Argentina, Salta

Salta, both a city and region in northern Argentina, was to be our base for seven days after leaving Chile. The first thing that strikes you about this country is the sheer size of it. We barely scratched the surface of Salta, yet it seemed like we travelled for miles. Fortunately for us, we got friendly with a lovely Belgium couple Bart and Katja who had hired a car on our second night. Off we went the four of us on a road trip to discover the wine region Cafayate, passing through some of the most dramatic scenery we have ever seen along the way.

Salta and our first beer in Argentina.

Our road trip began passing through misty valleys but our little tin car was falling apart at the seams. Rattling furiously along stony dirt tracks we finally made it down the mountain and on to never ending deserted highways.

Enormous cacti grow just about everywhere.

Route 40, one of the longest highways in the world.

Towering over us.

Donkeys and goats were the only form of life that we spotted for hours.

A dusty pit stop in the little village of Cachi where we enjoyed a delicious lunch before heading off again.

Tempting...

Our first place of rest was in a very remote village called Seclantés which was impossible to find. This countryside is enormous, with little road signs and few inhabitants, finding any destination is a difficult task. We stayed with a gorgeous Argentinian family in the middle of nowhere which was recommended to us by a local. Mix one fiery political Argentinian woman, her six children, four dogs, a spitting guanaco, several wild horses, fluffy chicks and you have 'Finca Montenieva', our base for the night. As we were the only guests, we had the honour of having dinner with them all and the night was spent discussing everything from Juan Peron to Hugo Chavez over a few glasses of wine. A splendid evening.

An evening stroll with our very own tour guide (the youngest boy in the family) before dinner.

Bruno & the infamous spitting pet guanaco in the background.

Bart, Katja, myself & Bruno holding up the sign that we were desperate to find the previous day. No wonder we had no luck as it was lying next to the front door and it probably still is.

Time to move on and it is off to Cafayate the wine region in Salta.

This one is for Sean & Sergio!

On the road again, making our way back

No trip to Argentina would be complete without a horse riding experience and this day has to be one of the most memorable of our journey.

Bruno and his new best friend Enrique the proud owner of the ranch, one of the most inspirational characters we have come across. A strong minded, passionate man from Patagonia and the embodiment of the typical gaucho. He certainly knew what matters in life which according to him was having as much fun as possible and living in the present. These two bonded within seconds, conversing in Portuñol (his mother is Portuguese) We dined together with him at the ranch and just when you finally managed to finish the obscene amount of food on your plate, he would yell across the table 'uno más? Before having the chance to respond, another steak was forced on your plate. Neither of us were complaining of course having lost a few kilos due to stomach problems in Bolivia, this was an opportunity not to miss.

Bruno and Enrique saying their goodbye's over a shot of gin.

Cheap succulent, tender and juicy steaks of the highest quality are what make Argentina a prime backpacker destination. Towards the end I actually craved vegetables whereas Bruno was in no hurry to leave.