Friday 10 June 2011 San Lorenzo and Salta

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There are numerous agencies in Salta offering excursions to the Salinas Grandes, San Antonio de los Cobres, Cachi, Cayafate and Humahuaca, but most places of interest are three and a half to four hours away. It would be best to spread a trip over two days and pass a night en route. Purmamarca is said to be a good base for exploring the Salinas. We hadn't allowed for that extra night in our schedule, so we decided to stay closer to Salta.

We took a 30 peso taxi ride to San Lorenzo, a nearby village. The driver dropped us at the Tourist Office. We asked if they had a map. The man smiled disarmingly and said no, they had nothing.

San Lorenzo is essentially a large settlement of detached houses with trees, pools and lawns, cut out of woodland and criss-crossed by dusty lanes. By day it's quiet except for the barking of dogs behind gates and fences. A few men are at work, maintaining telephone lines or clearing plots with saws and strimmers. There are small hotels and several restaurants. It seems to be a popular centre for cycling, rafting and riding at other times of the year.

We hoped to walk out into the surrounding woods, but each lane led us to a dead end, and the hot sun was high in the sky. We took empanadas and beer in a restaurant next to the market, a low building from which fruit, vegetables and eggs were dispensed through a wide hatch. A set of iron scales stood on the counter.

We sat for a while in the shady village square, then walked on. A parilla by the roadside had filled up with a lunchtime crowd, a row of cars parked outside. At a cafe table, we told the waiter that we'd like to go to Salta, and asked whether there was a taxi nearby. He said no, but we could go by bus.

The no 7 buses to Salta passed by every ten minutes or so, we'd noticed, but the challenge was to pay our fare of 1 peso 50 each. They would accept only coins or a swipe card. The waiter said we couldn't buy a card. Jane had some change, which we counted out on the table. It wasn't enough. Coins don't seem to be readily available here. Eventually, the waiter gathered enough as part of our change, and directed us to the stop, a few yards up the road. One other passenger was waiting, a woman with her shopping bag. The waiter drew us a map and asked the driver to tell us when the bus reached the corner of Belgrano and Zuviria, though we recognised it ourselves.

The most up-to-date report that we could find on the volcanic ash was on the website of the Vancouver Sun. The airports in BA were still closed but the cloud was expected to drift out over the Atlantic. Later, a press release on AA's website referred to services resuming at 1800 today. The problem seems now to be mostly in the south of the country.

We tried unsuccessfully to check in online. The website apologised and told us to check in at the airport. AA have allocated us seats in different rows, one immediately behind the other, just as LAN did for our flight from BA to Bariloche. It's getting to be a habit.

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