Salta!

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Hola Amigos!

If any of you happen to look at a map of my trip so far, it probably looks a little random! And it is. One of the consequences of going away and not having a plan, is that not everything you do makes geographical sense! You meet people who are going somewhere you thought you would go, not necessarily at that time, but then you scrap your plans and go with the flow. A quote on a hostel wall pretty much sums it up:

´Luck is when preparation meets opportunity´

So, I am currently in Mendoza, where I am staying for Christmas. And Buenos Aires - Rosario - Puerto Iguazú - Córdoba - Salta - Mendoza really makes no geographical sense and I have probably added a good few hours to my trip on longer than necessary bus journeys, but as the Argentinians say..."todo bien!" (all good) as I´ve met some great people along the way.

Where was I? Salta! Córdoba to Salta is a 12 hour bus journey, which seems like nothing compared to my 24 hour beast of a journey from Iguassu to Córdoba! Although there was no champagne on this journey, I must have been spoiled on my first few journeys! And the thing is, I actually quite like the long journeys. The scenery is amazing, you get to see a lot more than if you flew, and it gives me time to go over my Español work.

Salta is a cool place. I only had 3 nights here, which was probably enough to be honest! But I really enjoyed it! I did my normal arrival routine of...shower, coffee on a plaza, nap, and then discovered that my hostel inlcuded free dinner! Bargain for 30 pesos a night! (about a fiver for a 4 bed ensuite dormitory, breakfast, and dinner!). I think they may be scrimping on the breakfast though...crackers and a big pot of dulce de leche does not a breakfast make! For those of you who haven´t been to Argentina yet, Dulce de leche is everywhere! It is basically just caramel sauce but they use it like jam or butter. Great if you need a sugar rush to start the day, but not so great if you´re looking for a decent breakfast!

After one day of that breakfast, I got tipped off by some Kiwi guys about a place on the main Plaza. So I spread the word, and soon enough there were 6 of us walking very quickly towards the Plaza, and the best breakfast I have had in Argentina! Don´t get me wrong, Argentinian lunches and dinners are amazing, some of the best food I have had! But breakfast...not so much! Which is why I am dedicating a large part of my Salta blog to the breakfast (I had it twice out of my three days there). For 18 pesos (about 3 quid) you get: a massive glass of freshly squeezed orange juice, café con leche, big plate of scrambled eggs, cheese and ham, toast, croissants, and a big fresh fruit salad. I am actually salivating by just thinking about it!

As you can see, I really got to see the city of Salta and had a very cultured experience! Seriously, though, Salta is a cool place, they have a cable car going up a hill to get a good view over the city. And one day I did a trip to the mountains surrounding Salta which was great, really beautiful, and the first time I have felt cold since being away! They also have a really interesting archaelogy musuem there, where there are three bodies of children that were sacrificed thousands of years ago for an ancient Inca ritual, and they are perfectly preserved after being buried in the moutains. Everything is still intact - eyelids, lips, the clothes they were sacrificed in. Very creepy, but very interesting. I also made a bit of a tit of myself because on the lower floor of the museum they have a few other relics. One of them is another young child, but is kept behind a piece of glass that is completely dark. I had my face pressed up against it, trying to work out what was inside, and then one the people I went to the musuem with flicked the light switch next to it and it lit up a scary shrivelled child so I screamed in a really quiet musuem that had loads of signs saying, "please respect the exhibits, remember they are humans too". Very embarrassing!

And then I caught a bus to Mendoza, which I will update later...Ciao Chicos! xx

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Comments

[Ross Johnston]

(Belated) Merry Christmas!
Hi Katrina, I hope you had a Merry Christmas yesterday. Just having a catch-up on your blog which is very enjoyable. I particularly liked description of the breakfast in Salta and the bus journeys sound pretty good as well. You seem to be having a great time - long may it continue. Careful in those museums - haha! All the best, Ross