Trip Update: Part 1 - Argentina

I have a little less than two months left here in South America. Here's a quick update of where I've been with  pictures:

Iguazu Falls

 Located in the North of Argentina on the border with Brazil and Paraguay. Even after seeing the pictures and hearing about how amazing it was for 2 months I was still impressed when I saw the falls in person.

Salta (with day trip to Cachi)

 After spending two months in Buenos Aires, Salta was my first stop on my trip around the rest of Argentina and one of my favorite places. I took a tour to the mountain village of Cachi where the picture below were taken.  Cachi was amazing and if I ever make it back to this part of Argentina I'll try to spend a couple nights there.

Jujuy

Jujuy is a province north of Salta close to Bolivia in the Quebrada Valley. In addition to amazing rock formations, Jujuy also contains the Salinas Grandes, a large salt flat which was one of the highlights for me.  The first picture below is the drive to Salinas which was one of the highlights for me. If I had to do it over again, I would have stayed in one of the small villages in the valley such as Pulmamarca.  The city of San Salvador de Jujuy which I stayed in was unimpressive.

 

Cafayate

After staying 3 nights in Jujuy, I took a 4 hour bus south to Cafayate, a small town in the wine region of Argentina.  Cafayate has the quaint, laid-back small town vibe but happens to have many bodegas (wineries) within walking distance of the town square and others you can bike to through beautiful country.  I preferred Cafayate over the more well-known Mendoza.

Mendoza

Had a great time here but no good picts to post.  It's a much cleaner city than Buenos Aires but I found it kinda boring.  What made the experience for me was staying in the Karma House where I met some great people and had a fun time grilling out, drinking wine, and relaxing. 

Bariloche

I hadn't originally planned on going to Bariloche but after hearing everyone rave about it I decided to check it out and I'm glad I did.  Bariloche is located n the lakes district of Argentina, 16 hours south of Mendoza by bus.  I spent 4 days hiking, biking, and checking out the landscapes.

And after Bariloche ..   it was finally time to cross the border into Chile before my 90 day visa expired.  Despite my negative first impression of Chile, I learned to love the country after 3 weeks traveling through Pucon, Santiago, Valparaiso, The Elkui Valley, and finally San Pedro de Atacama.  To be continued. . .