Summer in the city

 Summer time, and the living in Mendoza is definitely easy.  Its buildings are not the most attractive in the world – the old ones were destroyed by earthquakes. But life is lived on the streets, not in the buildings. The heat of the day is offset by thousands of trees that shade every street and restful square in the city centre, watered by irrigation canals that separate road and pavement.  And a huge park, almost as big as the city centre, provides a landscaped, leafy recreation area.

After dark, when it is very slightly cooler than the day, the squares are full of families at play, entertained by impromptu theatre and music performances or just chatting with friends. They are happy and relaxed and so am I.

It is light until 9pm and in summer, the warmth of the day relaxes into long, balmy nights. This is a European city in South America, but a very different one to Buenos Aires.  Though it was established several centuries ago, the 19^th and early 20^th century immigrants from Spain and, especially, Italy have made this city their own.

In the heat of Mendoza, I begin to understand the rhythm of Argentinean life; it revolves around food.  A light breakfast -  usually a sweet croissant and coffee anytime up to 10.30.  Lunch around 1 or 2pm followed by the afternoon siesta, with shops reopening at 4 or 5pm.  Around 6 or 7pm another snack is called for, coffee and cake, or Italian ice-cream, or a glass of wine and antipasto. No self-respecting Mendozan would dine before 10pm, and by 11, restaurants and bars, their tables spilling out onto the streets are full. Along with the town’s wonderful ice-cream bars they do a roaring trade until the early hours of the morning – or maybe later.  By 2am, my northern European time clock has given up, and I head for bed.