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Published: October 27th 2013
Serenity in Salta
Park in the centre of SaltaOne of the most amusing aspects of my stay in Salta was the challenges of communication with the Hostel Manager. I’d like to add the caveat that I’d been speaking Spanish to others with relative success up to this point (knowing I was far from perfect and they were doing some of the work for me). Despite this, every time I spoke to him his face took on the expression of “What the hell are you going on about?” - basically a blank look with a tilt of the head and quizzical eyes.
It was demoralising in some ways, as I’d really hoped my Spanish had improved after nearly 2 months, but I chose to turn it into a bit of a joke with him. We tried our best in Spanglish, which had its own difficulties due to his limited English. Either way it saved me from curling up in a corner.
Also on staff at the hostel was a guy named Victor, who turned out to be a spectacular cook and made the best empanadas I’d so far eaten in Argentina. He said his secret was to add a bit
of wine into the meat mix, though I suspect there’s more to it than that. I very much regretted turning down a dinner invite with him and the group one night too (I’d already cooked my own food). Somehow my vegetable curry didn't quite stand up to the look of the oven roasted pork chops and vegetable mix. Oh well!
I had a few lovely conversations with Victor during my stay too. As well as his job at the hostel he did a lot of work with young people. His focus was street children and those not going to school (their parents having sent them to work instead). He himself was homeless at a young age, leaving after his step father beat him so badly he was left in a coma. A woman took pity on him one day and offered a room in her house, enabling him to settle and eventually work up to securing a good job in printing. This had allowed him to buy his own house – one of his proudest achievements. On relocating to Salta in search of something different he’d seen a young man searching rubbish bins for food and decided at that
Gok Would be Proud
Gaucho Guillmero rocking my sunglasses point to ‘pay it back’. So, during the day time he would teach music and other subjects to these youngsters. His aim was to open their minds to the opportunities available in life and enable them to make changes for themselves. It was pretty inspirational hearing his story – he seemed a very genuine and selfless person.
In the city itself I chose to avoid the churches and take in some other culture. The first was a visit to the Museo de Arte Contemporaneo, which has its own permanent collection of art works, primarily by artists from Salta and Northern Argentina, but also taking in the wider country and some international artists. It was very well presented and included 2D and 3D works. Only a few works really grabbed me. Theses were by Carmelo Quinn and Juan Batlle Planas.
Also on my hit list was the Museo de Alta Montana, a fascinating museum focusing on Inca culture. It specifically referenced the expedition in 1999, by Dr Johan Reinhard and his team, to find three mummified Inca children on Mount Llullaillaco in the Andes (Salta Province). It provided a description of how the children were found - with live
Smoking Steaks
Cooking of the Asado post horse-trek footage from the expedition to recover their remains (a combination of mountaineering and archaeology) - as well as wider information about the Incas and their customs.
To the Incas the mountains were viewed as Gods, protecting communities. This led them to build temples and shrines at the top of these mountains. Llullaillaco is the highest peak in the region (6,700m above sea level), so it’s assumed to have been one of the most important places of worship. At times, the Incas chose to sacrifice children to the Gods. They were chosen for their beauty and physical perfection - often the sons or daughters of chiefs. They would take part in ceremonies, be dressed in the finest fabrics and walk to these holy places. They were also given chicha (alcohol made from corn). Once asleep they’d be placed in a pit in the ground, along with a rich dowry. To the Incas these children did not die, but went to meet their ancestors who watched over the villages from these mountain peaks.
The three children included two girls – one aged around 6 years and the other 15 years – and one boy of around 7 years. The girl
Seven Colours of Magnificence
Cerro de Siete Colores, Purmamarca of 6 years, known as La Nina del Reyo, was struck by lightening in the past 500 years (having burn marks on the face and clothing, consistent with this). She also has a conical shape skull, an intentional modification performed by the Incas to signify beauty and hierarchy. La Doncella (the girl of 15 years), is thought to be a Virgin of the Sun, educated in the House of the Chosen. El Nino was of the elite class, having short hair and, like La Nina del Reyo, he has slight deformation of the skull.
The Museum was excellent, managing to maintain my interest to the end - a feat in itself and testament to their modern approach to interpretation. The exhibits included a variety of objects, making up the dowries of each child – buried with them to take to the next life. These represented life in miniature and were made from gold, silver, wood, shell, fabric, feathers, leather and vegetable fibres. They included figurines of animals and humans, as well as ceramics. At the very end, one of the mummified children was also displayed. The mummy and other items on display were amazingly well preserved thanks to the
Prom Time!
Local girl in Pumamarca natural conditions of high altitude (cold temperatures and low oxygen levels).
The whole visit was strangely emotional and created a slight moral dilemma within me. On the one hand, when viewing the mummified child I couldn't help but feel a bit ghoulish, as well as being sad that she’d been removed from her ceremonial resting place. On the other hand I found it fascinating – not only because of her state of preservation, but also how real it made everything I’d learnt. The Museum must have been aware of people reacting in this way. They explained how the recovery of the mummies was essential to ensuring their safety and protection. Their location was more widely known at the time of the expedition and had they not been acquired by the Museum it’s likely they would have suffered a sad fate. Other mummies, such as La Reina del Cerro (Queen of the Hill), have been subject to illegal trafficking. This has seen both their bodies and dowries severely altered by those who lack the skill and knowledge to care for them properly.
You can see videos made by the Museum on their website
http://www.maam.gob.ar or a short video on
One for Emma!
They're blue and sparkly the BBC website
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p015mxbd.
I also decided that when in Argentina I had to indulge in a bit of Gaucho culture. Despite my fear of horses (mainly due to my inability to control them), I signed up for a half day’s horse trekking. This was helped along by the promise of a traditional
asado (that’s BBQ to you and me).
Guacho Guillermo, turned up about 10:30am. I jumped in the Ute, where I was introduced to Sara, Laura, Florencia and Sylvana. Sara and Laura were both from England. They were 18 and travelling over the summer months before starting University in October – Sara would be going to Cambridge to study medicine and Laura to Edinburgh College of Art. This gave me and Laura a nice conversation starter, as we discussed our love of Edinburgh and I shared some of my passion for being a student there. Florencia and Sylvana were friends from Uruguay, just taking a short holiday together in Argentina.
We made it to the Estancia via some very bumpy roads. This was made all the more fun by the gearbox being almost dead - Guillermo was practically wrestling it back into 2
nd gear at
Clear Views
The perfect spot for a fortification at Pucara de Tilcara turns in the road. Pulling to a stop in the driveway we were given a hearty welcome by the Estancia’s dog, which was joined by some very cute kittens.
It quickly became apparent that dogs rule the Argentine domestic set up. Owners very much see the dog as a pet, whilst cats are primarily there as pest control. The kittens therefore spent a lot of time on the porch roof, after being tossed up there by Guillermo when he became particularly irritated by them. Us ladies from England were somewhat shocked by this, especially as we’d been cooing over them. But they seemed to deal with it well and were pretty happy to keep challenging him!
After Guillermo had got the horses saddled up we were each assigned our carrier. Mine was Gitto, picked as one of the more tranquil horses given my nervousness. Once on board we were instructed to practice walking around the enclosure, whilst Guillermo went to sort some last minute bits n pieces. This would've been all good; however, I couldn't get my horse to move. I was giving him a good tap in the sides with my heels and making the kissing type
Stone Houses
Pucara de Tilcara noise we were told to, but seemingly he felt nothing. So I just remained static whilst the others managed to eventually get their horses going. It was not the first time in the day that Gitto was to be the least responsive horse in the group. I had a slight suspicion he was mocking me too. There was a definite nonchalant turn of the head backwards, as if to say “Is that all you've got?”
Luckily Guillermo returned and once everyone was on the move Gitto decided it might be a good idea to follow. We took it at a leisurely pace up into the hills for around 45 minutes, going up rocky paths, dodging tree branches and taking it slightly faster up some pretty steep sections. I had butterflies in my tummy for a good chunk of the way, having imaginings about Gitto bolting or otherwise putting me to the test. Once I’d relaxed I became somewhat peeved by my horse’s pace relative to the rest. Guillermo decided to give me the whip to try and get him moving, along with the instruction of “Show him who’s boss!” I felt a bit bad using a whip, but luckily
Midday Blessings
San Francisco Solano's Clock Tower just the threat of it seemed to inject a little pace into Gitto. I’m not sure that I was ever the dominant one in the relationship though!
At the trek’s summit I allowed Guillermo to try on my flowery sunglasses, which came to me courtesy of the girls from The Art House. They’d been a big hit with him all day, so I only felt it right to indulge him. This led to a conversation where we discovered he was a huge fan of Gok’s Fashion Fix. The thought of a cowboy watching Gok Wan sort out fashion disasters was somewhat amusing!
On our descent we were also treated to some of Guillermo’s singing – namely the 1990's hit, “Where do You Go?” by No Mercy. He decided to do a slight remix, however, replacing the words my lovely with Florencia, which gave us all a giggle.
Once back on level ground we were allowed to try trotting and galloping. For this we offloaded all our bags on to Guillermo. I think I achieved what might be classified as a gallop once or twice, despite Gitto preferring to trot. Luckily I remained upright, despite bordering on the
Paleta del Pintor
Quebrada de Cafayate comedy “tipping off sideways” move the majority of the time.
Back at the Estancia we got to relax with a cold beer whilst the
asado was underway. Some very juicy cuts of steak were grilled up, served alongside an array of fresh salads and boiled potatoes. It was truly delicious and the dog was very happy to get the leftovers.
A short siesta followed, as we each lay out on a blanket in the sun. Looking up at the sky I got to witness clouds breaking apart, with each small section then disintegrating in the heat of the day. It was a bit hypnotic and not long after I was out for the count.
Also during my time in Salta, I signed myself up to a couple of day trips to take in more of Northern Argentina. One turned out to be a bad decision and the other a very good decision.
On Thursday I got myself ready for the 7am pick up, which arrived in the form Gaston at 7:45am. On entering the minibus I immediately felt a little out of my comfort zone. I was the only English speaker and aside from two guys
Los Medanos
Quebrada de Cafayate in their late 30s / early 40s, was about 40 years younger than everyone else. Diego from Buenos Aires, one of the younger men, proceeded to try and romance me from the front seat. This continued throughout most of the journey. Sadly I didn't really welcome this, as he was far from a looker and his singing as he serenaded me was pretty dreadful. At least I could laugh about it though!
The day consisted mostly of a lot of pit stops at different villages of interest further north, along the Quebrada de Humahuacha in the Jujuy province (pronounced ‘wee wee’). First was Purmamarca, a small adobe village filled with artisan craft markets that sits at the base of Cerro de los Siete Colores (The Hill of Seven Colours). The town itself felt very tourism driven, but was pretty in its own way and the hill was beautiful (the different minerals creating a multicoloured layered effect to its appearance). There was also a much more indigenous look to all the residents here. There was a small church that I popped inside too. On exiting I spotted a teenage girl dressed in a very “in your face” blue dress and
her friend in matching sparkly heels, presumably for Prom?!
After only 30 minutes we were back on the bus to Tilcara, where we did a whistle stop visit to Pucara – a pre-Inca fortification. This had amazing views along the valley and included ruins of the town. Gaston explained how the houses were constructed of stone, enabling them to remain very cool inside, whilst cactus beams were used to support the ceiling. The people of these communities would have been very short, which combined with their greater lung capacity and high levels of red blood cells meant they could live more easily at altitude. There was a pyramid construction at the site too, which we learnt was a commission to commemorate the archaeologists who reconstructed the site. It had a missing top to show they died before its completion.
Then it was to Humahuaca, where I visited the main plaza and Plaza Gomez. We were told, though sadly didn’t arrive in time to see it, that at midday a life-size figure of San Francisco Solano emerges from the clock tower to bless the town with the sign of the cross.
We then visited Uquia to see the
Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Quebrada de Cafayate to be precise town’s 17
th century church. This is famous for its paintings of Angels with Guns – where the angels were made to look like Spanish conquistadors and were depicted holding muzzle-loaded firearms and swords. After this super speedy stop we headed back in the direction of Salta, stopping at Maimara to get a photo of the Paleta del Pintor (Painter’s Palette), another colourful hillside. Then it was Juyjuy where we had 30 minutes to look around. I took in the fountain in the Central Plaza and exteriors of the Cathedral, the Governor’s House and Government Building.
My reflections of the day…It was all a bit frantic! Perhaps less places and more time in each place would've worked better. You just never really got a feel for any of the towns and might as well have been non-stop on an open top bus. It was definitely not my way to travel and made me slightly unenthused about my trip with the same company the next day to Quebrada de Cafayate.
Luckily these concerns were not fulfilled and I had a wonderful time the following day. Maybe this was down to the fact that the drive itself was a major part
of the trip, taking in the most fantastic views. I sat up front with our guide Hualta, who was great for a chat and very well informed. There was also a much younger and more international crowd along for the ride.
To begin with the landscape leaving Salta was lush, but as we approached the mountains the scenery began to change. Mixtures of sandstone, clay and mind blowing rock formations stunned us at every turn. The colours seemed to constantly change from reds to greens, greys and purples. The colours also varied on the time of day, with things looking more or less vivid on the drive back to how they’d looked earlier.
Hualta pointed out numerous rock formations, which we had the opportunity to stop and photograph. This included those that resembled a duck, toad, Shrek’s nose (?!), a giant’s feet and three windows. On the way back we also stopped at the Anfiteatro (Amphitheatre) – a great gash and hole in the rock that created a natural arena with the most amazing acoustics. It was incredible and we were treated to the acoustics thanks to a musician who was there playing guitar and pan pipes.
Pan Pipes and a Guitar
Musician in the Amfiteatro, Quebrada de Cafayate On the day trip we also stopped in Cafayate town, where we enjoyed lunch and visit to one of its wineries called Domingos Hermanos. Here we got to taste their Torrentes and Malbec – both very nice!
The approach home to Salta became somewhat exciting too, as the heavens opened to the most spectacular rainstorm. The road was flooding in minutes, with rivers of water overflowing from the water channels at the roadside. It became clear that the Argentine road infrastructure is not made for flash floods as areas of road literally collapsed. After a number of bottlenecks we made it through safely and all in good humour.
Hualta thanked us all for a great day and made a special point of thanking me separately for my smiles and conversation throughout the day, which was very touching.
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