Cordoba y Salta de Argentina, 21-24 de Octubre



Our next overnight bus journey's delivered us to the city of Cordoba and then onto Salta in northern Argentina. These were two cities that we really didn’t explore properly as we were on a swift push north to the Atacama Desert. These were conveniently located stop-over cities as believe it or not we are running out of time and need to put the foot down a little!

Cordoba is a small city 10 hours north-west of BA and is Argentina’s most popular University city. We spent two days wandering the cities pedestrian malls and naturally spying on various architectural pieces.



Iglesia Catedral on Plaza San Martin (the 57th Plaza SM on our journey so far).





Muy bueno asado



El Cabildo

   

Salta was another 12 hour bus ride north which we found to be a lovely city set on the Argentine plains.

The city was especially pretty with its spanish colonial architecture and lush plaza’s - funnilly enough the plaza not named after San Martin this time!

As we have travelled north we have really begun to see much more of the Argentine poverty with numerous children as young as 3 approaching our table begging for money, selling basketball-type cards or requesting food. Sadly we later saw these kids go back to their mothers who were around the corner waiting on a park bench (head buried in cell phone).

Salta and all its flat concrete jungleness - from Cerro San Bernado



Salta's municipal building.




 Plaza 9 de Julio

One thing we found to be particularly interesting in Salta was the Museo de Arqueologia de Alta Montana where they had three 500 year old child Inca remains. These remains were found in the Argentine and Bolivian Andes at 6700m only 15-20 years .
The most beautiful and talented children were chosen during a religious festival and were 'sacrificed and given to the gods'. They were given beer to place them into a coma and then are buried alongside hand made trinkets and textiles. Pretty fascinating and crazy to see.



The most scenic bus trip so far is easily from Salta to San Pedro de Atacama (Chile) which was a full day of winding across the Andes. There was no shut-eye on this one as the journey was stunning.

Immediately upon leaving Salta the landscape became dry, arid and mineral rich Andes, that I guess we imagined Bolivia might look like. Not far from the truth as this road is close to Bolivia’s southern border.
As we approached Chile, the scenery soon changed back to volcanoes and then eventually numerous small salt plains. A massive contrast to the rest of Chile and Argentina we have seen.

This brings up our 140^th hour in a bus - thankfully most of them have been overnight…………
so we can now say we have travelled the eighth largest country in the world overland. Fair to say I would be happy to never see a ham and cheese (jamon y queso) sandwich ever again - served on every bus so far, often breaky and lunch or lunch and dinner.






The border crossing back into Chile was on a flat dusty plain at 4700m and was one of the more casual of crossings so far – we found just stepping out of the bus tiring enough at this altitude!

Our bus then travelled in “no mans land” for the next hour before we were officially stamped into Chile. This descent down to San Pedro de Atacama was awesome as we caught our first glimpse of the Atacama Desert and its volcanic surrounds.



Atacama Desert.