Salty in Salta

This past weekend, we traveled to Salta and Jujuy (“hoo-hoo-wee”)–the second of three Holy Cross trips we have this semester. And I’ve gotta say, our small group of five from HC really enjoyed this visit to the mountainous northwest region of Argentina!

Much different than Iguazu Falls, our tours of Salta and Jujuy exposed us to an immense amount of nature and culture. Each new town offered us an opportunity to meet locals, purchase handicraft, and learn some history….and the long bus rides in between locations gave us some time to appreciate the sweeping colorful landscapes (oh, and we can’t forget the incredible amount of cacti!).

Among the sites that we visited were…

1. Purmamarca: a colonial village nestled just below the “Hill of Seven Colors” (pictured above, left)

2. Pucará de Tilcara Ruins: a hill in Jujuy Province studded with cacti and old clay houses (pictured above, right)

3. Salinas Grandes: big salt flats

4. Humahuaca: town where you can find the best prices for all things lama!

Because I can’t go into detail on EVERYTHING I saw on this tour de Salta and Jujuy, I have chosen two to share in detail: SALT and LLAMAS!

“Did someone say, NaCl?”

Yes, I did! Salinas Grandes is a HUGE salt flat that is found at an average altitude of 3450 metres above sea level. While it is known for it’s pure white salt 10 months out of the year, we of course visited when it was slightly brown and discolored…so no, I did not lick the ground. However, we did have fun taking some pics!

“Como se llama, llama?”

Llamas are everywhere in Salta and Jujuy! We are talking live llamas, llama sweaters (I’m wearing my grey llama sweater in practically every picture), llama slippers, llama socks, and most interesting of all, llama meat. And let me tell you, la carne de llama es deliciosa (llama meat is delicious). I even got to try llama cheese! Pictured below are three traditional dishes that I tried along the way. From left to right, locro (llama stew), cazuela (llama meat and potato), and queso de llama con cayote (llama cheese with regional jam).

A shorter road ahead

With two out of three trips done, it’s really beginning to hit me that I only have two out of five months left! School is picking up pace and I am finding that I have less time to do the “touristy Buenos Aires things” that occupied most of my first three months. Now is really when I buckle down and transition into my role as a true Argentine student and resident.

Wish me luck on the road ahead! Nos hablamos pronto…

Besos,

Haylie:)

This week I learned…

1.) that to avoid altitude sickness in the Andes region, people chew coca leaves or drink coca tea. Yes, the leaves of the coca plant contain the alkaloids that are used in producing cocaine. Yes, we chewed the leaves to avoid altitude sickness. But don’t worry, the amount of alkaloid in the raw leaves is very small.

2.) the word for cacti in Spanish is cardones…and according to our tour guide, cacti with more arms are more diseased (?). 

This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 16th, 2015 at 11:29 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

2 Responses to “Salty in Salta”

1. Angie Butler says:

   September 21, 2015 at 1:09 am

   Very interesting read Haylie! You are experiencing life! Just as it should be love you❗️

2. Alicia Eppinger says:

   September 21, 2015 at 10:09 pm

   Besos dear Haylie !! I’m loving your blogs, pictures, and opinions. I am getting an idea of the country, customs and foods. Enjoy the rest of your stay, study hard. I can’t write to you in Spanish, autocorrect won’t let me !
   Love you!
   Mrs. E.