Bolivia Altiplano

After crossing into Bolivia (which involved a small adventure where we were directed to the take-your-shoes-off-and-walk-across-the-river border instead of the international-bridge-with-immigration-police border), it was straight to Tupiza where we wanted to start one of the classic Land Cruiser tours of the altiplano and salt flats. Although it's a lot of hours spent in a car, we had a great guide and the landscape is enough to make up for pretty much anything.

Gaining altitude out of Tupiza. Most of the tour was at 4000m or more.

Lunch stop with lots of (not pictured) llamas.

The second morning we woke around 4:30am since we had a long way to go. Also, since the accomodations are really isolated, it's impossible to make reservations so all the drivers go as fast as they can to make sure they get there first and we have somewhere to stay.

Colonial ruins.

The early wake up meant explored some colonial ruins as the sun was rising. The Spanish founded this town, probably in the 1500s, to exploit the mines in the mountain above it. The last inhabitant only abandoned it about 20 years ago.

One of many lagunas.

The general rhythm was in the land cruiser for a couple hours, bumping around with a minor headache due to the altitude, gawking over all the sights, yelling 'baby llama' every time we saw a baby llama (our driver Carmelo was really into this) and then stopping for 10 minutes to stretch and take lots of photos. And then repeat.

Volcan Licancabur, marking the border of Bolivia and Chile.

One particularly cool stop were the 'fumaroles'. You get out of the car to the pungent sulfur smell, and there are these billowing clouds of steam getting blown along by the wind, and then pits of mud (or whatever it is) are bubbling and boiling everywhere. Plus it's Bolivia so you can just walk around wherever you want, although our driver did advise to maintain at least 1m of distance!

Mud pit #1.

Mud pit #2.

Laguna Colorada (with flamingos).

Our second night we slept nearby the above Laguna Colorada.

Sunrise.

Not sure what the idea was here.

Flamencos!

Next day we passed more crazy lagunas with tons of flamingos. That night we slept in a salt hotel right next to the huge Salar de Uyuni. We woke up early (as usual) and were the first out on the salar to watch the sunrise. Once it warmed up a bit, and we ate breakfast, it was time to take lots of crazy photos! Carmelo was very enthusiastic and insisted on taking all kinds of photos of us.

Big beer!

Big Oli!

Yum!

Then, it was over! We got to ride on the roof heading off the salar. After one night in Uyuni, Virginia and I headed to Potosi, and then Sucre. Which, may or may not ever be blogged about.

On the roof!

Northern Argentina: Cordoba and Valles Calchaquies

After a night bus from Buenos Aires to Cordoba - the Culture Capital of the World (?) - Ross, Oli and I (Virginia) spent the first of 3 HOT days relaxing and taking long siestas in the local style, from 1 to 4:30 PM. The next morning, we were ready for a bit more activity and went to Alta Gracia, both the site of a Jesuit Estancia (ranch) and Che Guevera´s adolescent home.

We rented bikes for the afternoon, biked around in the hills, swam in a little laguna, and then visited Che Guevera´s adolescent home. It was cool, and there was stuff like the motorcycle Che rode across South America in (like in The Motorcycle Diaries).







A couple of days later, we had made it into las Valles Calchaquies, and, with a group of friends, found a nice man to drive us from a small town that I don't remember the name of to Quilmes, a really big complex of pre-Incan ruins. The Quilmes people resisted the Incas, then the Spanish for something like 100 years, until the Spanish forced them to march from Quilmes all the way to Buenos Aires (something like 1500km).  There, they created Quilmes, the typical Argentinian Beer (see previous post, part about Choripans). 


Cacti are large.

Ross and Oli eating a grapefruit in the shade.



In the ruins, there were lots of cactuces, they were really big. Round these parts, they make churches out of cactus wood, how cool is that?



Vinyards.  Good wine.  Irrigated by canal below (maybe).











Cafayate is the second largest wine producing region in Argentina.  There are lots of vinyards, and lots of wine.  We went horseback riding for an afternoon, and saw a pre-incan irrigation channel that is 12 km long, bringing water down from the mountains, that they still use to irrigate vinyards.

Horseback riding next to vinyard watering canals.

 






The next day, with lots of dutch friends, we rented bikes, put them on a bus up the Quedebra de las Conchas for 50km, then got off and biked back to Cafayate.  We saw lots of cool rocks, most of them were red like the devil, and the bike ride was really fun and scenic (and mostly downhill).

This is the Garganta del Diablo (Devil´s throat).  There are many Gargantas del diablo in Argentina, and some deserve the name more than others, but this one definitely deserved it.  WHERE AM I?

Photo taken while biking!

After this adventure, Oli and I continued up the Valles Calchaquies, taking a bus and pick-up truck to Los Molinos, then to Cachi, closer to Salta.  The sidewalks there are really high off the ground, and all cobbled.

Cemetery in Los Molinos (halftway between Cafayate and Cachi)

 Bike - o - phone

BIG sidewalks.

Oli thinks that the best thing about Cachi was this contraption to the left, a megaphone-bicycle.  Later that day, we saw it in action, playing andean flute songs at full blast. We did not see anyone riding it, though.  The next morning, before catching a bus to Salta, we hiked up some cerritos (small hills) close to Cachi.

  yummy!

Our 2 days in Salta, were not that eventful.  We ate really good empanadas (the best I've ever had), saw an Incan mummy found at the top of a 6700m mountain, and visited a colonial town hall type of building.  We also looked at some crazy-painted churches.

Church

Oli in front of the Cabildo (town hall)  in Salta.