We plan to spend much of the next week around the city of Mendoza, the largest western city in Argentina. It’s known for its wine so we’ll do a tour or two of a vineyard, and there’s a restaurant Layne wants to eat in and she has a cooking class planned. Making reservations and traveling on a tight schedule stresses me out so she’s handling details.
I met a woman from Bariloche a couple of weeks ago, traveling in her pick up with a camper shell and we fell to talking about life in Argentina. Hers was just another story of bureaucracy rendered inoperative by staffing cuts, costs out of sight and all round diminished expectations. When I remarked I saw the same future in the US she took my arm and said “Don’t feel guilty about living down here and traveling. We each have to cope as we can.” And her words keep rattling around in my head. As much as I feel a fraud for keeping going I don’t see the point of going home to face people in red caps rejoicing in the wholesale destruction of the places and institutions and lives that I value. I’ll end up in jail. With that in mind here are a few photos of things I’ve seen that I like as we meander toward Mendoza. I hope they help.
Classic campground grill used by all Argentine campers:
Here’s a thought. How to plug in to shorepower in a 220 volt country. We haven’t seen US standard 110 volt systems since we left Ecuador and each country uses a different style of plug which is absurd so we carry a bag of adapters. Below is the adapter we use to plug into Argentine sockets and that is the correct way up.
Our Up/Down converter we bought in Chile after our original 800watt box proved to small to charge our batteries and burned out. This one is rated at 2000 watts and doesn’t even get warm when plugged in to GANNET2. It has a Chilean plug (below) as well bought it in Chile.
So we need an adaptor for the Chilean plug (above) to plug into a US cable (below) to connect it to the Argentine power outlet up at the top. Confused yet?
Then I have to make sure the box is ready to receive 220 volts (below). We use a lot of electricity aboard GANNET2 to avoid carrying propane. Gas is a problem for travelers as some countries use butane which requires different burners for long term use. Plus every country has its own set of attachments to allow filling. So we went all electric to keep it simple.
However that means where we sit still for a while we like to be able to plug into shorepower. And this is how we do it. I have heard some parts of Brazil use 110 volts so that will be interesting to see.
Europeans use 220 volts so they can plug into 110 volt systems and their appliances just run slowly. If we plug into to 220 volts we wreck everything. So you need to pay attention. The box weighs about twenty pounds and I am very glad to have it.
When we plug into shorepower to shorepower we avoid running heavy appliances like the stove or air fryer or the rooftop air conditioner. We just use shorepower to charge our batteries as we can run everything off our onboard inverter. Campground electrical system blow fuses very easily if over use them.
Christoph gave me a tour of his Unimog a vehicle designed by Mercedes for the military and widely adapted for use by overlanders.
It’s too big and too complex for me but it is a home on wheels with a shower and hot water and 120 gallons of water. He bought it used and upgraded it, testing his improvements driving around Europe over the past four years. It broke a drive shaft on arrival in Chile so no one is immune to breakdowns.
He and Monika are web designers by trade and with their home in Austria rented they put Starlink on the roof and travel. Everywhere they go they get involved in the local Salsa dancing scene. If there are no signs of life around Mambo the Unimog it’s best to assume they were yo till dawn dancing.
