Monday, February 13, 2023

It’s my 42nd birthday!

Andi, Tory, and Aden slipped out early this morning to grab breakfast treats from Unser Traum, a bakery in downtown San Martin de Los Andes. Also while at the bakery this morning, Andi, Tory, Aden picked up a little surprise for me — a birthday cake. Never having been very skilled at keeping secrets, Aden whispered to me over breakfast, “I won’t tell you what your cake looks like, Mom, but I will tell you it’s actually made of brownies.”

We enjoyed a variety of croissants and a lemon custard-filled danish for breakfast. Andi and I decided the croissants in Argentina are a cross between a donut and croissant with a sugary glaze coating over the soft bread. They are sticky, sweet, and delicious.

After breakfast and a little time for school at the airbnb, the four of us walked into town together. San Martin de Los Andes is such a cute place. Located on the shores of Lácar Lake and within the perimeter of Lanín National Park, the quaint mountain town is home to about 35,000 residents. It’s population swells even more so with its many visitors. San Martin de Los Andes is the northern-most town on the popular Ruta De Los Siete Lagos scenic drive.

During our walk in town, we stopped by the town square and the meat market to buy the ingredients for a picnic lunch tomorrow. Many German and Swiss immigrants settled in this area in the late 1800’s which is noticeable in the town’s architecture. Tory said the town reminds her a lot of Colorado. There’s definitely a outdoor rec / mountain vibe going on here.

The city, of course, is named for Juan de San Martin — the infamous general who helped liberate Argentina from Spain.

By 1:30pm, we were all hungry for lunch, but couldn’t find a restaurant that suited our fancy. Every restaurant that came highly recommended had lines out the door. We walked the entire Main Street before making our way toward Lake Lacar on the edge of town hoping to find a restaurant without a big line. Fortunately, we stumbled upon an entire food truck courtyard with about 10 different options for lunch. The wind was something fierce today, with gusts upwards to 40 mph. Andi and I worried the tin shelter housing the food trucks might blow away! It was really rattling.

Andi and I decided to split two savory crepes for lunch — one vegetarian and the other with pulled pork. Tory wanted a dulce de leche crepe with bananas, and Aden wanted chicken nuggets and fries. The woman working the crepes counter wasn’t very friendly to Andi when he tried to order in English. She snapped, “You are in Argentina, you need to speak Spanish.” He doesn’t get too worked up about that sort of thing, but I was mortified.

Good thing their food was good — worth the effort.

For dessert, we decided to go back to our airbnb to have cake. Andi, Tory, and Aden sang “Happy Birthday” to me which made my day. So thankful for this life, and these three loves of mine.

The brownie cake Andi and the kids picked out was downright sinful! The cake had a dense brownie base filled with dulce de leche and a seriously impressive meringue topping. Wow! It’s safe to say, Argentines do not mess around with their desserts.

Andi treated me to a professional massage on my birthday, so at 4:00pm I made my way to Serenity Spa. I was proud of myself for communicating the entire conversation in Spanish. I’m far from fluent in the language, but I’m working on it! She seemed to understand me. After I had my hour-long massage, Andi took a turn. We agreed afterwards that the massages weren’t as good as home, but better than we expected. We are so spoiled in the USA with soft linens and the ultimate discretion. That just doesn’t typically happen in other countries — though these massages cost $12/each so we can’t really complain.

Andi made dinner reservations at Totino — a sushi and Italian restaurant. Quite the combo, right? Andi ordered several rolls of sushi for he and I to share; Tory and Aden split a bowl of gnocchi with red sauce. The sushi was just OK; nothing fancy. Like always, we were all tired and ready for bed about 30 minutes BEFORE our check came. I think we need to be more like Argentinians and drink afternoon mate to help us stay away past 9:00pm.

Tomorrow, another day in San Martin de Los Andes. Andi and I are thinking road-trip: we’re craving nature. Stay tuned….