A Town Called Salta

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And so, the intrepid travellers followed the Andes further north and settled in the town of Salta. This brought on great sadness, not due to Salta which is a beautiful colonial town, as it meant an end to the adventure in Argentina.

Let's address Salta first of all. Like all of Argentina it's inhabitants are very friendly and would glad do anything to help you. It is a mishmash of modern stores and stalls at the side of the road selling lampshades. I gazed upon some of those lampshades longingly I have to confess.

By the second day, W had firmly ensconced herself in a cafe called Van Gogh. I was unaware that he had travelled here and to my lack of surprise he hadn't - however there was a photocopy of a painting of his on the wall, so close enough. Anywhere that does a mean submarino is a favourite of hers.

Your scribe was laid low for a day or two with by a ferocious bug that broke down my body's usual stubborn resistance. Those who know that to be a bit of an exaggeration can snigger and exchange emails with others to explain that attempted joke. At one point, it was suggested that I had drank bad beer and would not be able to drink again. That suggestion was quashed quickly and a litre of the afore mentioned liquid was rapidly consumed just to make sure all was well in the world. Only a cynic would say that action may have prolonged my malady.

My monthly blood test was performed at a local clinic this morning. As usual, there was no problem and was told to return in a few hours for the results. This I did to the best of my ability and W and I were rewarded with another true South American moment.

Glancing at the front door of the clinic, I observed a client try to get as close to the door as possible on his motorbike. He got off and the bike was blocking the whole of the entrance. "he will be told to move that" I mused, but he was one step ahead of a possible reprimand. He merely opened the door and walked through the corridors of the clinic with his motorcycle. Nobody batted an eyelid, indeed most people said hello to him as he ambled along.

On to Argentina. I did not know exactly what to expect. You can read many books on a subject, but that does not prepare you for the reality. Look at Little Red Riding Hood - O have been in countless forests and despite using that book as research, I have never once seen anybody matching her description. Suffice to say, Argentina is a magnificent country. A place of extremes - deserts to mountains, roasting hot weather to snow, waterfalls and jungles to thousands of miles of arid landscape. It has people that every country would yearn to have as it's in habitants. Best of all though, as we saw in Puerto Madryn, it has dogs that stand on the roof of it's master's car as it drives through the town.

Only in South America.

Bolivia awaits........

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Comments

[kathy]

cool photo