10. Salta, Argentina and crossing the border into Bolivia

SALTA

These long bus trips are getting a little tedious. After some serious discussions at the huge Cordoba bus station about the discrepancies  between the guy that sold us the ticket and what actually appeared re what constitutes "executivo" class, we finally were on our way north to Salta - 12 hrs. (We won the argument but had to pay a bit more for the better seats).

The seats were great - they reclined totally horizontal so sleeping was much easier. Unfortunately the rear end of the bus rode as if the shocks were welded shut - we felt every pebble in the road.

Salta is a pleasant place - we will be returning in a couple of weeks, so just got the lay of the land. Took the Teleferico (gondola) up the mountain for a great view and visited a very interesting museum dedicated to three Inca children that had been sacrificed around 500 years ago and buried atop a high Andean peak along with a trove of artifacts. Due to the altitude and low temperature, their bodies were perfectly preserved. In their culture, the sacrifice was seen as an honour.

We left Salta for the northern border city of Quiaca, headed for Bolivia. We still have no confirmation that our desired 4 day jeep trip is possible, but we decided to head into Bolivia anyhow. In the am we "arrived" in Quiaca- actually we never made it all the way. The road was barricaded by a demonstration, so we had to get off and drag our stuff a long way to the outskirts of town where we managed to grab a cab.

Argentina is having a lot of social problems - the inflation rate is about 30% and the gap between rich and poor is increasing. The rich find ways to save their money in other currencies or assets, but the poor are stuck with the fact that a peso you have today is worth almost nothing in 3 years.

Our hostel in La Quiaca! (the front was a mess but behind was OK)

La Quiaca is the most northern city in Argentina - 5170 km north of Ushuaia where we were about 2 months ago. With our back and forth moves between Argentina and Chile, we travelled far more distance than that - all by bus and a ferry trip.

Market in La Quiaca

The city was a bit of a disaster sleep-wise. The demonstration that met our arrival escalated into an all night highly amp'd rally not too far from our hostel. There was much continuous screaming into microphones accompanied by rhythmic drum beating. We were glad to leave the next morning.


CROSSING INTO BOLIVIA

There is no cross border transportation service to Bolivia. We took a taxi to the border, checked out of Argentina, walked across the border and tried to check into Bolivia. They were not the least interested in us. "Just go" the officials said. So we grabbed a taxi to the local bus terminal. We had no reservation for anything.

Arrival at the Bolivian bus "terminal" was chaotic. People grabbed our bags out of the taxi and started fighting over who was going to transport us to our next destination Tupiza - about 1 1/2 hrs. away. Finally one group got the upper hand, hauled us and our stuff into a storefront and slammed the door on the hordes. We were about to be transported on a collectivo - basically a passenger vehicle that runs a set route and carries as many as possible.

Just when we thought the collectivo was full and we were ready to go, we realized the driver was just starting to load the car. Finally, off we hurtled down the highway - ten of us and all our stuff in an old, small Toyota station wagon.Music at full volume through major crackly speakers. The rather large lady in front,  straddling the bucket seats, crossed herself numerous times as the driver showed his prowess at passing anything, anywhere. Maybe she saved all our lives.

So here we are in Tupiza, Bolivia, staying at the Mitru hotel - first time in a hotel since we left two months ago. The hotel is quite nice, includes a pool and for $27 a night for a double ensuite, including an excellent breakfast, you can't beat the price. We had lunch at a local cafe yesterday. We had a salad, huge bowl of soup and meat & potatoes for less than $2 each. After the inflated prices in Chile & Argentina, this is a relief.

Labour must be pretty cheap in Bolivia. 

Just found out this morning that our 4 day jeep trip is confirmed. There are 4 people per 6 seater jeep plus a driver and tour guide/cook. We had to pay a bit more for an English speaking guide and to rent sleeping bags. The total came to 1500 bolivianos each, or about $225. Seems like a great deal, but we'll see.