Argentina - The Andean Northwest

Villazon in Bolivia is a typically hectic, busy and colourful border town with market stalls lining the main street selling every type of handicraft and knick knack a tourist could ever want. After dropping our ever so large passenger off at her destination we pulled up just before the customs gate and E-J ran off to look for a Bolivia sticker for the car. Unable to find one she instead came back with 5 'ethnic' looking textiles which she had bought for about 5 dollars in total.

The border crossing was typically lengthy but otherwise uneventful. We met a very helpful Argentinian man who instructed us on which map we should buy and the route we should take south. We thanked him very much, posed for a photo and made our way into Argentina.

The Argentinian border town of La Quiaca was a ghost like place with nothing much more than a gas station (aaah - why didnt we fill up in Bolivia, the prices have gone up!). We were  instantly amazed at how we had driven less than 500 metres and yet it was like being in two different worlds. The streets were clean and orderly, there was no-one lying around in the streets, no mangy dogs or chickens getting in the way and no hectic market stalls in sight. After stopping to consider our journey ahead  we continued on our way.

The following two days took us south through some outstanding scenery known as the 'Quebrada de Humahuaca'. This long narrow World Heritage listed area through which ruta 9 passes through is a splash of different colours painted on barren hillsides. Because the Spaniards colonised this area from Peru in the late 16th century, it has many cultural features that recall the Andean countries, particularly the numerous historic adobe churches.

The little town of Humahuaca was our first stop on a recommendation from some Argentinians we had met in Bolivia. After accepting an offer of two local lads to watch our car in exchange for a tip, we spent a couple of hours wandering the cobblestone streets and hanging out in the quaint plaza while listening to a Bolivian band playing folk music - it was festival time.

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The day was getting on so we decided to press on and stay the night in the next recommended town - Tilcara. After a rapid decision made not to camp we found a lovely little bed and breakfast set up by a lady who had moved from Buenos Aires. It was still under construction but easily one of the best value 'mid range' and most homely places we had stayed in during our 8 months away. Tilcara itself was also beautiful with terracotta coloured houses, cobbled streets and tree covered plazas.

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After a picking up a few bits and pieces from the local market we headed back out of town towards our final destination on the Quebrada de Humahuaca. Purmamarca is tiny and famous for its 17th century Iglesia Santa Rosa de Lima. However, we thought the pottery made there was also lovely so managed to pick some of that up while we were there also.

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From Purmamarca we made our way further south to the city of Salta. Although previously recommended by many people, we didn't find it that appealing. This might have been because we arrived on a Monday afternoon while everyone was enjoying their siesta but nevertheless we decided not to hang around too long. We did however make it to a lovely restaurant recommended by Tim from San Pedro de Atacama where we sampled some great steak over a good bottle of wine. We also arranged some third party insurance for our car which we discovered is mandatory in Argentina. Although not able to insure us, the staff of MAPFRE (Number 1! The best!) were possibly some of the most helpful insurance people we will ever meet in our life. This was only one example of the genuinely amazing hospitality and kindness that we were shown (and will be shown again in the future I'm sure) by Argentinians. Possibly one of the nicest people we have met so far on our trip, so many of them went out of their way to make us feel welcome and offer us help in their country.

From Salta, we drove 750km (our furthest drive in a day!) south to the city of Mendoza, a place famous for its vineyards situated in an oasis in the middle of the desert...