Salta and beyond

Apologies for the lack of updates on my blog in recent days.

I arrived in Salta early on the morning of Friday, October 1 after catching the overnight bus from La Rioja. After a busy few days all I wanted to do was chill out and relax. I was staying at the Hostel San Jorge which literally means Saint George on account of the English owner.

Salta is in the northwest region of Argentina and is the capital of the Salta province. It is situated in the Lerma Valley at the foothills of the Andes Mountains.

In the centre of downtown Salta there’s the Plaza 9 de Julio, ringed by orange trees, cafes, bars and the Iglesia Catedral church; a nice place to while away a few hours walking around, having something to eat and people watching.

An orange tree and the Iglesia Catedral church in Plaza 9 de Julio.

On my first night in Salta the hostel had an amazing asado (BBQ) following which a few of us headed to the lively Balcarce district which is packed with restaurants, bars and clubs. We had a few drinks in a bar which was playing live folk-music before calling it a night.

Asado Hostel San Jorge style.

I spent the majority of Saturday just hanging out at the hostel, catching up on emails, Skyping and updating my blog. Paul (from Amsterdam) Caroline and myself then headed back to Balcarce for something to eat.

On Sunday I visited the Museo de Arqueologia de Alta Montana which houses the almost perfectly preserved remains of three children, a 15-year-old-girl, a seven-year-old-boy and a six-year-old-girl along with the objects found with them at an altitude of 6700m on the Llullailaco volcano.

The exhumation of the children, ritually sacrificed approximately 500 years ago was and still is controversial. The museum exhibits one child at a time, changing the display every six months. The six-year-old-girl, nicknamed ‘La niña del rayo’ (the lightening girl) on account that at some point during her 500 years at the summit of Llullailacon she was struck by lightning, partially burning part of her body and artefacts left with her, was on display at the time of my visit.

I’m not really sure how I feel about the exhumation and subsequent displaying of the children but to see something so ancient was an amazing experience.

On Sunday evening I made the short journey by bus to San Salvador de Jujuy from where I had planned to visit the nearby villages of Pumamarca, Tilcara and Humahuaca before heading for La Quiaca where I would cross the border into Bolivia. However, I had already spent longer than anticipated in Argentina and with the Inca Trail booked for October 17 I made the decision to head straight for La Quiaca.

I arrived in the border town of La Quiaca around midday where I took a taxi to the frontier with Bolivia. After receiving my exit stamp for Argentina I walked across the short bridge into Villazón, Bolivia where after a short wait I obtained my entry stamp. From here I took a taxi to the bus terminal and the first available bus to Tupiza.

The relative luxury I’d become accustomed to on Argentinian buses with their semi-cama, cama and ejecutivo options, onboard toilet, food and TV’s was gone. I was in Bolivia now. Having paid the $15 Bolivianos bus fare (around £1.50) we set off on the two-and-a-half hour journey to Tupiza.

To be fare the bus was OK, the road on the other hand, if that’s what you can call it was something else. The entire journey was along a gravel track which snaked its way up and down and around mountains. The entire time we were being shaken up and down and from side to side, if the bus had suspension it had long since ceased working. However, despite my bitching the scenery was spectacular and we arrived in Tupiza on schedule.