South America adventure Oct/Nov 2018 part 4

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Mendoza, Argentina

Aconcagua

During our initial trip planning we researched to see how long it takes to get to Mendoza from Santiago.  By plane it is in the neighborhood of 12 hours; flying to Buenos Aires on the Atlantic coast then back to Mendoza, connections are poor at best which is the reason for the 12 hours.  Google maps says it can be driven in 5.

Road trip.

South American adventure Oct/Nov 2018 part 3

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Santiago, Chile

Cerro Santa Lucia statue

We fly from Cuzco to Lima then on to Santiago Chile, this is a travel day; ending at 430 AM the next day in Santiago.  Santiago is another 3.5 hours south of Lima by plane.  The size of this continent is becoming very apparent to me with our flying times adding up as we continue south.

This portion of our adventure is where we will get to know the customs officials between Chile and Argentina.  We will be renting cars on and off during the remainder of the trip negotiating the borders several times.

South American adventure Oct/Nov 2018 part 2

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Cuzco, Peru

Machu Picchu

To our surprise the van taking us to the airport is on time.  Here is where I find out not all airport security is the same; we are allowed to bring water through the TSA line.  Once through that, and at the appropriate time, we all got up to stand in line to board the plane, no ‘zones’ or ‘groups’ for boarding.  Once we are all in place, seat belts clicked, an announcement is made; we get wait another 45 minutes before departing.