On our way to Cafayate
The Calchaquí Valley is an area in the northwestern region of Argentina which crosses the provinces of Catamarca, Tucumán and Salta. It is best known for its contrast of colours and its unique geography that ranges from the mountain desert to the subtropical forest.
Calchaquí Valley
San Antonio de los Cobres
From Wikipedia:
San Antonio de los Cobres is a small town of population 4,274 in northwestern Argentina. It is the capital of the Los Andes Department of the Salta Province. The town is known for its high elevation of approximately 3,750 meters (12,300 feet) above sea level, being one of the highest elevations of any city or town in Argentina. It is located approximately 160 kilometers (100 miles) from the city of Salta and 2,000 kilometers (1,250 miles) from Buenos Aires. The town is also a stop along the famous train line, the Tren de las Nubes (Train of the Clouds).
San Antonio de los Cobres
Convent entrance
The entrance to the oldest religious building in Salta was carved from a carob tree by aborigines in 1762.
Convenience store
In Argentina you’ll see a lot of those convenience stores scattered around the cities. The translation is something like tiendas de conveniencia, but here they are commonly referred as minimercado. They do not belong to big chains and are oftenfamily-owned shop.
Boy waiting
Little boy waiting for his dad at the door. I took this picture in San Antonio de los Cobres, which is a small town the northwest of Argentina.The town is known for its high elevation of approximately 3,750 meters (12,300 feet) above sea level, being one of the highest elevations of any city or town in Argentina.
Theme day: “almost” empty
It should have been called empty, but in my case I went for almost empty. Even though in a place like this one [we're in the north of Argentina, not far from the Bolivian border], the place’s called Salinas Grandes, it is hard to see lots of humans gathered around this salt desert. Emptiness, quietness and beauty describe this part of the country. This is a must-to-see spot for those who come visit Argentina.
Click here to see all the other participants to this month’s theme day.
Crumbling façade
This building undoubtedly needs some fixing don’t you think? ;=) Picture taken in Salta.
Somewhere in the province of Salta
On our way to Cafayate in the province of Salta.
It’s now a lot warmer in Buenos Aires, in the past few days, we reached some 32C° (almost 90°F).
Cemetery
On the way back from Humahuaca, west of Jujuy Province, we stopped by this village and what you see on the picture is their cemetery, totally baked in the sun. It’s a strange and also interesting view, I’m not used to see cemeteries in the open like this, so to speak.
Crowded church
The neo-classical style cathedral of Salta [city in the northwest of Argentina] lays in the city’s center. The building dated back from the second half of the nineteenth century. It is a National Historic Monument. I took this picture when mass was celebrated on Easter evening, this explains the crowd.
Kiosko – Week 6
I took this picture in Salta [city located in the Northwest of Argentina]. Go here to see more about Salta.
View from the top
Rising imposingly in the east is San Bernardo Hill. Its summit, from which visitors can get an awe-inspiring view of the city and the entire valley, can be reached by car, cable car or stairway. [via Wikipedia.org]
The view up there is breathtaking – panoramic view of all the city from the heights. The park is very calm and relaxing, lots of green, some souvenir shops and a cafe to spend sometime. That place is definitely worth a visit when going to Salta.
Wandering in Humahuaca
Humahuaca is a city in the province of Jujuy, Argentina. It has 11,369 inhabitants. It is widely known for its location at the Quebrada de Humahuaca, a long valley east of the central Andean Altiplano. The women in this picture can be seen everywhere in the village, selling handcraft, woolen things, hats, coca leaves…
Staggering
Esquel, a town in the northwest of the province of Chubut in Patagonia, has been affected by a rain of ashes caused by the Chaitén volcano’s eruption in Chile. From dawn till late in the day, towns around Esquel, have been covered by a dense cloud of ash hidding the sun most of the day. Following photos are from LaNacion.
Llamas and loneliness
Somewhere high on the alti-plano, between San Antonio de los Cobres and Salinas Grandes, in the Province of Salta.
Pictures are up
Street corner in Salta – I’m using this posting to announce that the pictures we took during our trip to Salta and the Northwest have now been uploaded. Follow this link: Northwest of Argentina in pictures to visit pictures taken in Cafayate, Purmamarca, Tilcara, Humahuaca and of course the city of Salta. More picture to be uploaded this week end of San Antonio de las Cobres and Salinas Grandes. Stay tuned! :=)
Cheese con cayote
Among the many sweets you’ll find for dessert in the northwest, it’s very common to eat quesillo de cabra con cayote – goat cheese with cayote. It’s delicious but super sweet. I believe you can find it too in Buenos Aires, but it’s more common in that other part of the country.
Salinas Grandes
3,200 square mile salt desert at 3 350 m. of altitude. It’s a huge salt surface made of a 30cm thick layer crust. You can drive, ride, walk on it. The place’s sunny, silent, windy. It’s a pure wonder.
Pueblo of Purmamarca
The small village of Purmamarca, on the river of the same name, in the province of Jujuy, is a tourist attraction due to the multi-colored hills surrounding it – El Cerro de los Siete colores – [Mountain of Seven Colours], in the background on the picture. The cerro bears such a name due to the various pigments aquired by the minerals that make up its walls. Purmamarca is one of the most picturesque villages in the Humahuaca Ravine. Its name means “the lion’s village” in the Quechua tongue. -from welcomeargentina.com
Smiling!
Happy Friday to all! I last saw this llama on the side of the road leading to the QUEBRADA DE CAFAYATE- Many of the most impressive sights in the Valley of the Río las Conchas (Quebrada de Cafayate) are along the paved, 183-kilometres-long National Route 68 that goes from Salta to Cafayate.
When time allows I’ll post various pictures in my weekly blog.
