We left Salta at 7am to head to "the remote mountain town" of Iruya. I had no idea how remote this town would be! We reached the highest point in Salta today (16,000 feet...maybe 12,000...who knows?)
On our way we stopped first in Purmamarca where people were selling "artisan" goods. Every stand sold the same things, so I'm not sure how they make any money when they all have the same stuff and the tourists aren't exactly flocking. This was the official town of the "Hill of 7 colors" which is absolutely beautiful. I'm not sure the picture does it justice.
Next we stopped in Humahuaca where we had a guided tour of the little town. They have a giant monument celebrating the nation's independence and it's HUGE for such a small little town. For lunch we had "traditional regional fair." Well I played it safe with 2 empanadas and a salad. Others had baby goat, llama, locro (this really gross stew). My salad was really good and it was nice to get some veggies in my system, finally! What I really want is GREEN BEANS!
We walked around town for a while and I bought a CD of American music being played on traditional Andean instruments. It's a nice sound.
When we left, we began our ascent into the Andes. Nothing short of spectacular as we winded through the mountains on gravel roads. A few people got a little carsick because of all of the twisting and turning...plus, the drop offs were pretty steep!
We stopped at the high point for pictures an we left coca leaves (illegal in the US and most parts of Argentina) as offerings for the Pachimama and asked for a safe trip. The altar looked like a garbage bin for beverage containers.
We continued on to Iruya and saw wild animals that are some how related to llamas on the side of the mountain. Randy was the only one with a camera powerful enough to take any pictures.
Finally at 6:30 pm we arrived in Iruya and had to hike up a steep hill (about 50 degrees) through a narrow street to reach our hotel. The altitude (8,000 feet) made it very hard on the ol' lungs. Regin and Amy had a really hard time carrying their stuff up the cliff, but the view from the hotel made it all worth it. I've seen some spectacular things in my life, but I think this ranks up there in the top 3.
Tomorrow we have a 6 hour hike along the river...14 KM or something crazy like that!
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Follow me as I travel the world, armed with a jar of peanut butter and a sense of humor.
1 comment:
I LOVE the pic of the person and the baby. Can't really tell if it's a man or a woman... :-( With the traveling you do, you could have really incredible art all over your house!!
-Amy Iwert
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