The rain has finally stopped so we decided to do a walking tour of Salta ourselves. Salta is the seventh largest city in Argentina with a population of about 690,000 plus a further half a million in the surrounding areas. It is the capital of Salta Province, one of 23 in total, and is in a very strategic location between Argentina, Paraguay and Bolivia. A General Guemes is famous here, as he led the rescue of Argentina during the war between these countries between 1864 and 1870 and known as the Triple Alliance.
Our tour started in the very beautiful main square in front of the Statue of General Guemes on his horse, then we moved to the Cathedral. Having been to many Catholic cathedrals we did not expect too much but this was particularly nice and very Catholic. The tomb to the General is in the first nave to the left of the main door. Further inside the cathedral is a particularly well configured sculpture of Christ, showing his wounds in the most graphic manner.
We then walked two blocks to the military museum but it was closed until 11am and then we returned to the square and the highlight of the day being the museum of High Altitude Archeology was truly extraordinary. We have never seen anything like it. Basically it holds the cryogenically frozen bodies of three young children, who were buried alive on the summit of a 6700m mountain by the Incas. It is Mount Llullaillaco.
They were from the "high houses" of the Inca nation, which comprised four separate "countries" and were considered to be the ultimate sacrifices from the Elites. Prior to their incarceration, they were brought in from the four countries (each being the melding of many villages by the Incas) and married to others at a young age to firm up the commitment of far-flung families. They were then drugged to sleep through drinking a maize based alcohol and carried to the peak. In 1999 they were discovered and retrieved by a special expedition, along with dozens of smaller artefacts which were entombed with each one. There in perfect condition, although over 500 years old, untouched, and retained in this condition within the museum where they are displayed in a particularly well built and well managed condition. The quality of the museum is quite exceptional, creating a "wow" experience. The pre-Spanish history of South America is truly fascinating and deserves my extended research.
We then walked via the Basilica to a small restaurant Dona Salta where the best empanadas are supposed to be in South America. We had 8 of them, plus half a bottle of wine and then walked on to some shops and other areas in this classic town.
We had heard nothing from the others, but later found out that both Jeff and JC have Dengue Fever and Jeff also has salmonella. We will see how that rolls out over the next two weeks, being the gestation period, however JC seemed fine although he had headaches and joint pain. We will see.
Sheryle and I went to an amazing high quality restaurant at the top of the local mountain called San Bernado. The ride up (and down) by taxi was a highlight in itself! Although the cable car option may have been that way too.
The restaurant is El Baqueano (The volcano) and did a first class degustation menu based around vegetables with one fish and one Llama dish, the latter being tartare and delicious. I also had a small wine flight of six glasses, five being whites from local wineries and one red. For their young vintages, they were delightful and different. We returned to the Wilson Hotel, now a favourite of ours, after a very fine day.
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