HIGHTLIGHT OF THE DAY: Getting a bit of a sleep in
BUYS OF THE DAY: A new watch finally to replace the one I broke in October
WORD OF THE DAY:It’s hot as hell…..
Free day in Salta. We were getting a free ride into town, the camp is approximately a 20 minute drive away and then we were to make our own way back when we were done. This is the first sleep in we have been able to have since….Cuzco I think. When you do any form of overland trips, don’t expect a warm and fuzzy holiday, they are a lot of work, long hours in the truck and tiresome days; even when all you have done is sit in the truck for 9 hours.
We woke to sunshine and blue skies with the flooding rain all now but forgotten except for a massive puddle at the side of the truck. We were hoping that we would avoid the cleaning ladies this morning by setting out alarm 30 minutes later than yesterday, and guess what; they were just starting when we arrived. How frustrating as they talk to us in Spanish getting the gist of the conversation to come back in an hour, which doesn’t work for us as we are getting the lift into town, so we do the international sign for watch pointing at our wrist and just push on through to the showers. They aren’t even consistent with the cleaning times, so it is just tough. The upside is that at least they are getting cleaned twice a day, but it’s annoying. We also dropped in some washing to get done. It was 2AUD a kilo, which compared to what we have been paying, expensive BUT what I have paid for washing in the past, it is still dirt cheap. It is all comparable right!
Salta is a city in northwestern and is Argentina's eighth largest city. It is situated in the Lerma Valley, 1,152 meters (3780 feet) above sea level, at the foothills of the Andes Mountains.Nicknamed Salta la Linda ("Salta the Fair"), it has become a major tourist destination due to its old, colonial architecture and the natural scenery of the valleys westward. Attractions in the city proper include the 18th century Cabildo, the neo-classical style Cathedral, and the July 9 central square. The city's museum’s exhibit a wide range of artifacts and art work from the native civilizations that flourished in the area (Salta is located in the Southernmost region of what was the Inca empire, belonging to the Collasuyu, one of the four areas the empire was divided until the Spanish conquest), as well as from the 16th century Spanish conquest and the colonial and post-colonial periods. Salta is also the starting point of the "Train to the Clouds" (Tren a las nubes), and on the way to red-soiled Cafayate, as well as to other nearby tourist destinations.
Salta was founded on April 16, 1582 by the Spanish conquistadorHernando de Lerma, who intended the settlement to be an outpost between Lima, Peru and Buenos Aires.Salta emerged from the War of Independence politically in disarray and financially bankrupt, a condition that lingered throughout much of the 19th century. However, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the arrival of Italian, Spanish and Arab immigrants, particularly Syrians and Lebanese, revived trade and agriculture all over the area while further enhancing the city's multicultural flavor.
In 2008, a small town called "General Gumes" gained attention from the media and paranormal investigation when sightings of "gnomes" were made. A gnome stalking the streets was caught
The 9th July Square are the impressive Saint Francis Church and the city's three pedestrian streets: Alberdi, Florida and "Caseros". The three blocks in BalcarceStreet closest to the train station are now the center of night life in Salta, with restaurants, pubs and cafés on both sidewalks and concerts every night.
We pretty much had 3 hours to get the shop side of things done, as all things Spanish influence their siesta kicks in at 1pm. And they don’t joke around in Salta; everything locks down from 1pm through to 4.30-5pm where they re-open till 9pm at night. We walked around the shops for the first hour; they have really cute shops in town and a lot of artesian shops as well as the normal cloths, food and general shop shops. Kate and I both bought a new watch. I haven’t replaced the one that broke on my flight from Cairo to Nairobi in October, I have been using my phone and hassling people for the time for the last 3 months, so it was time to splurge and buy one. It hasn’t been a cost thing, it’s just a time (ha ha pardon the pun) and finding one that I liked. So it is good to be back in the land of time keeping. It was so hot though with most of the shops in the sun and on pedestrian shopping streets, so after an hour we just decided to hit a restaurant on the Plaza and sit there and use their free Wi-Fi and haven extended lunch. I could let pass up a piece of meat, so I had steak and fries and it was a beautiful piece of meat.
Liz and Paul had to stay in town till 7pm to wait for doctor’s results, so Kate decided to stay with them and they went to the movies for the afternoon. I had some more blogging to do, I always seem to be 3-5 days behind, so this was a perfect opportunity for me to try and catch up a little so Sharon and I caught a taxi back to camp, which we had written the name down in the morning and he knew exactly where to go, which was awesome and it only cost us 2AUD for the 15 minute trip! So with a seat outside on the concrete table and chairs for the first hour eating from tubs of ice-cream that Gray had bought till the sun moved and it got too hot, I moved into the truck to pump out 4 blogs to be only 1 day behind, and with the computer only having 10% battery remaining it was time to shut down as the guys came back from town.
Gray had been busy all day cooking and chopping, as we cross into Chile tomorrowand you’re not allowed to take in fresh fruit and vegetables over the border and we have a massive travel day tomorrow, so he has pre-cooked the next few meals for ease and time for the next few days. Smart cookie really and I was so glad I wasn’t on the Washing Up team as he used every single pot and pan that Rosita had in her kitchen, but the meal of the trip so far was the oven cooked roast chicken and vegetable. It was so good with crispy skin on the chicken and it was so moist, we all wentup for seconds, including Malar, which is a turn up for the books let me tell you and I do believe she went up for thirds!! That’s how good it was! We all pitched in for the cleanup and we were all tucked up in bed ready for our early departure at 7am. There was some lightening about and a breeze picking up, so with that in mind, we hope the rain will hold out, there is nothing worse trying to pack up camp on the rain.
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