Salta is a nice, well preserved Colonial city. Salta comes from the Aymara word for ‘beautiful’. It is often called Salta Linda (Salta the beautiful). Salta claims to be the birthplace of empanadas in Argentina, or at least is rumoured to have the best tasting ones! The region certainly has very tasty ones. We’ve sampled…

We had an early start today which means the light is good for photos and heat hasn’t built up yet. The morning started off a bit chilly but we were sweltering by the time we got back. Our tour guide today is Jose, a new employee and not one of Fido’s sons as expected. Jose…

Today we drove from Cafayate to Seclantas via the Quebrada de las Flechas (Valley of Arrows). The eroded sandstone rocks are gray and spiky like arrowheads. We stopped at the Bodega el Cese in Angastaco. We shared the wine tasting (degustación) with three Argentinians on their motorcycles. All rapid-fire Spanish but they offered us English…

Today we drove through the Quebrada de los Conchas (Gorge of Shells or Shell Ravine). Geologists have found sea shells and other fossils in the rock, proving that the area was once under water, then forced upward when the Andes were formed 90-60 million years ago during the Mesozoic and Cenozoic eras. There are numerous…

We drove west from Purmamarca on Ruta 52 up the Lipan Slope to 13,681 feet on a very twisty turny road. We are moving slowly again today because of the elevation. I think the coca candies are helping. They taste like gritty honey-flavoured herbal cough drops. We are still huffing and puffing walking on flat…

The word quebrada means ‘broken valley’. The Quebrada de Humahuaca is a mountain valley that has been in use as a cultural route between the Andean highlands and the plains for over 11,000 years. It is part of the original Inca trail. People in the small towns still speak Quechua and Aymara and often take…

We had time to sleep in for once this morning. Typical of us we are trying to cram a few months worth of trip into a single month. This is the view out our window this morning. Today was definitely one of the weirder things we have done on vacation! Caravana de Llamas is a…

Samuel picked us up again this morning – he’s been a great driver. Kris managed a whole sentence in Spanish asking for the transfer! Today it is finally sunny here at Iguazu Falls, oh well. We flew to Salta via Buenos Aires. Same seats that Kris selected months ago – these planes are getting mighty…

Iguazu means “Big Water” in the local Arani language. There are 275 separate falls from a huge horseshoe-shaped cliff on the Rio Iguazu although there can be as many as 350 in the full rainy season. We are here in the wet season when the falls are at their fullest. Our flight into Iguazu landed…

Salina Chica (the small salt lake) is one of three large inland salt lakes on the Peninsula Valdes. At 42m below sea level, the lake is one of the lowest points in the country. The lake is pink due to the tiny shrimp exoskeletons living in the salt. The road down was a little sketchy,…