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| Quebrada del Toro, Salta |
Previous: Part 2 - Córdoba
I arrived in Salta in a similar fashion to my arrival in Córdoba, that is, comfortable long distance bus ride which arrives at the destination very early in the morning - this will soon be the ritual of my travel throughout my South American journey.
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| View of Salta from cable car |
Only this time I was very well looked after by the bus attendant with the look of classical Latino film star, whom I think, took a shining to me. The attendant made sure I ate all my food, drank my share of soda, wrapped up adequately in the bus blanket when resting, and he even woke me by gently stroking my cheek for breakfast in the morning. Talk about all round service!
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| Salar de Olaroz, Jujuy |
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| Quechua ladies |
Located in the north-west of Argentina, Salta is closer to the Equator comparing to the rest of the country; position wise it should be warmer but having situated at 1,152 meters above sea level on the foothills of the Andes, its air was freezing cold on the early Winter morning of my arrival.
Like the climate and terrain, the Argentinian faces also changes in Salta. There are more Amerindian population and people are generally darker, but they still attain an air of sophistication and slight snobbishness which I delightedly find in an Argentine.
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| Adobe house, near San Antonio de Los Cobres |
For a day's trip, I visited a little Amerindian town called San Antonio de los Cobres, located at 3,750 meters above sea level and a 3 hours drive from Salta on dusty gravel road. The town used to be an important route for silver from the Bolivian town of Potosí to be transported, using mules, to the Pacific coast of Arica in Chile. With a population of approximately 4,300, its inhabitants now depends on tourism, llama or sheep farming and mining as a mean of livelihood.
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| Viaduct La Polvorilla |
The famous Train to the Clouds ran from Salta to San Antonio de los Cobres, where the world's highest railway bridge is (I think, at 64m, see picture). During my visit, the company that operate the train has gone bankrupt and the tourism authority talked about resurrecting the service again. I didn't see any clouds so I guess the train is not going!
Next: Part 4 - The Road to Potosí
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