Salta, Argentina and around

June 8 - 18

Picture links:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lotanc/SaltaAndAround

Arriving to Salta around mid-day I spent the first day and a half wondering around the city which is very nice. This included climbing a nearby hill to see the views, visiting several cathedrals, going to the local market, eating local dishes, going to a couple of museum where it is possible to see what they claim to be some of the best preserved Inca mummies found (it is amazing how they were preserved at an altitude of almost 7000 m!), ..

South of Salta:
After that day and a half I rented a car for 2 days with 4 other people (2 Israelis, and british guy and an american girl):

We drove south to a town called Cafayate. The way itself is spectacular, the colors of the mountains are great, there are very nice rock formations, very large cactuses to see, and generally amazing views..
On the way we also had the chance to meet some old friends:

And to drink some good Israeli black (i.e. turkish) coffee (which I had not drank for over 2 months - as far as I remember it is since the black coffee that Oren brought from Israel ran out back in Patagonia):

Arriving in the afternoon to Cafayate we went for a short hike and at night went to a local pub where they played (and sang) local folklore music. Although I would not count this in my favourite music list, the atmosphere was definitely worth it!

The second day we drove back through the town of Cachi, this is a different way, also offering great views of the area..

Arriving to Salta in the evening, the next day I used for resting and organizing (such as laundary etc.)

North of Salta (and getting robbed):
After the day of rest I rented a car for 3 days with 2 German girls and we drove up north.
The drive initially follows the route of the ¨train to the clouds¨- a famous train line that goes above 4200 m altitude. Afterwards driving partly through the famous Argentenian Route 40 (made famous by Che Guevara who travelled on this road, that goes from South to North Argentina, using his motorbike) - we drove parts of this road also during the Caraterra Austral, back in Patagonia.
this drive also offers great views, together with a difficult (mostly unpaved) drive (not sleeping much the night before did not help the driving, and was probably not the smartest thing to do...)
At some point we reached a nice salt flat (similar, but much smaller than the famous Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia):

Afterwards we reached the small town of Purmarca, mainly known for the mountain of seven colors. We stayed there for the night, and the next morning climbed a bit to have a great view of the colorfull mountain:

From there we continued up north:

Eventually arriving to the village of Tilcara in the afternoon. We went searching for a hostel leaving the car in daylight, next to one of the main roads (if you can call that a main road - but there were quit a bit of people there) of the village.
Returning to the car (after less than an hour) we saw that the lock in the passengers seat was tampered with, the locks of 2 doors were open, and our stuff from the trunk was gone.

So we spent a couple of hours in the police station.. Not the best way to spend an evening..
Luckily we had with us only small bags for those 3 days, while our big bags were left in Salta.
All I lost was clothes, swimming suit, my jacket, sneakers, some showering stuff etc. (this is since all my ID cards, and passport were in my small bag which was with me)
Both of the German girls lost their small bags, one of them lost her passport..

The next day, instead of seeing ruins, driving more up north and enjoying our time, we returned early back to Salta to allow Lisa (who lost her passport) to return to Buenos Aires as soon as possible.
I had a bus ticket for the next day, but postponed it by 2 days to allow myself to buy some of the stuff that was stolen..
So the next days I spent relaxing and mainly shopping (due to my love for shopping I have to admit those were not the greatest days)..

From Salta (on June 18) I continued to San Pedro De Atacama, Chile..

Buenos Aires, Argentina - Take 2

June 4-7, 2009

Pictures link:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lotanc/BuenosAiresTake2

The main reason returning to Buenos Aires from Iguazu, was to watch the Colombia - Argentina world cup qualifying game. This together with enjoying another weekend in BA, seemed like a good enough reason to go return to BA for a few days before continuing up north.
The game was supposed to be great: Messi playing, Maradona coaching etc.

Before the game, I loaned from somebody an Argentinian team T-Shirt (not the newest kind):


The game was overall not very good.. The atmosphere was nice, but not as great as I expected (the stadium which is the River Plate stadium normally was full!). Argentina won 1-0 which added a bit to the fun..

The weekend in Buenos Aires was great (like any weekend in BA is). Walking around the streets, going out, etc.

On Sunday June 7 I took a bus (about 20 hours) to Salta, Argentina..

Iguazu Falls, Argentina and Brazil

June 2-3 2009

Picture links:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lotanc/IguazuFalls

The bus ride to Iguazu (18 hours) was great. It starts with a meal, then a movie, then going to sleep, waking up for breakfast, another movie, and about an hour later arriving to the destination. The best part is that the seat can fully recline like a bed.. So for those of you worried about my long bus rides - it is great! I was a bit sorry when the bus arrived, since it meant I had to get my bag, look for a hostel and start doing stuff (it is much easier to be on a bus, do nothing, be fed and watch a movie). But I knew that I had another bus ride coming soon (when I leave the Iguazu) so that kept me going :)

Arriving to Iguazu around 12:30 pm I found a hostel, and immediately went to the Brazilian side of the falls (offering a more panoramic view):


The next day I went to the Argentinian side of the Iguazu Falls which allows to get closer to the falls.

Here is a short clip of the largest waterfall in the Iguazu (there are many more..):



The waterfalls are really spectacular!!

There are also a lot of rainbows (as can be seen in the picture above). This is how one is created from the drops of a waterfall:


That evening (after going to the Argentinian side) I took a bus back to Buenos Aires (another 18 hour bus ride)..

Backpacking - likes and dislikes

After backpacking a few months in South America here are a few thoughts:

10 things I like about backpacking (not in any order):

1. Meeting new people from different places
2. Visiting new cities
3. Seeing amazing views
4. Having your whole world on your back.
5. Being able to change your plans quickly, without any difficulties or hesitations.
6. Trekking
7. Travelling with new people you barely know (but quickly you get to know them)
   
8. Having no real responsibilities
9. It is very hard to contact you, which gives a great sensation of freedom
10. Having a lot of free time (to read, relax, listen to music, etc.)!

10 things I do not like about backpacking (not in any order):

1. Showering with flip flops.
2. Using public or shared toilets.
   
3. It is very hard to contact you (in case you want to be contacted)
4. Leaving places you really liked.
   
5. Wearing the same set of 2 clothes that you have all the time.
6. Travelling with people, and after several days knowing there is a good chance you will never see them again.
7. Living out of a backpack.
8. Having no personal space.
9. Feeling (and knowing) that in many cases people are trying to screw you over since you are a tourist.
   
10. All conversations start the same:
    Where are you from (if they are from Israel it is "Meefo at/a ba´aretz")?
    Oh..
    How long have you been travelling for?
    Oh..
    How long do you have left?
    Oh..
    Where have you been?
    Oh.. How did you like it?
    Oh..
    Where are you going to next?
    Oh..
    
    This of course goes to both sides (so you have to ask these questions and answer them)

Buenos Aires, Argentina

May 25 - June 1

Picture links:

http://picasaweb.google.com/lotanc/BuenosAires

Arriving from Uruguay in the morning, and taking a taxi to our hotel, we saw that some streets were closed due to a running race not far from where we were staying.

When we arrived we decided to go for a run..

We met the race at a certain point, and decide to run with them.. At that point the problem was we did not know how long the race is..

It was a great race with a lot of people. Just before the 5km mark the way started turning so I realized (happily) that it is a 10km race.. the element of surprise definitly helped the excitement of the run.. Although I hurt a bit that day and the next (I also ran a bit more than 10km since I ran from the hostel to where we met the race) it was still worth it..

Afterwards we went to the ArteBA show. It is a big (and very nice) contemporary art show, displaying mainly argentenian artists and galleries, but also from the rest of South America..

Other things I did in Buenos Aires:

Walking around the various neighbourhoods, markets, and in the streets of the city, among others I visited the San Telmo neighbourhood and market, Ricoleta neighbourhoold, Puerto Madryn, and of course the colorfull La Boca:

Going to the famous recoleta cemetery which looks like a small city:

Visiting a couple museums, seeing tango shows on the streets, going out at night a lot - Buenos Aires is known of having a great nightlife, which I enjoyed..

Eating out at some great restaurants (the local specialty is of course the argentenian meat and wines which I enjoyed a lot, but I have to add that the pastas and ice creams are also great).

Boca Juniors soccer game -

I wanted to go to a Boca Juniors game. I heard that it is a problem getting tickets at the Stadium, since they do not open tickets stands, and the tickets sold by the people outside are in many cases fake (I have several friends who bought fake tickets). So I thought of going with a tour..

I met a group of 3 brazilians who said we can buy tickets in the stadium in the morning of the game.. The brazilian guy went to buy tickets to all of us..

When he was there he found out he cannot buy tickets (this option is only for Boca club members).

On the way back he was robbed (Boca is not the nicest neighbourhoods, he was walking alone, not in the nicest area), tried to fight with the 2 robbers who pulled a knife out.. He finished without his wallet (which was stolen), with torn jeans, in the hospital and having a few stitches in his fingers.

I finished without watching the game :) And I still consider myself lucky..

The next day I took the night bus to Iguazu Falls (18 hour bus ride).. This is for my next post..

Uruguay

May 19 - 24

Picture links:

http://picasaweb.google.com/lotanc/Uruguay

Arriving to Buenos Aires on May 19 I met Oren, and we left (that day) to Uruguay..

Taking the cheap (and more adventurous way) we took a train to Tigre, Argentina, then a boat to Carmelo, Uruguay, and then a bus to Colonia..

Colonia, is a very nice city, with a very nice old city which we walked around:

From Colonia we went to Montevideo where we walked around the city, and saw a lot of people drinking Mate. Mate is similar to tea, it is drunk through a small cup which is always refilled by a thermus. It is usually drunk with a group of people. I would say it is the national drink around here, and I think in Uruguay is the worst.. Anywhere you go you see people walking around with a thermus and a cup of Mate while drinking..

Besides seeing people drink mate we ate great meat, saw a very nice bear show in the main plaza, etc.

In the bear show artists from various countries had to paint a bear representing his own country. This is a very nice exhibition that goes around the world..

From Montevideo we went to Punta del Este. This is one of the most famous resorts on the continent, but being out of season, there were not many people there. Having nice weather we used the time mainly to go to the beach, read, go out, and relax..

I went into the water once for a few seconds - It is pretty cold!!

Unfortuantely there were no good waves for surfing the days we were there..

After a few days in Punte del este we took a bus to Montevideo, we were there for a few hours. We went back to the central market to have great steaks, walked around the city, and went to a artistic video show we were invited to in our previous visit to Montevideo in one of the museums in the city. In our first visit the museum was closed, and we were told we could come and watch a show on Sunday evening. Arriving for the show (since we were in Motevideo) we realized this is a pretty small, but nice show.

That day we took the night bus from Montevideo to Buenos Aires (this is neither the shortest - about 11 hours, or the cheapest way to return, but we wanted to be the next day in Buenos Aires for the ArteBA show which will be in the next post..)

Cordoba and around, Argentina

May 15-18

Picture links:

http://picasaweb.google.com/lotanc/CordovaAndAround

Cordoba is a city full of univercities.. Therefore it is known as a city with great nightlife and a lot of hot chicks..

Yours trully decided to check these facts..

After arriving to Cordoba we (a group of us, including Tamir, Limor - whom we met again arriving to the same hostel Tamir and I went to, and myself) went wandering around the city.

From wandering around, you could not get the sense that it is anything out of the ordinary.. But we decided to wait for the night..

After wandering around a bit, Tamir and I went to buy some stuff for Limor´s birthday (which was the next day)..

At night, after waking Limor up (who went for a nap) with a birthday cake and songs we went out to check the Cordoba nightlife..

Conclusion (from 1 day of going out in Cordoba): There is great nightlife (or at least that is what it seemed on Friday night), and a lot of hot chicks, but at least from where we went, the crowd was too young (at least for my taste and age)..

The next day we (Limor and I) decided to go to the nearby small town of Tanti (which is not on the usual tourist path)..

Arriving there, we went to a great hostel, where we were the only guests, and the staff was amazing..

We did a small hike in the area, and in the evening they had a nice party that we joined..

The next day we decided to go on a hike in the nearby mountains:

Having no map, and being told that the trail is pretty obvious (which it is not), we found ourselves trying to look for the way to the top..

Luckily, we met a group of argentians (whom all spoke english) that one of them has been there a few times before, and they offered us to join them (and gave us a ride back to Tanti)

Due to them, we also saw some interesting caves on the way, and had a really nice hike.. We also discovered that the area is one of the important areas in Argentina for rock climbing..

The next day in Tanti, we mainly used to relax, in the evening I took a night bus to Buenos Aires to meet Oren and go to Uruguay, while Limor stayed in Tanti for a few more days..

Mendoza, Argentina

May 10 - 14

Pictures link:

http://picasaweb.google.com/lotanc/Mendoza

To reach Mendoza we took a bus from Santiago to Mendoza. The way (takes about 5 hours of driving plus a couple hours for crossing borders) is spectacular since it passes through the Andes mountains..

The first day we arrived, was spent walking around the city, and trying to find out the things to do.
Mendoza, being close to the Andes has some great hiking in the area (close to it is the highest mountain in the wester hemisphere - Aconcagua (just under 7000m) which can be climbed without being an expert climber (takes about 3 weeks including time to adjust to the height), and there are several other shorter treks in the area.

Finding out that we are after the season (season is mostely Jan-Feb) it was a problem going on a hike..

Therefore we skipped that option and the second day went to a wine tour..

Mendoza is famous for its wines.. A main attraction in the place is renting a bike and visiting various wineries Trying out the different wines and getting various tours in the wineries:

After the wine tour, Limor decided to go to Valle de Luna, and I decided to go to Cordoba..

Meeting Tamir (whom we travelled with in Santiago), I decided to stay another day to go paragliding..
Having bad weather the next day ruined our plans, so I went again to do a short wine tour (visiting a couple of wineries that I did not visit the previous day):

After that, from Mendoza, I took a night bus to Cordoba (about 10 hours)..

Santiago and Valparaiso, Chile

May 5 - 10

Picture links:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lotanc/SantiagoAndValparaiso

After another 7 hours on bus, we (Limor and I) arrived in the evening to Valparaiso. It is a very nice hilly city on the ocean.

The city itself is beautiful, due to the hills, the colors of the houses etc. (there are some very close rich and poor neighbourhoods which adds to the looks as well):

There are some very interesting escalators to help walk through the hills (which we of course had to ride):

So generally our visit included walking around the various parts of the city (including some more hippy neighbourhoods), visiting a nice museum, and going out every night (there was a really nice local area with pubs and bars close to where we lived. Enjoying their happy hour I think we tried all the different combinations of Pisco (see previous post). For those who are asking, the Pisco Sour is the best option.

After 2 days in Valparaiso we took a short bus (1.5 hours) to Santiago.

In Santiago, we (Limor, Tamir - a guy we met in the hostel, and myself) visited the central market. This is a very well known sea-food market. Talking to some local merchants, we asked how to eat the thing in the picture below (I have no idea how it is called).





The guy just stuck his hand in one of the shells, took something out put it on his hand (which did not seem to be clean) and told me to try it, and that it is very good. I tried it. I cannot say it was very good, but it was eatable..



After that Tamir and I decided we needed to try another thing (which I do not know how it is called), maybe it is a ¨KIPOD YAM¨. Anyways it looks like this:






The waiter tried to talk to us, but we wouldn´t listen. As we tried it, I think it is the worst thing I have ever eaten (and maybe the only things I really did not like).

Talking to him, he switched to a very good shrimp dish.. Making friends with him, we went with him to a Salsa club later that day..


Other things we did in Santiago is walk around the city, and climb up to 2 nice viewpoints of the city:




After a couple days in Santiago we took a bus to Mendoza, Argentina!!

Elqui Valley, Chile

April 29 - 5 May

Picture links:

http://picasaweb.google.com/lotanc/ElquiValleyAndLaSerena

Arriving to Santiago after a long bus drive (around 11 hours) we (Limor and I) decided that the best idea would be to take another long bus ride!!!

Yes, I know it sounds stupid, but at the time we were all packed, ready to go, did not feel like staying in the big city of Santiago, and it did make sense.

Continuing another 7 hours we arrived to the city of La Serena. The city itself is a nice city besides the beach, but the main attraction is the Elqui Valley which is close by..

After spending an afternoon and a night in the city we went into Elqui valley.

The Elqui valley is known for several things:

1. A picturous valley, due to the nice mountains and the vineyards that grow (see next points)

2. Almost all days are sunny (not many cloudy days) this makes this region ideal for observatories.

3. An ideal climate for vineyards that are used to make Pisco*. (see point at the end)

4. A famous center for alternative medicine.
5. Not having many Israelis (This just might be the greatest attraction of this area - it is a hard to find thing in many of the nice places in South America). We even met some people who were excited to meet Israelis, and some said that we were one of the first Israelis they met..

*Pisco is a alcoholic drink invented in Peru and heavily consumed in Chile as well.. It is made of grapes, sweeter and more alcoholic than wine (around 35-40% alcohol) it is almost always consumed as a mixture, where the most famous is the ¨Pisco Sour¨. The Elqui valley produces most of the Pisco for Chile.

The first night in the valley we went to an observatory. The tour was very interesting, and included observing through several telescopes (another picture of the moon can be seen in the picture link):

The next day reaching the city of Pisco Elqui we rented bikes to ride around the valley, visit a pisco distillery plant, art center, a place where they dry fruit (they had amzing raisins - not surprisingly), seeing their old ways of growing the vines - they still use very old, organic ways in most of the valley (except for parts in which they grow for exportation purposes), and generally seeing amazing scenery.

Buying pisco in the distillery plant we decided to make our own Pisco Sour. Getting some advice from locals (including the hostel owner and her friend) we actually made some pretty good Pisco Sour :-)

One of the great benefits in Pisco Elqui is we had a very nice hostel (the owner did not speak any english, but we got along with my almost non-existent spanish).. Feeling not overly well in parts of the visit in the Elqui valley I also decided to rest for a day in the garden of our hostel, laying on the hammock and reading a book was great..

The next day we returned to La Serena, and after spending a night there we took a bus to Valparaiso..

Pucon and Around (including Villarica traverse), Chile

April 17 - 28

Pictures:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lotanc/PuconAndAround

Pucon is a nice, small, touristy town close to volcan Villarica.
The main attraction in this city is climing the volcano. This is a day trip - the climb up is a 4-5 hour climb, that requires the use of crampons and an ice axe (therefore I did it with an organized group).

At the top, there are great views of the surroundings, and steam (with a sulfur smell) coming out of the active volcano:

After the hike we went to hot springs (the volcanic area around Pucon, is known for the many hot springs it has):

Another thing I did in Pucon is hydrospeed. This is basically bodyrafting. You get a small boat (similar to a boogy board) and you go in the river with it. The biggest rapid was a grade 3 rapid. The great thing in this is the freezing temperature of the water. Although you have a wet suit, the hands and feet are still very cold. Those of us who were lucky just stopped feeling them at a certain point (luckily we were in the water for less than an hour)
Actually this is a lot of fun, since you feel the rapids a lot more than rafting, and you can actually surf some of the waves in the river. Of course if you are lucky a rock can hit your body while you go on a rapid (if you are really lucky it can hit sensitive areas of your body - this is why one of the rapids is known as ¨The Nut Breaker¨). Personally I was not one of the lucky ones, and I returned with only very minor hits that did not even turn into bruises.

Another day we rented bikes, and biked through remote farms to nice waterfalls. Being very lucky, I had a technical problem with my bike, and had to stop at some farm to ask for a tool to strengthen my handle bar. This, and trying to help an Australian guy with a hole in his tire, caused us to return in the dark. Now I can say that driving at night with no lights on the side of a paved unlit road while it is raining, is not a fun, safe, or smart thing to do.
Luckily we made is safely back (although wet).

Another day we went to El Cani reserve. A day hike through a nice forest to a beautiful view point. Wanting to stay and look at the sunset caused us again to return at night (after the last bus) and hitchike our way back to Pucon..
In the above picture the villarice volcano can be seen (with smoke coming out of its crater).

Villarica traverse
This is a trek in the Pucon area (in Villarica National Park)
There are several versions possible - we did a 3 day trek during April 24-26
Picture links:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lotanc/VillaricaTraverse
The crew to this trek included of (from right to left): Limor, Tomer, Dor, and yours truly.
The trek included hiking to (and sleeping next to) beautiful lagoons:

Hiking through solidified lava, great views of several volcanoes along the way:

Due to the late time in the year we had very cold nights and morning, and we got to hike through snow (although not very deep).


At the end of this hike we hitchiked back to a close by city, and from there a bus back to Pucon..

Staying in Pucon for another day or 2 for resting and running errands (fixing glasses that broke during the trek, fixing my backpack and sneakers etc.) the next stop is Santiago Chile (about an 11 hour bus ride)..

Chiloe and around Osorno, Chile

April 14 - 17

Picture links:

http://picasaweb.google.com/lotanc/ChiloeAndAroundOsorno

Having April 13 as a rest day (in Osorno) on April 14 we rented a car for 3 days and went on a tour around Osorno and to the island of Chiloe.
The team for this adventure included of Oren, Zohar, Shani, and myself.

First we drove to the city of Valdivia.

In the city there is a nice market next to the river, the sea lions are fed with the fish skins as they are cut.

Another important thing in the city is the famous Kunstmann brewery where we stopped for a small beer:

From there we continued through the scenic route (which is by no means the short route) to the island of chiloe, passing by lakes, mountains and generally great scenery.

The road we took is remote, which is great unless you have some mechanical difficulties (which we had). In one occassion a flat tire, in another just getting stuck in the dirt road, suddently realizing that about 10 local people working in the road are on their way to help us (we chose a good place to get stuck at..):

The visit to the island including seeing a lot of old wooden-style churches and houses (for which the island is known for),

visiting another small island, and of course having a lot of great sea-food - in one restaurant we were actually invited to the kitchen to have a look and taste the various things they were making - I now know that hygene was not their strong point :)

From the island we went back to Osorno to return the car, take some stuff we left, and take a bus to Pucon..

Parque Nacional Puyehue - Baños El Caulle, Chile

A 4 day trek in Parque Nacional Puyehue. This is probably the nicest trek I did in Patagonia. The highlights included hiking up a volcano, camping next to hot springs, and nice geisers.
April 9 - 12

Picture links:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lotanc/ParqueNacionalPuyehueBanosElCaulle

The crew for this trek included of (from right to left): Limor, Dor (a guy we met in Bariloche), and myself (here in a restaurant after the trek):
We took a bus from Bariloche to Osorno, and stopped on the way next to the park. A small mistake (made by myself) caused us to walk 2 km with all our gear (including gear we left behind during the trek). As you can guess this was a lot of fun:

Somehow, every night we turned up walking during the night. The first day, we started late due to the bus, the other 2 nights it was because we had great weather, were lazy to get up, and preferred to enjoy the sun. Although it is very hard to navigate during the night (even with a full moon), we still made it to where we wanted, although it took much longer (and made us make a few mistakes). But overall this just added to the adventure..

One of the highlights of this trek included hiking up to Volcano Puyehue, with snow in its crater, and great views including of other volcanoes:
Another highlight was the hotsprings (this is also where we camped during the second night). These hot springs are as natural as they get. There is a river of cold water and next to it a stream of very hot water coming out (as can be seen in the steam in the picture). When you sit you have to sit where the two streams meet and mix them together (moving to much to one side is to warm and the other is to cold). You have to constantly mix the water to the correct temperature that you want. Usually one side of your body is freezing and the other boiling. This is a do it yourself hot tub..The last highlight are the geisers, which have amazing colors, sulfur smell, and smoke coming out of the ground. Walking around the geisers was amazing..
The big geisers were like mud baths that were boiling:


At the end of this trek we continued to Osorno, and Chiloe - this will be in the next post.