Opushomes- sorry I am so late- I was actually thinking just today that I had not posted a trip report. We had a little over 2 weeks and spent 6 nights in Buenos Aires at the Bobo Hotel in Palermo Viejo- 3 nights at the beginning and 3 at the end.
We flew to Salta on LAN - flight was on time and efficient. We took a cab to the hotel. Hotel Papyrus in Salta- small boutique hotel up on a hill overlooking the city not too far from the Sheraton. We were given a beautiful room on the top floor with a lovely patio and view of the city. Salta looks a lot like southern California- the inland empire specifically. The hotel has a beautiful dining room with large windows and breakfast was plentiful but uneven from one day to the next. Service was spotty but good natured and the biggest surprise for me was that dinner was very good and beautifully served. ( and a good respite from the parillas we had been frequenting) We had not planned to dine there but there was a chalkboard menu posted and another guest recommended the food. We were not disappointed and the setting was lovely.
Frankly, the city of Salta was a bit disappointing- the Cathedrals and the Cabildo were worth a visit as well as the Salta Museum on the square with the new exhibits of indigenous life in the area as well as the newly displayed child mummies.
We used taxis at night to get around and walked during the day- the one way streets and lack of driving rules in the city was a bit scary as we were passenger in the cabs.
We had Hertz deliver a car to our hotel for our trip to Colome. After reading many accounts of the trip we decided to drive from Salta- Cachi -Colome. It was a long day. We rented a small Chevy and were shocked about an hour from town when we discovered we had to ford a small stream that was flowing over the road. We were told that this was the dry season! There was no way for us to detemine how deep the water was- after a few more drivers in low riding cars stopped- a big truck came through and the water did not look too high against his tires- so we drove on.
The road is mostly packed gravel and it was pretty empty- the weather was clear the the lack of oncoming traffic made the lack of guard rails seem less ominous. Nevertheless the the gravel made the going slow and it is a long drive to Cachi- which as a very small town- we had lunch but is was still a long way to Colome and the road was much worse. Although we left Salta at 8 am we did not arrive at Colome until about4 or 5 pm- stopping for lunch and photos.
Colome, a winery owned by Hess as well as a small hotel was lovely. Defintiely in the middle of nowhwere- About a dozen rooms around a courtyard with views of the mountains and vineyards. We toured the winery, hiked- did not swim because it ws too cold but spent time skywatching- the night sky was truly magnificent- clear desert air- at 7000 ft and no lights. The sky was worth the trip! The food was very good and again service a bit slow but we had no place to go. The hotel was half full the first night and then only 2 couples the next night.
On the 3rd day we drove to Cafayate- and stayed at the Hotle Killa- run by a delightful woman-Marta- the room was small but built with native woods and stone- the breakfast was basic but fine. The day we were to leave there was a power outage in the town and when we went to pay our bill we discovered that she did not take credit cards- but all the ATM.s had no power- she offered to have aus send her the money when we we returned home- but we paid in dollars.
We toured some wineries but the power outage interfered with our plans .
We drove back to Salta and the scenery and red rock canyons were beautiful but not that different than we had seen in Utah or Arizona.
After another overnight on Salta we planned to drive to Purmamarca- we took the "scenic" road which I would not recommend- It was winding and only wide enough for one car around blind curves- we were lucky because we stopped to look take a photo and an Argentine couple stopped as well and asked where we were going- they were going to Purmamarca as well and offered to have us follow- Purmamarca is a tiny town that is undergoing an influs of tourists becuse it has a remarkable hillside of 7 colors- Crowded in the morning with busloads of tourists, it is a quiet town of indigenous people at night. We stayed at El Manantial del Silencio- just outside of town-- We had a nice room- and breakfast was good- but there ere lots of families with lots and lots of kids- running wild in teh dining room- it was holiday time oin Argentina- somehow the Silencio did not catch on.
We drove to the Salinas Grandes- other worldy salt flats and drove to Tilcara and Maimara and back to Salta after 3 days on the fast and straight road- It took one third of the time.
I am glad you warned me abut the language- I was not so shocked at first when I did not understand- but everyone was really patient with me and after a while I did fine. We had a good trip- the wineries, the scenery, the food and Buenos Aires all were good- Buenos Aires is definitley worth a return- and next to Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego. And we left with 2 cases of wine expertly chosen by Gaucho. I am glad we went to Salta- and cranked down the expectations. We ahd a good trip but I would hesitate to recommend a trip to Salta if it was a first time trip to South America or to a less travelled person.