Just got back from our trip to Salta and Jujuy provinces in Argentina. It was an incredible time with sites and views unlike any that I have ever seen. On the first day (Thursday), we flew into Salta mid-afternoon and spent the rest of the day there. We went to a school to bring supplies and visit the students. I made a friend and his name was Leonardo. He was quite the charmer and loved my sunglasses and getting his picture taken:
After the school we were able to visit some of the older churches in Salta. The first was the Catedral Basilica de Salta. It was absolutely stunning. The church bells were rung in beautiful melodies by a group of men in the bell tower. I loved the architecture and intricate designs both inside and outside of the pink church.
That night we went to a restaurant called "La Chueca," where we ate some delicious empanadas and I had locro, a traditional northwestern stew with veggies and meat. The flavors were bold and quite spicy and I enjoyed every spoonful.
We spent Thursday night in Salta at the Posada Angelus hotel. On Friday, we woke up bright and early and headed 4 hours out to the province of Jujuy. The mountains went on for miles. As we drove through the windy roads and farther up the mountains, the increasing altitudes started to make me dizzy and feel weak. Fortunately I had brought some excedrin and after one of those I was able to walk around and felt better. The natives and often travelers will chew on coca leaves or drink mate coca so help alleviate some of the side effects of altitude sickness. The locals are all humble yet incredibly proud of their land and who they are as a people. Here was our first stop in Jujuy in front of some of the mountains at the foothills of the Andes:
Then we went to the highest point in Jujuy, Cuesta del Lipán at 4170m.o.s.l. This was where most the girls and myself had the most trouble breathing, but it was absolutely gorgeous and worth it. The air was so pure and the wind was a nice chilly break from the summer warmth below.
Here is Kalon standing at the highest point!
Kalon, me and Catie jumping at the Cuesta del Lipán!
We continued on to the Salinas Grandes (salt lakes) in Jujuy where we saw some neat wildlife and some of the actual mountains of the Andes from afar. The animals below are called vicuñas. These are one of two wild South American camelids found in the high alpine areas of the Andes. Don't get too close though, as they can be aggressive.
The salt lakes were unlike anything I have ever seen. You could see the reflection of the sky but needed sunglasses as it was bright like snow. We walked across the salt lake with bare feet. It felt like a smooth salt rub that you'd pay big bucks for at Bath & Body Works... and here I was getting a pedicure rub for free! My skin was so smooth after and the salt was so clean and natural. It was truly amazing.
Cameron, Samantha, Kalon, Fallon, Adrianne, and me... walking on the salt lake!
After the salt lakes we drove to Purmamarca, Jujuy to eat lunch and hike the Montaña de los siete colores. We tried llama for lunch (which tasted similar to meat but a bit more gamey) at Las Cañitas. This restaurant was a family's house opened to the public for some local eats. The hike was really neat with the different colored mountains. The red clay-like mountain contrasted with the teal colored mountains and they seemed to go on for miles.
The pictures are great but nothing in comparison to the real thing. I wish the pictures did justice to the true beauty of this site.
We left for Tilcara after the hike to check into our hotel, Vientonorte. We ate dinner at La Carmela that night and tried the local tamales, empanadas, and locro. Once again, the flavors were robust and unique to the Northwest. We spent some time out in the center of the town for Carnaval.
Below are some locals from Tilcara in the central square. They have flour on their face. It is a tradition of Carnaval in the Northwest as it is a time of celebrating fertility of the land and flour comes from wheat which comes from the earth.
Here is a view from my hotel room in Tilcara the next morning:
On Saturday we visited Pucará de Tilcara, a fortress about 900 years old and strategically built on the Quebrada de Humahuaca. It was an ideal place on top of a hill to defend against attacks. There are various houses that were built to blend in with the mountain, a church, places for sacred ceremonies, and areas for llamas to roam.
After Tilcara on Saturday, we made our way to Humahuaca, a small town in Jujuy. On our way we drove over the Tropic of Capricorn (Southern Tropic) one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth.
When we arrived in Humahuaca, it appeared to be another quiet little town...
However, things soon would change. We noticed lots of flour, baby powder and cans of foam spray being sold. We saw people covered in powder but just assumed they must be celebrating Carnaval pretty hard.... until someone ran up behind me and powdered my entire face with a huge handful of flour. Initially, I was so mad because I was the first and only person with flour all over my face, sunglasses, hair, clothing, etc. until more people came and started throwing flour and spraying the rest of the group with flour and foamy spray. Ruben, our program director, decided we needed revenge and bought all of us bags of flour, baby powder, and foam bottles. When we got over the fact that we were going to be quite dirty it was so fun. People of all ages were participating and celebrating Carnaval in a very mischievous yet playful manner. We got some people good and then when we ran out of supplies, those people came back for us! It was a great day even though we had a five hour bus ride after back to Salta... covered in powder, flour, and foamy soap.
I managed to get one picture of me and Tori partway through the day:
We were absolutely covered but I must say, I have not had that much fun in a long time!
Here is a picture of the Carnaval spray and a bag of flour:
When we arrived back in Salta, we celebrated Kalon's birthday and then went out to dinner at the Casa de Güemes where a show was performed with dancing and live music.
The next morning we woke up and visited the MAAM museum (Museum of High Altitude Archaeology) with naturally preserved mummies of multiple Inca sacrifices that were discovered in the high Andes right ouside of Salta. There are three different mummies but only one is out at a time and they are rotated every 3 months to keep them preserved as the AC and presence of people can ruin them. Here is a picture of the boy mummy that was sacrificed when he was about five years old.
(I did not take this picture but got it off the internet as security was tight and cameras weren't allowed.)
After the museum we visited the market. There was not much open as it was Sunday. A few of the girls ended up quite ill over the course of the trip with 72 hours of stabbing pains in the abdomen, fevers, and fainting. I am not sure if it was the food, the water, or a bug. I am glad I didn't get it though and am knocking on wood in hopes that I stay healthy for my Spring Break trip to Uruguay.
The plane ride back was nice. They give you drinks (with refills), crackers, a shortbread lemon cookie, and alfajores. Not too shabby for a two hour flight, especially in comparison to the US flights where you are lucky to get 3 pretzels if it is an extra long flight :P
I am now off to Punta del Este, Uruguay until Sunday! I was unable to do laundry today though as it is a national holiday today and tomorrow so nobody works. We are planning on stocking up on some staple foods before we leave to cook in the hostel as food over there on the beach can be a bit more expensive. The Buquebus boat leaves at midnight and we will get to Colonia, Uruguay where we will take a bus to Punta del Este. I am hoping the weather clears out for us, it is a bit rainy today.
