Salta and day trips in its surrounds

6 - 12 November 2010
Salta, Argentina

   I really enjoyed my time in Salta. Karo and I arrived on a Saturday and booked ourselves tours for Sunday (Cafayate), Tuesday (Humahuaca) and Thursday (Tren de los Nubes). The city is pleasant enough, and the surrounding countryside is dramatically beautiful.
   The tours to the wine producing region of Cafayate and to the coloured hills going towards Humahauca were good value and  I recommend them. The Tren de los Nubes (Train to the cloubs) was good, but a long expensive day. We knew it was expensive and would be long, but made the decision to do it because we might never be back this way again.
   In town I foolishly walked to the top of the hill instead of taking the cable car and, more foolishly walked back down the road, which took me to outside of town. The next day I could barely walk!
I will let the pictures do the talking:

Cafayate Tour:

Salta:

 Shrine to Gaucho Bill. Some kind of Robin Hood Gaucho 

who stole from the rich and gave to the poor. It´s still thieving peoples!

Check the size of that steak... at the hostel Parrilla /Asado.

Humahauca Tour:

 Shrine to the (name on sign I can´t read) but she died of thirst 

and was found with her baby alive on her breast. 

People leave water and other useful things, like fan belts.

Tren de los nubes:



Man on bicycle in the middle of nowhere!

Town at the top!

Notes:

All tours (Cafayate, Humahauca, and Tren) were booked with Salta Connection. Total Paid approx $210. Guides spoke English well on the tours but the English on the Train was difficult to understand, the Spanish was easier for me.

Hostel: Exxes Hostel 30 pesos per night, incl basic breakfast. OK, but the staff and everybody else smoke everywhere. Easy meeting place.