, and many of the cars are from the 1950s (and in bad shape). Utterly charming. The Hyatt has a historic façade but is very modern and beautiful behind. Upon arrival, my amenity was a glass of wine filled with cherries and cinnamon. Yum.

This morning, Mario (my driver) picked me up and drove me around town. Over EVERY street the trees grow to make a natural tunnel, and all of the buildings are beautiful. Although a million people live here, it seems MUCH smaller. Behind Mendoza are the Andes, rising up to 20,000 feet. The world's tallest mountain outside of the Himalayas is right behind the city - it is called Acongagua at 22,841 ft. A spectacularly beautiful town.

After touring the town, we went to two wineries (also below the Andes and during the fall, so the leaf colours are amazing): Finca Flichman has all the modern techniques and equipement, a very impressive tour arranged just for me by the Park Hyatt. The second was Nieto Senetiner, much closer to the base of the Andes. We had an authentic Argentine barbeque outdoors at the winery, with amazing beef and empanadas. Delicious!

After all the wine and the warm temperature (about 80 degrees), I came home and had a massage. I realized how weak the currency is here after that, as an hour massage was A$90, or US$30. They have been through so much here, it is amazing. I read an article on the plane about Argentinians, now creative they are culturally to try and generate revenues. Ad hoc theatre, paintings, crafts and performance art.

After my massage, I walked to Plaza Espana and Plaza Independencia to hit the nightly art fairs. It was so charming and very romantic, and the whole city was out looking at all the booths. I bought so many gifts and spent only $30, including a beautiful handcrafted knife just for me at $20. The leather goods are incredibly beautiful and inexpensive.

This is everything I want in a city... nice weather, beautiful architecture, very green, near mountains, very cultural, great wine, inexpensive, wonderful people... what more could you want?

Back at the hotel, now I have to work. A wonderful day ending with work... A busy week ahead!

Dunkin' Donuts at Santiago International Airport

Arrived here and I've got a 4 hour layover. I slept for about half the flight; it was spectacular flying over the Andes, I took a couple digital pics from the plane that I will try and post. What a view.

As we neared Santiago, however, there was no view. The pollution is so thick you can cut it with a knife - and this is on a Saturday! The weather is great here, however, and I only wish that I could get outside - like the outdoor cocktail lounge at Palm Springs Airport.

I went here and realized as I ordered that I had no money - I ordered a sandwich (jamon y queso) and a café latté and it cost me C$2,900. That's US$4.60, ridiculous. I put it on my corporate Diner's Club. How funny will that look! My phone works here now, and I kind of expected it would. As difficult as some of the economies are in South America, Chile has remained the strongest. That the airport is nice and has free (2 hour "trial") WiFi is a plus! There is a range of shops located in the concourse here, and they are all actually rather nice. Frankly, it is the nicest airport I've seen in South America and Mexico. You'd put it right up there with the nice airports in the States or Europe.

I have some leftover Brazilian Reias (R$56=US$18). I hope I can use it again, I won't even bother to exchange it because it isn't worth the fee.

Every day I am checking www.rassmussenreports.com to see how the LATEST dipshit scandal is affecting the President's popularity. Will Americans finally realize the danger in his blind convictions, and how nuts his foaming-at-the-mouth Secretary of Defense is? In Brazil everyone asked me what I thought, saying "your President is crazy!" Of course, they added theirs wasn't much better either...

Next stop... Argentina!