Sitting inside would turn out to be, by far, the least of my problems that night

Rafael and Gustavo had extended the invitation to join them at the dinner party they were hosting that night. Look at me with multiple plans! Unfortunately, I had to decline because I had confirmed with Marisa that I would join her for a wine dinner at the Park Hyatt Mendoza. You may recall that Marisa had very kindly offered to host me in her apartment in Mendoza, after we had randomly met in a tasting room earlier that week.

Rafael and I stopped at a roadside market and a supermarket so he could pick up some last-minute items for their dinner party that evening.

Since it was my last night with Marisa, I wanted to give her a hostess gift. Throughout our conversations, Marisa had shared how much she missed cooking. She couldn’t bear to use the pots and pans in her rental because they were so crappy. At the supermarket, Rafael and I picked out a nice pan. We headed back to the house to pick up Gustavo so they could both drop me off at the Park Hyatt where Marisa and I had made plans to meet.

Reflecting on the ride back into the city, I decided that I absolutely loved being outside of Mendoza. The countryside is dotted with vineyards which is what I had originally imagined Mendoza to be. Mendoza proper is actually a city and the wineries are a good drive outside of the city limits.

Rafael, Gustavo and I said goodbye outside of the Park Hyatt promising to stay in touch (spoiler alert: we have). I crossed the busy street and headed up the elegant staircase into the hotel. As the doormen welcomed me into the grand lobby, I realized I was under dressed and I couldn’t do anything about it.

I was wearing a long skirt, a cotton tank top and flip-flops. I hadn’t had a chance to put a brush through my hair since the morning. Not only did my attire help me stand out but the daypack and plastic supermarket bag with a gift wrapped cooking pot was far from discreet.

Finding a table on the outdoor patio was my first mission. This way, I could hide my bags and footwear under the table. Problem was, all of the outdoor tables were high tops.

Sitting inside would turn out to be, by far, the least of my problems that night.