Finding Marcelino, San Pedro de Atacama (Altitude 2,436 m)

In Salta we gather up a lovely bunch of people, and decided to travel in convoy to San Pedro de Atacama, Chile. 

'Dust Devil' seen from the bus

We take a small risk not booking accommodation before our arrival, especially since our original group of five, has somehow multiplied to eleven! Luckily Marcelino "finds us" at the customs check on the border and offers us a room at his hostel, Latska. We manage to fill all his rooms, and he is so thrilled that he offers to make a BBQ for us. Before growing a beer-belly, Marcelino was employed as a bodyguard for the rich and famous in Chile. He is now delighted to show us his moves, demonstrating his skills with a nunchuck! We take turns on the punchbag.  It is very funny to watch Marcelino and Adam compare moves and have intensive chats about martial arts despite the language barrier!

Marcelino, our bodyguard

Adam pleased with the latest new move

After the exercise we are ready to have a bite to eat! I am so excited, this is my first proper meal in over a week!

Cooked to perfection - no vegetables of course!

Our multi-national group get acquainted with the game '13'

From L-R: Adam, Helena, Marie, Florian, Daniel

Next morning we take a stroll around town, browsing the shops, drinking fruit smoothies and speaking to various companies about the types of trips on offer. We want to travel from here to Bolivia through the desert and salt-flats by 4x4 vehicle. After some research we chose a company called Cordillera, who seem to have good vehicles and decent food (there are huge variations between companies in terms of quality provided). I absolutely love this town - laid-back, friendly & excellent quality food.

Main street, San Pedro de Atacama

Volcano backdrop

In the evening we make a trip to the Valle de la Luna ("Valley of the Moon"),  a nature reserve 13km outside of town with a moon-like landscape and ruins of old Chilean salt mines. This interesting landscape has been caused by erosion of the salt mountains, and best viewed at sunset when the skies are clear. 

Walking through sand mountains

Playing golf (L-R: Adam, Marie, Helena)

Daniel and I crawl through spooky tunnels 

Las Tres Marias

Colosseum

Trying to look natural

Wind-swept

The Dancing Queens!

Daniel falls into a desert hole, but keeps smiling!

The desert equivalent of the 'Wall of China'

The ladies enjoy the sunset

Purple hills

After the sunset we head back into town and have a wonderful meal at La Estaka - honestly it is one the best meals of the trip so far! The service, food, wine service and company are outstanding! ;-) We all jump at the opportunity to have spicy food - first time since leaving home! 

La Estaka, the best restaurant in town

Spicy food!!

Last day in San Pedro, we all take advantage of the decent Internet connection and catch up with some admin. We eat so well in this town - breakfast, lunch, dinner - every place we try is scrumptious!

A lovely warm glow over San Pedro

At 10pm, Marcelino squeezes us into is pick-up truck and we hit the bumpy road to a 'secret' thermal bath that he knows about! It all sounds a bit dodgy, but also fun! It is quite a long drive, and then a fair walk (especially at 4,000 metres above sea level) to get to the lagoon. We arrive and slide down the natural slide into the warm volcanic water! Hmmmm, feels nice. Marcelino shows us where to get fist-fulls of sulphuric mud (smells like rotten eggs and well you can imagine what else!)...but apparently it keeps one youthful looking. 

The secret thermal bath - in the middle of nowhere!

L-R: Daniel, Marcelino, Adam, moi, Marie

Massage!

The world's worst-smelling face-masks! Pooooh!

Marcelino puts some exfoliator on my back, despite the protests!

Happy are we until we realise how bloomin' cold it is outside of the water!

Back at the hostel, we pack our bags and get ready for our next adventure....

"Road to the Clouds", Roadtrip pt 2

The famous Train to the Clouds has been recently rennovated and revamped, so I am excited to climb aboard.  Not so lucky - the train closed for the next few weeks due to the recent heavy rainfall. A little dissapointed, we take the next best option and climb aboard The Pacifier (hire car for those who have not read previous entry!) once more. The road echoes the train tracks so it is not such a bad deal.  Nelson has now moved on to Chile so we have found a new car-buddy in the form of Helena from Norway.

From Salta, our destinations are the ancient town of San Antonio de los Cobres and La Polvorilla Viaducto (an arched viaduct located 4,200 metres above sea level). Our main purpose to to enjoy the spectacular and varied scenery throughout the drive. A recent Telegraph article (Argentina: Train to the Clouds) describes the views in more detail than my current patience limit will allow!

The level of concentration needed to manoeuvre the twists of  the narrow road, coupled with the high alititude, mean that we tire quickly and need to take turns driving. It is my first time to drive on the right - and it is not so difficult as previously thought.

Following the train tracks along the 'Road to the Clouds'

A llama challenges us to a race

San Antonio was a creepy town with little or nothing to see. The people bear hollow, sad faces. This used to be a mining town, but has fallen into disrepair and now relies entirely on cash-handouts from tourists.

The 'nicer' part of town

People try to stop the car by waving or running in front of it. Rightly, or wrongly, we keep driving and head to the Villaduct. 

Over rocky dirt tracks we climb to 4,200 metres where the Villaduct sits. I am still suffering the ill-effects of food poisoning (still!) and to some degree altitude sickness. I take a walk around the base, and wave to the others who climb to the top to admire the view. 

The Villaduct

Views from above

Spot me?

Helena & Allison walk across the Villaduct

On the return, we stop in San Antonio de los Cobres for a sandwich. This is my first time to sample real food in about 5 days. The drive back to Salta is spectacular, with the glowing light reflecting on the pink, purple, blue and green hills and rocks. Of course, the pictures do not begin to illustrate the colours....

Rainbows are plentiful

We arrive back to Salta pleased with our day outing, and I am very much ready for bed (but Paucho, the cat has got there first!).

Paucho, likes me a lot (perhaps due to sharing similar hair colour?)

Cafayate and Cachi, Roadtrip pt 1

Bored of staying in bed and feeling miserable, I decide to summon a great deal of pills and potions to mask the symptoms of food poisoning (which incidentally last 7 days) and continue with the original plan of renting a car for a few days. Of course, this is not a sensible plan but my determination to explore the area overrides sensibility. 

While I have been resting and retching, Adam has been spreading the word that we are seeking fellow adventurers to fill seats and split costs. After some hours of preparation (admittedly not by me), we have the car, the team and buckets of enthusiasm - we are ready to go!

The Vehicle

A silver Chevy Corsa with good suspension named 'The Pacifier' for reasons yet to be decided

The Road-Trippin' Team

1. From Wellington, New Zealand, we have Nelson aka 'Nelly', principle driver, walking thesaurus & best known for his ability to blast out 'classic rock' anthems at deafening volume.

2. Originally from Milwaukee, US, we have Allison aka 'Slowpotomous' or 'Snopek', who has never driven 'stick' before and likes attending figure-drawing classes.

3. Hailing from Cape Town, South Africa (or Germany depending on who is asking!) is my dear friend, Adam Franke-Matthecka - capoeira-king, marine-life expert and who still remains nickname-less (much to my dismay and best efforts over the past 2+ years!)...

and, finally my good self, originating from the lovely coastal town of Sligo, north-west Ireland, more permanently known as 'Riverdance' and for the duration of this road trip, known as 'Sickie'....

Nelly, Snopek, Sickie & Adam (from L-R)

We leave Salta, not quite at the crack of dawn as planned (midday) and hit the road to Cafayate. The landscape changes dramatically along this 165 km route - from lush green fields to arid red-rock cliffs and acres of cacti! We literally gasp as we wind around each bend. 

10 second timer....

Acting oddly around The Pacifier

The ladies

A real-live Cactus!

Snopek wanders, looking for artistic inspiration

Spot The Pacifier?

Contrasts

We take a quick gander around town (touristy but picturesque), and then follow the advice of a guidebook and head to the charming Hostel Valle. 

The others have a decent lunch, and I munch on a piece of dry bread - pobrecita! With my daily quota of energy used I retire to my DOUBLE bed (luxury!!) and the others visit the attractions of the local carnival

The vineyards around Cafayate are beautiful, vastly more attractive than Mendoza - with a backdrop of the Calchaquí valley and snow-capped Andean mountains. The high altitude, rich soil, and humid climate provide great conditions for the vineyards that surround the town. Apparently, the wineries in this region have won international awards for their Cabernet, 

Chardonnay, Malbec, and Torrontés wines. Torrontés, (I have been told) has a bold, fruity taste, and it is perhaps the best-known wine from Cafayate. Of course, Sickie here gets to try nada :-(

After a good sleep and breakfast, we are ready to continue on our journey to Cachi. 

Breakfast in the sunny lounge with views of the Andes

Once again the drive is dramatic and fascinating. We stop to wander around ever so often, almost feeling deafened by the silence - a place void of water and sound. Allison gets her first lesson in driving manual cars!

Nelly talks Snopek through the ABC's of manual driving

Fresh chili-peppers laid out in the midday sun

Fellow Capricorns graze the steep slopes!

Continuing along the famous Route 44 (which runs from Bolivian border to El Calafate, Patagonia)

Formations knarl around the dusty road

Climbing sheer rock!

Close-up of the little'ins

Crossing cowboy country

We stop in the town of Cachi (pretty but not terribly exciting) and I push the boat out, trying a few scoops of mash potato! On the way back to Salta we sing every song (and rap!) we can remember and play the 'name-game' until we are back in the lush green outskirts of Salta.

This roadtrip has certainly been one of the highlights of Argentina for me. The people, the scenery, the car-games, the sing-songs and the repeat playing of our only CD of 'viejos lentos' (Argentine 'slow oldies'!) assist in making this roadtrip absolutely fantastic and highly memorable. Yes I felt weak and wobbly for the entire trip - but me and my brave-face wouldn't have missed it for the world!

Singing all those old songs has triggered all kinds of weird and wonderful memories of people and places, and that night my dreams are vivid and nostalgic.