Salta : Pasty capital of the world

Salta, northern Argentina

Walking around the central plaza in Salta we knew we had made the right decision to come here for Christmas. Salta isn't so much a city as a large town. It was far more laid back than Mandoza, even in the build up to Christmas, and with some beautiful colonial buildings and alovely central plaza. There were also several nice restaurants, so we were happy. Mik actually felt like he had been transported home to the northwest of England and land of the pie. In his words the empanadas in Salta were the best ever, so he made sure he ate many! We also tried the local stews and LOTS of things made of corn. Tamales for example are made of cornmeal dough, add a bit of dried meat in the middle, form into a ball, wrap in the leaves of a corncob and steam. Not the tastiest things I have ever eaten but tastier than mushy peas! (sorry Mik)

As we had been having such a hectic time in the run up to Christmas (yeah right) we decided to take it easy in Salta. We had ideas of paragliding, more trekking, exploring the surrounding area but instead all we managed was a trip to the top of a hill in a cable car. And what a disappointment. Nice views but nothing else to speak of, we had been promised waterfalls and outdoor theatres. We returned to our hostel in disgust.

The shops weren't up to much either, bit like those you'd find in any UK coastal town (reminded me of Clacton!) and as we can't fit much more in our bags christmas pressies were a bit thin on the ground. We did however find a shop selling english books and so bought a couple for eachother - that brings Mik's total up to 7, yes 7, books that he is carrying. Good job he went for the 95 litre backpack then!! So instead we decided to treat ourselves over Christmas and stay in a posh hotel. When deciding where this would be we happened to look at the nicest hotel in Salta first, so our decision was made. We could only afford three nights and had to stay in possibly our worst room yet the four nights before to be able to justify it. It also meant we appreciated it all the more. We checked in as early as we could on Xmas eve, put our bags in the room, and immediately went out for supplies (we had already checked the size of the minibar fridge!). We bought vino tinto, champers, christmassy snacks and the obligatory cigars. Then fast-tracked it back to the room and headed for the leisure area where Mik, to give him his due, spent at least 5 minutes on the treadmill.

So in a nutshell, for the next 3 days we made use of the sun terrace and jacuzzi, slobbed about in the bath robes, (if only I had room in my bag!) watched TV, ate and drank. Quite a treat. We just about managed to leave our luxury pad to go out for steak each night but that was about it.

On Christmas day we got up early in the hope of a lovely breckie, unfortunately breakfast in Argentina seems to consist of bread and jam no matter what standard of accommodation you are enjoying. B*gger, could have stayed in bed longer.

We also spent some time talking/seeing our families via MSN messenger and webcam. What amazing technology. You sit in the internet café having arranged a time with respective relatives in England and sign in. Pow! There they are on the screen and they can see you. That may be obvious to most but it still amazes me. So there we were in our santa hats bought especially (others in the internet café had a good laugh!) hearing about Christmas preparations etc. It really made me miss lots about Christmas at home and I wished I had a tardis to whisk me home for a few hours. They have a few decorations and maybe the music in the shops was supposed to be christmassy but it just wasn't the same. Although I have to conceed that slobbing around, not having to go anywhere near the M25 and being able to go out in summer clothes did go some way to making up for it! We just wished you could have all been here with us.

Boxing Day was our last day in Salta and our posh hotel and all we had to do was buy a bus ticket to get us to the Bolivian border. It took us all day to manage just that. Talk about lethargic, or is it just plain laziness? Still Mik got to watch his english football and I got to have a soak in a bath so we left Salta with very happy memories.

It was only 7 hours north to the Bolivian border so no posh bus this time but also no overnight. Some stunning scenery and 7 hours later we had climbed over 2,200m in altitude. We felt fine getting off the bus, but bearing in mind that we had heard stories of people really suffering from altitude sickness we took it slow. Just as well as with the weight of our bags it was hard going walking to the border crossing. We were sad to leave the beautiful country of Argentina, I don't think either of us thought we would get so much out of it, but after 7 weeks it was time to leave behnind the easy life and take on more of a challenge. After a bit of a wait to get stamped out we found ourselves in the very different surroundings of Bolivia. NOW we felt like we were in South America!

Cara