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| Streets of Salta |
After three quiet days in Tilcara, we made our
way to the next province to visit the vibrant city of Salta. Situated in the
Lerma Valley, this exciting city provides well preserved colonial architecture
and a colourful atmosphere that any tourist would enjoy.
When we arrived at the bus station, we were
approached by some agents who wanted to promote their hotels. We usually don’t
trust them but I am glad we did this time. One of them offered us a private from
for $25 and a free ride to the hotel Posada del Parque which was a fantastic deal.
I think the prices are usually higher, so make sure to ask for specials if you
want to stay there. We had a huge room with an en-suite bathroom and a separate
dressing room. It had TV and air-conditioning as well. We felt like we were in
a palace after so many hostels.
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| Cathedral of Salta |
I simply loved Salta. It has everything that a
liveable city needs to have. There are outstanding museums, impressive churches,
beautiful squares and great authentic Argentinean cuisine. It has the
facilities of a large city but retains the comfortable vibes of a small town.
In addition, the people are very welcoming and friendly. There were also a lot
of free cultural activities such as concerts and dance performances. I could
easily live in this charming city.
During our four days in this lovely town, we visited
the Cathedral of Salta, Church of San Francisco, Salta Teleferico (cable car),
Plaza 9 de Julio, Centro Cultural America and some parks. There are also many
museums to discover. Of course, you can’t leave Salta without watching the
dances of gauchos dressed up in billowing pants and leather boots. There are
numerous local penas on Balcarce Street where you can enjoy these traditional
shows while you try typical Argentinean dishes. If you like to know more about
Salta’s folklore culture you can read the article of Megan Snedden from BBC
Travel.
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| Dancing Gauchos |
I was sad to leave this fantastic town but we
weren’t disappointed with Cafayate either. Cafayate is a small town 2 hours south of Salta. We chose this romantic town for our 5th wedding anniversary which is Argentina’s
second centre for quality wine production (after Mendoza). Before visiting this
amazing country, I haven’t even heard about their wine. Now, we were visiting
some of the world’s best vineyards. This region is famous for its Malbec but we
tried many other quality wines. According to Wikipedia, Argentina is the fifth biggest producer of wine in the world today.
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| Alex with our adopted dog |
We rented two bicycles to visit the beautiful
surroundings and of course a couple of wineries along the way. Biking is the perfect way to discover these incredible landscapes. On our way to some rock
formations and Cascades de Rio Colorado, a street dog started to tag along and
followed us the whole day. She was very cute and we absolutely loved her. She came all the way to the
cascade with us and wouldn't leave us alone.
The nature and the landscapes were stunning. It took us a bit more than an hour to get there. After visiting
the Cascades of Rio Colorado, it was time to try some of the high quality wine
of Cafayate.
Our first stop was the Bodega Nanni which became one
of my favourite vineries in the area. It has been
producing some of the best organic wines for the last 110 years. They have
great Malbecs and Torrontes. We ended our adventurous day in one of the local
restaurants and tried some of the traditional dishes. Argentina is a meat country, and it is really difficult to survive if you are a vegetarian.
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| Happy goats |
The next day started with a visit to the Cabras de
Cafayate which is a goat farm where they produce remarkable cheese. The entry fee
includes a tour of the farm and we got to see many happy goats. At the end, a mouth
watering cheese sampling was provided. If you like cheese, this is the place to visit. Being French and loving cheese, it was a paradise for Alex.
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| Wine tasting at Bodega Domingo Molina |
Following our cheese tasting, we rode our bikes to
Bodega Domingo Molina. It is a 7km uphill ride from Cafayate and is certainly not
for the faint hearted. I managed to get
there on my bike, but Alex had to walk the last kilometre or so and was
exhausted once we got there. We were welcomed by the friendly staff and taken
to the garden with a magnificent view of the Calchaquies Valley. The scenery
was definitely worth the uphill ride. After relaxing for half an hour, they
started to introduce some of their splendid wines accompanied by cheese from
the goat farm we visited in the morning. Our wine tasting lasted for three
hours. We became good friends with one of the employees and he kept serving us
more wine while we were chatting away. It was a perfect afternoon.
On our way back to town, we made a quick stop to
visit Piatelli Winery and restaurant. We definitely had enough wine by then but
we couldn’t resist their delicious salads. They also had one of the best olive
oils I have ever tasted. With a view over the valley, it is a perfect place to
enjoy lunch.
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| Piatelli Winery |
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