Mendoza is a city in the west of Argentina, and the capital of the Mendoza Province. As per the 2001 census [INDEC] it has about 111,000 inhabitants, plus 800,000 in its metropolitan area, making it the fourth-largest conurbation in Argentina. This is a list of cities in Argentina. ... Argentina consists of 23 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia), and 1 federal district (Capital Federal *). Capital Federal * Buenos Aires Catamarca Chaco Chubut Córdoba Corrientes Entre Ríos Formosa Jujuy La Pampa La Rioja Mendoza Misiones Neuquén Río Negro Salta San Juan San Luis Santa Cruz Santa Fe Santiago... Mendoza is one of the 23 provinces of Argentina, located in the western central part of the country in the Cuyo region. ... Departments (Spanish: departamentos) form the second level of administrative division in the provinces of Argentina. ... A demonym or gentilic is a word that denotes the members of a people or the inhabitants of a place. ... The Argentine postal code is a system that assigns at least an unique alphanumeric postal codes to each municipality. ... ISO 3166-2:AR is an ISO standard which defines geocodes: it is the subset of ISO 3166-2 which applies to Argentina. ... A telephone numbering plan is a system that allows subscribers to make and receive telephone calls across long distances. ... Argentina made major changes to its telephone numbering plan in 1999, after its telephone system was privatized. ... A mayor (from the Latin māior, meaning larger,greater) is the politician who serves as chief executive official of some types of municipalities. ... A political party is an organization that seeks to attain political power within a government, usually by participating in electoral campaigns. ... The Radical Civic Union (Unión Cívica Radical, or UCR) is the foremost opposition party in Argentina. ... Mendoza is one of the 23 provinces of Argentina, located in the western central part of the country in the Cuyo region. ... 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... A census is the process of obtaining information about every member of a population (not necessarily a human population). ... National Institute of Statistics and Censuses (Spanish Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos, INDEC) is the Argentine state institution responsible for the collection and processing of census and statistical data, created in 1968. ... A metropolitan area is a large population center consisting of a large city and its adjacent zone of influence, or of several neighboring cities or towns and adjoining areas, with one or more large cities serving as its hub or hubs. ...

Mendoza is on a major road between Argentina and Chile. It is a frequent stopover for climbers heading up Aconcagua (the highest mountain in the Western Hemisphere) or for other mountaineering, hiking, horseback riding, rafting, and outdoor activities. In the winter, skiers come to the city for its easy access to the Andes. The Cerro Aconcagua is located in Argentina and is the highest mountain in The Americas and the Southern Hemisphere, as well the highest peak outside of Asia and one of the Seven Summits. ... Mountaineering is the sport or hobby or profession of walking, hiking and climbing up mountains. ... Beautiful natural scenes are common hiking destinations Hiking is a form of walking, undertaken with the specific purpose of exploring and enjoying the scenery. ... horse, see Horse (disambiguation). ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Whitewater. ... A twin-tip shaped downhill ski. ... The Andes between Chile and Argentina Computer generated image of the Andes, made from a digital elevation model with a resolution of 30 arcseconds The Andes is a vast mountain range forming a continuous chain of highland along the western coast of South America. ...

One of the main industries of the Mendoza area is wine making. Another large industry is olive oil production. Argentine wine, as with many aspects of Argentine cuisine, has its roots in Spain. ... For the cartoon character, see Olive Oyl. ...

Culture

The grape harvest is marked each year by the Vendimia festival, taking place in early March, in which 17 beauty queens (one for each provincial departament) are nominated, and one winner is selected by a panel of about 50 judges. The queen from Mendoza City cannot be chosen because she acts as host for all other queens. Mendoza City proper does not have vineyards. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Mendoza has an intense cultural activity, and the city is a main center for professional congresses and meetings. There are several museums, the main ones being the Museo Cornelio Moyano (a natural history museum) and the Museo del Área Fundacional (Foundation Area Museum, historical). In Maipú, 15 km southeast from Mendoza, there is the Museo Nacional del Vino (National Wine Museum), which focuses on the history of winemaking in the area. In Mayor Drummond, 14 km south from Mendoza, there is the Emiliano Guiñazú - Casa de Fader art museum, hosted in a 1890 mansion where many walls have paintings by the artist Fernando Fader.

Urban structure

General San Martín Park in Mendoza.

The city center has many trees, watered by small canals which run alongside many of the roads providing welcome shade. The city is centered around the Plaza Independencia, with a pedestrian street, Sarmiento St., running through the center. Other major streets, running perpendicular to Sarmiento, are 9 de Julio St., San Martín Avenue, and running parallel to Sarmiento are avenues Colón, Arístides Villanueva and Las Heras. Many small parks, known as "plazas" are spread within the city. Three of these are Plaza Espaňa, Plaza Independencia and Plaza Fundacional. Download high resolution version (981x674, 194 KB)Mendoza, Park of General San Martin. ... Download high resolution version (981x674, 194 KB)Mendoza, Park of General San Martin. ... José Francisco de San Martín (25 February 1778 – 17 August 1850) was an Argentine general and the prime leader of the successful struggle for independence from Spain of the southern nations of South America. ...

Located West of the city is the Parque San Martin (San Martin Park). It was designed by the world renowned architect Thays. On its premises you can find soccer stadiums, a zoo, the main university (Universidad Nacional de Cuyo) and a monument that commemorates the cross of the Andes by San Martin and his army. A view of the city is available from the top of the hill "Cerro de la Gloria".

There are many Internet cafes and outdoor equipment supply stores. Some places offer wi-fi technology. There are also many bars on Aristídes Villanueva Avenue, that are really active during the weekends.

Climate

Mendoza has very dry summers with wetter winters. Average temperatures for January (summer) are 35 °C (95 °F) during daytime, and 23 °C (73 °F) at night. For July (winter), the average temperatures are 12 °C (53 °F) and 3 °C (38 °F), respectively.

Transportation

By bus, Mendoza is 1,037 kilometres from Buenos Aires (14 hours by bus) and 380 kilometres from Santiago, Chile (6 hours). Mendoza has also a new International Airport. It takes less than 2 hours to fly from Buenos Aires and less than 1 hour by plane from Santiago de Chile. Buenos Aires (English: Fair Winds, originally Ciudad de la Santísima Trinidad y Puerto de Santa María de los Buenos Aires, City of the Holy Trinity and Port of Saint Mary of the Fair Winds) is the capital of Argentina and its largest city and port, as well as... Santiagos Metropolitan Cathedral Santiago (Spanish: (help· info)) is Chiles capital and largest city. ...

Mendoza public transport system includes buses, trolleys and taxi-cabs. Trolleys are slightly cheaper and more comfortable than city buses but not as widespread.

Trans-Andean Railway

Mendoza developed because of its position on the South Trans-Andean Railway where the Argentine and Chilean rail lines link. This line is currently out of use, but there are plans (2006) to restore it.

External links

• Photos of Mendoza and surroundings
• Los Andes newspaper online edition
• Uno newspaper, online edition, in Spanish
• El Sol newspaper (5 issues every week, Monday to Friday)

References

In Spanish.

• Municipality of Mendoza - Official website.
• Tourism office
• Municipal information - Municipal Affairs Federal Institute (IFAM), Municipal Affairs Secretariat, Ministry of Interior, Argentina.