Tango y Vino: They go hand in hand

They picked us up at ten o'clock in front of the Hyatt, and since ten was far too early we took little naps on the way to the La Bodega Norton. After a welcome glass of champagne, we embarked on a tour of their expansive winery. The tour guide allowed us to try the wine at each step, which I thought was the most interesting part. We tried very young wine straight from the spigot of a giant stainless steel tank. It tasted like very bland grape juice. We continued into the room where the wine gets "oaked" (spends time in oak barrels), this is where the sharp taste in the back of your cheeks comes from, and the wine was better but my friend Jon turned to me and said "I still prefer the finished product" while another friend, Deven, said "tastes like cigarettes." Next we went into a chic tasting room and tasted the finished product. This was a great way to illuminate the wine-making process. The view of the Andes from the winery was unimaginable. I can't wait to go back in the spring.

We had a light, delicious lunch of finger foods and wine then rested in the sun until tango class. Picture it, the looming Andes mountains to the west, dried vines in perfect rows and columns in the foreground, and a beautiful bodega to the east...grass below, the sun above. It couldn't have been better.

Tango class was a blast. The instructor explained that there is a marriage between wine and tango...they even have competitions where people will watch a couple dance the tango and guess exactly how the dancers feel about the wine they like down to the aromas it renders. Or at least that's what I heard. The tango is very fun because the man leads and the woman follows a series of clues. The partners mirror each other, then there are opportunites for one partner to shine. For example, the woman will draw a figure-eight on the floor with her feet and the man can change her direction, signal her to stop, or take it in a different direction entirely. It's a communication without words, the instructor repeated. Pat, my dance partner and I had a great time trying to figure it out, and now I am considering taking a tango class at school, for credit.

The walk home entertained me a lot, the streets were jam packed with chaos...people selling baby carriages, wind up toys, dolls, clothes, underwear, watches, and anything else you could imagine. Cars honking, and people yelling. I believe "el dia de los ninos" is coming up, people are scrambling for some gifts. After siesta on saturdays, people are out and about in mass.

In other news, I lost my phone at the bar the other night. I thought putting it in my boot was a good idea, but apparently it was not. Luckily it was only $30 or so in the first place. It's hard to get around without a cell phone because if people want to go out or visit you, you have to plan it in advance and only if you're lucky enough to see them. Ha ha. Lo que sea.