Blogs from Salta, Salta, Argentina, South America - page 25

I'm standing outside a ramshackle building located on a salt flat in the middle of the Atacama desert. Somewhere around here at some point in the past, two officials stood facing each other. One of them used the toe of a well-polished shoe to swipe a short line between them in the ashen earth. The two looked down for a moment and silently contemplated. Finally, the other official rubbed his freshly shaven chin, gave a few short nods of his graying head, and said "Bueno. Ok." The officials have faded away along with the drawn line. And aside from this small shack of an outpost guarded by a few Argentine soldiers, the border between Argentina and Chile may as well not exist. This is the driest desert in the world - parts of which have never ... read more

"Out to sea, far west of España, Lies the land men call Cokaygne. No land that under heaven is, For wealth and goodness comes near this" - 14th century English poem about a mythical lost continent After traveling across the northern edge of the Argentine pampa and into the Andean foothills, I've arrived in Salta. This is where I really start the journey across the fabled Cokagne. Cokaña. Cokayne. America. A big chunk of it, anyway. Salta Having walked around for a few hours, I'm beginning to think the only reason I've never met anyone from this city is that there aren't too many reasons to leave. The center is practically screaming its Spanish colonial heritage with the main square and endless whitewashed buildings with red Spanish tile rooves. The eastern edge of town is dominated ... read more

Salta has been treated this winter holiday season to a visit from the Spanish National Circus (or, El Circo National de España). This weekend heralds the final shows before they pack up their big top and depart for a new city on their endless world tour. The Circus has been stationed here in Salta for a month and I thought it too good an opportunity to miss their highly acclaimed show before they head off tomorrow. So, off I went trawling through my mobile phone contacts list in search of someone with kids to tag along with. BINGO! My friend Ana has a young son, Bernardo, (not yet two years old) and she herself was eager to see the show and was more than happy for me to join them. When we arrived at the site ... read more

Dag 44 - 50 Jane var mer eller mindre kvitt utslettene mandag, og denne uken har hun kun hatt en ny forkjolelse. Tirsdag fikk vi i lekse av froken aa skrive om noe som skal skje i framtiden, saa vi satte oss ned og planla reisen videre fra Salta for noen uker framover. Her er den tiltenkte reiseruten: Vi tar buss fra Salta sondags morgen til San Pedro de Atacama, nord i Chile. Her vil vi se valle de la luna (maanedalen) og los tatios (geisirer). Derfra reiser vi videre nordover til Chacalluta- Tacna, hvor vi vil se vulkaner i nasjonalparken Lauca National Parque. Herfra gaar turen videre til Iqueque, hvor hvite strender kaller (og pina colada). Saa reiser vi videre til Antofagasta, som er kjent for fantastisk sjomat. Her blir vi nok en stund ;-) ... read more

Following a second overnight bus trip, we had crossed the mighty 'Impenetrable Chaco', arriving to a dead quiet Salta - we then realised it was Sunday morning at 6:30am. We made the most of the day to walk and bus around to see the quiet city, finishing the daylight hours with a walk up Cerro San Benardo (Saltas lookout hill) with a gondola trip back down. We descended into an entirely different city. All the locals were starting to emerge to wander the bustling street stalls. The central Plaza was devastatingly beautiful with carefully tended buildings lit to show them off to their full glory. The poor camera had to reexplore Salta all over again. One of the defining features of both the Resistencia and Salta regions is in the people. We are now in the ... read more