Northwest Argentina

DAY 48 (3 OF 3) – GOODBYE NORTHERN ARGENTINA, SALTA, ARGENTINA

We left Cafayate in the afternoon and returned to Salta. Salta was particularly beautiful at night when locals and tourists took to the main plaza for dinner and music. Tomorrow, we would be leaving Argentina, crossing the border into Chile and spent the next few days in one of the driest places on Earth, the Atacama Desert.

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Day 43.1 – Garganta del Diablo, Tilcara
Day 43.2 – Pucara, Tilcara
Day 44.1 – Hills of Seven Colours, Purmamarca
Day 44.2 – Cemetery, Purmamarca
Day 45.1 – Antigua Gusthouse, Tilcara
Day 45.2 – Museums and Plaza, Salta
Day 46.1 – Carpe Diem, Salta
Day 46.2 – Helados Miranda, Cafayate
Day 46.3 – Bodega el Porvenir, Cafayate
Day 47.1 – Bodega Domingo Molina, Cafayate
Day 47.2 – Quebrada Las Conchas, Cafayate
Day 48.1 – Museo de Vino, Cafayate
Day 48.2 – El Hornito, Cafayate
Day 48.3 – Goodbye Northern Argentina, Salta

Next Destination – San Pedro de Atacama
Continuing on our journey from post Day 49.1

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South America 2013 – Our Destinations
Buenos Aires (Argentina), Iguazu Falls (Argentina/Brazil), Pantanal (Brazil), Brasilia (Brazil), Belo Horizonte & Inhotim (Brazil), Ouro Preto (Brazil), Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), Paraty (Brazil), Sao Paulo (Brazil), Samaipata & Santa Cruz (Bolivia), Sucre (Bolivia), Potosi (Bolivia), Southwest Circuit (Bolivia), Tilcara, Purmamarca, Salta (Argentina), Cafayate (Argentina), San Pedro de Atacama (Chile), Antofagasta & Paranal Observatory (Chile), Chiloe (Chile), Puerto Varas (Chile), Torres del Paine (Chile), Ushuaia (Argentina), El Chalten (Argentina), El Calafate (Argentina), Isla Magdalena (Argentina), Santiago (Chile), Valparaiso (Chile), Afterthought

December 1, 2013 | Categories: Argentina, Day 41 to 50, Northwest Argentina | Tags: Argentina, night, Salta | 1 Comment

DAY 48 (2 OF 3) – EL HORNITO, CAFAYATE, ARGENTINA

Finding a place to eat everyday during a long travel journey can be brain racking, especially in places with numerous tourist traps. During our stay in Cafayate, we found El Hornito, a local restaurant away from the tourist crowds, that we could consider as our “dining hall”. El Hornito is very popular among the locals, especially during weekends. Nothing fancy and pretentious, this little restaurant satisfied our appetite each day with grilled steaks and freshly baked empanadas.

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December 1, 2013 | Categories: Argentina, Day 41 to 50, Northwest Argentina | Tags: Argentina, Cafayate, El Hornito, empanada, food, restaurant | Leave a comment

DAY 48 (1 OF 3) – MUSEO DE VINO, CAFAYATE, ARGENTINA

In the morning, we concluded our visit of Cafayate by visiting the Museo de Vino (Wine Museum). Partially located in an historic winery house, the Museo de Vino is a small museum telling the story of Cafayate’s wines with artefacts and a series of interactive interpretations with multi-media devices. Described by the owner of Casa Arbol as “romantic”, the museum also tells the wine story with poems about the climate, landscape, mountains, and water of Cafayate. With a high altitude environment and a desert-like climate, the wines of Cafayate are quite unique in the wine-making world. Originally came from Spain, Torrontes is particular suitable to do well in Cafayate’s climate and soil composition.

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November 30, 2013 | Categories: Argentina, Day 41 to 50, Northwest Argentina | Tags: Argentina, Cafayate, museum, wine, winery | Leave a comment

DAY 47 (2 OF 2) – QUEBRADA LAS CONCHAS, CAFAYATE, ARGENTINA

After Bodega Domingo Molina, we spent the afternoon visiting the Quebrada las Conchas. Cafayate, located in the Valles Calchaquíes, is renowned for its surrounding rock formations, especially in Quebrada las Conchas. During the tour, we enjoyed some short hikes at Los Castillos, La Yesera, El Anfiteatro and Garganta del Diablo. At La Yesera, we were led by our guide up to a lookout above the valley of colourful rocks. At El Anfiteatro, where the canyon offered some excellent acoustics, we were treated with soothing music by a local music performer. At Garganta del Diablo, we did a bit of climbing to reach the elevated canyon just before sunset.
La Yesera (following 3 images)
El Anfiteatro (following 2 images)
Garganta del Diablo (following 2 images)

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November 30, 2013 | Categories: Argentina, Day 41 to 50, Northwest Argentina | Tags: Argentina, Cafayate, El Anfiteatro, Garganta del Diablo, La Yesera, Los Castillos, mountains, Quebrada las Conchas, Salta, Valles Calchaquíes | Leave a comment

DAY 47 (1 OF 2) – BODEGA DOMINGO MOLINA, CAFAYATE, ARGENTINA

Recommended by the owner of Casa Arbol, we had our second wine tasting at Bodega Domingo Molina, a family run winery located on the hillside of Yamachuyo, a few kilometers from Cafayate. The visit, which consisted of a thorough tour and a pleasant tasting session at an outdoor patio overlooking the vineyard and mountains beyond, was definitely worth the extra effort to venture out of Cafayate. The friendly lady guided us through the facility, and explained the process of local winemaking from grapes picking to bottling. At the outdoor patio, we were served with local cheese and dried fruit for the tasting.

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November 30, 2013 | Categories: Argentina, Day 41 to 50, Northwest Argentina | Tags: Argentina, botego, Cafayate, Domingo Molina, Salta, wine, winery | Leave a comment

DAY 46 (3 OF 3) – BODEGA EL PORVENIR, CAFAYATE, ARGENTINA

After the bus passed through the dramatic rock canyons of Quebrada las Conchas, vineyards began to dominate the landscape as we approached Cafayate. It is hard not to visit a vineyard when one stays at this sleepy oasis town. After the wine sorbet, we decided to go for some real wine. We picked Bodega El Porvenir, one of the few wineries that are located within the town. For those who are looking for a informative tour or a pleasant atmosphere for tasting, El Povenir may not be the right place to go. However, we were told that El Porvenir makes quality wine. Before dinner, we decided to go for a quick tour and tasting at El Porvenir. Only a small section of El Porvenir’s facility is located in town. As expected, the tour was brief but still served as a good introduction to the wines in Cafayate. At the end of the tour, we tried five different wines, including Torrontes, the famous white wine from this region.

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November 30, 2013 | Categories: Argentina, Day 41 to 50, Northwest Argentina | Tags: Argentina, bodega, Cafayate, El Porvenir, winery | Leave a comment

DAY 46 (2 OF 3) – HELADOS MIRANDA, CAFAYATE, ARGENTINA

After breakfast at Carpe Diem, we took a bus for Cafayate, a small town about 190km south of Salta. Located in the Valles Calchaquies, Cafayate is a famous wine region in Argentina. The 3-hour bus ride was pleasant. The scenery at the last hour when the bus drove through Valles Calchaquies was particularly good. Once arrived in Cafayate, one of the first things we did was to try out the wine sorbet at Helados Miranda. Recommended by a number of guidebooks, Helados Miranda offers two wine sorbet: the torrontes (white) and cabernet (red). The kind lady at the ice-cream shop also let us try a scoop of helado de tuna (cactus fruit).

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November 26, 2013 | Categories: Argentina, Day 41 to 50, Northwest Argentina | Tags: Argentina, cabernet, Cafayate, food, ice-cream, sorbet, torrontes | Leave a comment

Blue Lapis Road ultramarinus – beyond the sea

DAY 48 (3 OF 3) – GOODBYE NORTHERN ARGENTINA, SALTA, ARGENTINA

DAY 48 (2 OF 3) – EL HORNITO, CAFAYATE, ARGENTINA

DAY 48 (1 OF 3) – MUSEO DE VINO, CAFAYATE, ARGENTINA

DAY 47 (2 OF 2) – QUEBRADA LAS CONCHAS, CAFAYATE, ARGENTINA

DAY 47 (1 OF 2) – BODEGA DOMINGO MOLINA, CAFAYATE, ARGENTINA

DAY 46 (3 OF 3) – BODEGA EL PORVENIR, CAFAYATE, ARGENTINA

DAY 46 (2 OF 3) – HELADOS MIRANDA, CAFAYATE, ARGENTINA