When my boyfriend bought our bus tickets to Pinamar, the clerk told him it would be a four-hour ride. Not bad at all for a weekend at the beach! He chose a 1:30pm departure time, to allow me to sleep in after a…Read More

When my boyfriend bought our bus tickets to Pinamar, the clerk told him it would be a four-hour ride. Not bad at all for a weekend at the beach! He chose a 1:30pm departure time, to allow me to sleep in after a long night at work and to give us time to walk to the station rather than taking another bus.

As we got on, the man checking the tickets said we would be arriving in Pinamar at 8:30pm. Excuse me?

"But the woman who sold the tickets said four hours!" my boyfriend said.

"Yes, but this bus takes seven hours," the man said.

"But she told me four hours!"

"That's the early bus and the late bus. This bus is seven hours."

"Why didn't she tell me that?"

"They are supposed to. But they usually don't."

And so it goes in Argentina.

We weren't the only ones who were surprised. There was an Argentinian family taking up about eight seats in front of us, and half way through the trip they asked the man on the bus when we would be arriving. He said 8:30pm. They talked about that for the next fifteen minutes, and then kept counting down the kilometers at every highway sign.

When we arrived at our hotel that night ("Two Nights at Arte del Rey"), we apologized for being so much later than we had expected. The woman asked us which bus we took.

"Plaza," we said.

"Oh, the worst of them all!" she exclaimed. (Good to know now...) She proceeded to list the many companies that would have been better, and that might not have involved stopping off at every little town along the way, even when those little towns were several or many kilometers off the highway.

Luckily, on the way back we ended up on a direct bus run by Plusmar -- where we found snack packs and water bottles waiting for us on our seats. Four hours later we were back in Buenos Aires.   Close

It had been so long since we'd been to the beach, so we were up early on Sunday and on the sand. Our friend had told us about a restaurant near Carilo (see review "Hemingway") and our plan was to walk to it for…Read More

It had been so long since we'd been to the beach, so we were up early on Sunday and on the sand. Our friend had told us about a restaurant near Carilo (see review "Hemingway") and our plan was to walk to it for lunch.

I'm usually not much for sunscreen, but I applied it generously, knowing that my pale skin isn't made for an entire day in the sun right after the winter in Buenos Aires. I skipped my legs when I left, but we made a pit stop and I got them covered, too. Of course, I missed a couple of small spots and now have some weirdly shaped red marks, but they are small and turning brown quickly.

My boyfriend didn't use sunscreen, as he has much darker skin than I do and doesn't usually use it, but he paid the price: the tops of his feet got scorched. His legs also burned a bit, but they were brown by the next afternoon.

Don't forget your hat and sunglasses! It was a breezy day, so it didn't feel as hot and it tricked you into thinking the sun wasn't all that strong. But it was.

The sand is beautiful and clean -- aside from cautious steps over big areas of crushed seashells, I wasn't worried about stepping on anything weird or painful. There were quite a few people out already, sunning and surfing or playing with their dogs or kids. There were a lot of people in the water, but I wasn't one of them -- that water is cold!

The walk to the restaurant seemed short, but walking back the same distance got a little long -- just too much heat and not enough water to drink.

On our way back to our hotel that afternoon, we saw a few vendors selling the usual jewelry and sea trinkets -- and others selling corn on the cob! Not the first thing I think of when I think of beach food, but there were quite a few people enjoying it -- and more than one corn vendor.

Pinamar is fantastic for a beach weekend. However, a lot of people in Argentina know that, so beware during the high season, especially on three day weekends! We were lucky -- we went the weekend after a three-day weekend, and it was fairly quiet. That's always nicer than when it gets so crowded on the sand, or when you have to compete for your hotel room, so choose your dates carefully. Check Argentina's holiday calendar and avoid warm three-day weekends.

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The budget is a serious consideration when you take a trip. Regardless of how much you're prepared to spend in Buenos Aires, there a few things you should be aware of when it comes to cash.ATMs can be found in any bank, though there is…Read More

The budget is a serious consideration when you take a trip. Regardless of how much you're prepared to spend in Buenos Aires, there a few things you should be aware of when it comes to cash.

ATMs can be found in any bank, though there is usually a limit to how much you can withdraw -- I used several different ones and was always cut off at AR$1000 -- less than US$250. That doesn't last too long, and of course you have bank and ATM fees to be wary of.

Many places won't accept anything but cash. Some offer discounts if you pay in cash. Others have deals with banks in an effort to get people to pay with plastic, so you'll find some grocery stores and restaurants offer discounts to those who pay with a card from a certain bank. You can't go wrong with cash, though.

Change is chronically difficult to get. The largest bill in regular circulation is AR$100, which is worth about US$25 -- however, if you try to pay a 30-peso check, or even a 70-peso check, with a 100-peso bill, you will almost always be asked if you have something smaller. If you don't have exact change in coins and they don't have the coin power to give you, they will either give you those centavos in discount, suggest that they owe you and will pay you next time, or offer you a few candies or a lemon or something to make up the extra that you gave them. The small mom-and-pop type stores have a harder time with this than the bigger ones, but even in grocery stores sometimes you will have to wait for five minutes until the employee in charge of the change comes by your aisle with change for the checkout person. I tend to pay in 100s at the movie theatre and restaurants, and save my smaller bills for the verdulerias.

Speaking of smaller bills, you will want them for the taxis. Handing over $100 is a good way to screwed (the driver might say you only gave them a $50, or pull a quick switch and show you a fake $100, saying that that's the one you gave them). I don't mean to suggest that taxi drivers are dishonest -- the majority are good, hard-working people. But there are bad eggs who will take advantage of your foreign self. Beware, and use smaller bills.

Be on the lookout for fakes. There are several ways to tell: if you hold it up to the light, you should see the water marks. You can shine a black light on it to see tiny flecks shining back at you. There is a silver stripe that runs through the bill: tearing it just as the top of that stripe should reveal silver underneath. The numbers are ever-so-slightly raised (I don't like that test as I can't really feel the difference). And it's not just the 100s that are counterfeited -- I've seen fake 20s, as well. You'll notice that store clerks will habitually check the bills you hand them for authenticity.

Dollars are now a black-market luxury, so take care in how many pesos you withdraw -- changing them back to dollars here will mean a big loss for you. Don't try to take them back to States and exchange them there, either: I've heard that there are no banks in the US that will buy Argentine pesos right now. Check with your bank before you leave to be sure -- this is the type of situation that can change overnight.

And, as in any city, carry only what you need and be wary of pickpockets. As the economic climate wavers, we are seeing more and more of that sort of crime.   Close

For many of us, vising a foreign country opens up a whole new shopping experience. Maybe we're looking for some fun new stuff for ourselves, or we feel like we have to bring something back home for all the poor suckers who didn't get to…Read More

For many of us, vising a foreign country opens up a whole new shopping experience. Maybe we're looking for some fun new stuff for ourselves, or we feel like we have to bring something back home for all the poor suckers who didn't get to travel with us. Either way, you gotta know where to go and what to get.

As mentioned in other entries, I love the craft markets and think they are great places to find something for your friends and family.

In general, I have not found the clothes and some other products here to be of especially high quality, though they do tend to be pricey. This depends hugely on where you go and what you buy, but the average shirt in the window seems to cost about $50 and looks like it could fall apart any minute. My boyfriend bought me a little backpack that I used sporadically to take stuff to the gym and on one three-day weekend in Uruguay, but after a couple of months three of the four zippers had broken and the beginnings of a hole started to appear in the front. Not impressed. I hope you have better luck.

Here are some of the main shopping areas:

Santa Fe. This long street is lined with boutiques. You will find lower prices if you go back into some of the galleries rather than just popping into the shops with street-front views.

Florida and Lavalle. Both pedestrian streets, and both have a lot of clothing stores as well as tourist-focused stores for buying souvenirs and Argentiny things like leather goods.

The malls. Abasto, Alto Palermo, Patio Bullrich, Recoleta. The most impressive looking is definitely Abasto; it's worth a trip just to see the building. Otherwise, they're all about the same and not really places to find bargains.

San Telmo. This entire barrio is home to antique stores, and you won't want to miss the huge antique market if old stuff is your kind of thing.

Once. This is where I always get directed when I ask someone where to find reasonably priced goods, especially products for the home, like kitchen appliances.

Keep an eye out for stores that are going out of business -- this happens fairly often, which is easy to understand when you take note of how many similar stores are within a stone's throw -- they're a good option for finding some better prices.

Happy shopping!   Close

Buenos Aires tunes into its Italian influences and does ice cream right. Like alfajores, you can find an ice cream shop on nearly every other corner. The major chains include Freddo, Persicco, Volta, and Victoria, but you will find numerous independent stores, as well. The…Read More

Buenos Aires tunes into its Italian influences and does ice cream right. Like alfajores, you can find an ice cream shop on nearly every other corner. The major chains include Freddo, Persicco, Volta, and Victoria, but you will find numerous independent stores, as well. The experience is more or less the same wherever you go, and the ice cream is good everywhere, but when you talk to Argentines you will discover that everyone has his or her preference.

(Mine is Freddo. More specifically, the Dulce de Leche at Freddo.)

At each store you will be faced with a major decision: what flavor? There are always 10-30 flavors to choose from, and each one looks and sounds fantastic. If you're really curious, most places will give you a free taste of one or two before you make your final decision.

Sizes range from a tiny joke of a little cone up to a full kilo. It's kind of expensive -- I usually opt for a cup that costs about AR$25, or just about US$6. I guess it's on par with stores like ColdStone Creamery and Maggie Moo's in the United States.

If you're a budget ice cream eater, go on Mondays -- many of the chains offer specials, like 2x1 kilos or a 1/4 kilo of a certain flavor for maybe 40% off.

If it's busy when you go in, you'll wait your turn in line to tell the cashier what size you want, and you will pay up front. Then you will hand your ticket to the server and tell him what flavor you want. If you're the only person waiting to order, it's a little more relaxed and you can just place your order with the first person who acknowledges you, and pay as the server is dishing it up.

Argentines love their ice cream, and after that first bite, you will, too.   Close

Even though it's tempting, you can't eat all your meals at a restaurant. Well, I guess you can. But if you're spending an extended period of time here, you probably will want to make your own food at some point, at least in part because…Read More

Even though it's tempting, you can't eat all your meals at a restaurant. Well, I guess you can. But if you're spending an extended period of time here, you probably will want to make your own food at some point, at least in part because there are very few places where you will find anything for breakfast aside from a medialuna (croissant) and coffee.

Your major grocery stores include Disco and Carrefour, among others. Disco regularly tends to be more expensive with less selection than Carrefour, so I lean toward the Carrefour. I go here for eggs, toilet paper, tortillas, vanilla, cleaning products, wine (the selection is enormous), and little else these days. It's summertime now, and with so many porteños vacationing out of town, it´s possible to check out without a long wait in line. During the winter, when I first starting shopping here, I experienced waits of up to an hour. It was horrible. This is what made me start looking outside the grocery store for my kitchen needs.

If you're a one-stop shopper, you can get most of what you'll need at these big stores -- but if you're a bargain shopper like me, you won't want to.

The verdulerias -- vegetable markets -- are consistently cheaper than the store, and they're everywhere. I pass three of them on my walk to the Carrefour, and there are a couple more in any other direction. I buy all my fruit and vegetables here.

The prices at these stores vary randomly: for example, on the corner, cherries are AR$15 for half of a kilo. Down the block, they're AR$20 for a fourth of a kilo! You won't always find such wide variance, but on berries of all kinds I have noticed differences, so I check all the nearby places before making my berry purchase.

These markets also tend to to carry eggs, mushrooms, fresh cilantro and mint, and sometimes bottled drinks. They carry what's in season and what's available, so occasionally you might get there and discover they have no broccoli or something. I base my cooking on what I find, rather than planning a menu and shopping to match it.

It can be hard to find hot peppers like jalepeños, but when I do find them, it's at a verduleria.

The fresh-baked bread at the bakery costs about the same as the packaged loaves in the store, so when I want bread, I go straight to the bakery and choose a wholesome loaf.

Rice, beans, nuts, granola, dried fruit, spices, chocolate chips, and much, much more can be purchased in bulk at New Garden, which has several locations throughout the city. Most products here are cheaper than in the grocery stores. They also carry various sauces and condiments, noodles, cookies and sweets, natural soaps and cosmetics, and honey. I have found that sauces -- like soy and Tabasco -- are a little cheaper at the grocery store, but it varies. I shop here about three times per week. I love it.

Grandiet, another store with several locations, also has some nuts, spices, and granola in bulk, but the big attraction here is the dried fruit: kiwi, melon, pineapple, grapefruit, papaya, mango, apricots, and more. Melon and kiwi are my favorite, and stopping here is an absolute treat. They also carry other nutritional products.

For empanadas, skip the grocery store version and go straight to one of the empanada shops. They offer more variety and the products are fresh and delicious. Many places will warm them up for you if you want to eat right away.

Cooking in another country can be a challenge if you can't find the ingredients you're used to, but if you shop around you will usually be able to find sufficient substitutes, at least -- and you´ll probably encounter a few new favorite foods.   Close

In such a huge city, you can expect to find a lot of restaurants -- and you will. You also might expect to find an incredible variety of food. For this, you will have to look a little harder. Twelve million people in Buenos Aires,…Read More

In such a huge city, you can expect to find a lot of restaurants -- and you will. You also might expect to find an incredible variety of food. For this, you will have to look a little harder. Twelve million people in Buenos Aires, and they're all eating steaks.

Restaurants line the streets in Buenos Aires -- go into many of them, and you will find that the menu is more or less the same. If you want variety, you have to seek out those places that have made a name for themselves by being deliciously different. You won't find international cousine on every corner. You have to dig a little deeper.

Check out some of the entries in this journal. We love Mexican, Chinese, Thai, and Indian food, so we hunt those restaurants down -- and I write about them here!

If you love spicy food -- good luck! For the most part, Argentines don't, so even dishes that are listed as "spicy" -- even in, say, a Mexican restaurant where spicy is to be expected -- might not be very hot by your standards.

You will also notice that many Argentine restaurants charge a cover. Sometimes this is per person, sometimes it is per table. It is usually just a few dollars, maybe AR$10, but don't be surprised to see that added to your bill. This is not a tip; supposedly, it covers the use of utensils and the table service.

Tips are expected, though you generally can't put them on credit cards. If you pay with a card, make sure to leave the tip in cash. Some places don't accept cards, or they might have a minimum amount for using a card, so ask in advance if you don't have the cash on you.

When you enter a restaurant, you will most likely seat yourself and wait for a waiter to find you.

The Argentine dinner hour is late. Many restaurants don't even open for dinner until 8:00pm, and it doesn't really start rolling in there until 9:00 or 10:00. Make a reservation at popular restaurants, especially if you're keeping an Argentine schedule. If you prefer to eat a little earlier, you 'd probably be okay to skip the reservation -- but if you're thinking ahead, make one just in case.
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Uruguay and Argentina are only separated by Rio Plata, with travel between the two nations short and easy. Many guidebooks on Argentina recommend a few destinations in Uruguay to visit, one of them being Colonia del Sacramento.While in Argentina, my friend helped me book my…Read More

Uruguay and Argentina are only separated by Rio Plata, with travel between the two nations short and easy. Many guidebooks on Argentina recommend a few destinations in Uruguay to visit, one of them being Colonia del Sacramento.

While in Argentina, my friend helped me book my trip to Uruguay through its website. I was planning to be in Colonia del Sacramento only for the day. The website is rather easy to navigate - and provides an icon of the craft that you'll be riding (Buque Rapido or Direct). The icons were a mystery to me then - but if you carefully read the schedule, you'll learn that the smaller craft is a Rapido (approx 1hr trip) and that the larger craft is a Direct (approx 3 hr trip).

Considering that I was going to be there for less than a day and that the trip each way would be 1-3 hours, I had a bit of a sticker shot when I learned that pricing was at least 200 USD. Pricing depends on dates/times, class, flexibility and f you're riding a Buquebus Rapido or not. Because I was trying to be conscious of my spending, I ended up booking the Direct on the return trip.

On the morning of my trip, I checked in at the counter at the Buquebus terminal, located near Puerto Madero. Luckily for me, the representative behind the counter spoke English, and I quickly retrieved my boarding pass. You must go upstairs to go through immigration, where you will need to fill out the form and present your passport. The process is simplified as both representatives from Argentina and Uruguay are in the same room. Entry to Uruguay is stamped on your passport before you enter the waiting room instead of going through immigration on the other side of the river.

There are no assigned seats on the ferry. First class is in a separate room from economy - and staff is at the doorway to validate your boarding pass. After 15 minutes after the ferry departed, the duty free shop was in service. Also, available on board is a snack shop which served common continental pastries.

The ride to Uruguay was very relaxing and luckily the waves were calm as well. However, on the return trip (on the Direct), there was a rainstorm that endlessly rocked the boat, causing me to be ill for a majority of the 3-hour ride. If at all possible, book the Rapido to avoid cases like these!

Also, don't forget to save the remainder of the completed immigration You will need to provide this to the Argentine immigration officials in Uruguay in order to return.    Close

In my Roaming Argentina journal, I described a bus trip from La Quiaca to Mendoza. Essentially, the trip from Salta to Mendoza needed for this trip is not different and equally spectacular, crossing the Argentinean northwest very close to the Andes Range. Eventually, after crossing…Read More

In my Roaming Argentina journal, I described a bus trip from La Quiaca to Mendoza. Essentially, the trip from Salta to Mendoza needed for this trip is not different and equally spectacular, crossing the Argentinean northwest very close to the Andes Range. Eventually, after crossing Catamarca, La Rioja, and San Juan, Mendoza is reached.

Mendoza

Before reaching it, Mendoza statistics seemed impressive: it is Argentina’s fourth largest city. That’s true, but the town has just above a hundred thousand inhabitants. Even including its metropolitan area, it doesn’t reach the million people. Yet, it offers a few interesting views, especially from an historic perspective. In 1861 a major earthquake hit the city, killing more than five thousand people and destroying much of its center. As a result the city was rebuilt in an urban design aimed at minimizing the damage of future earthquakes. A huge park named Parque General San Martín was built at its western side and the town’s center features larger parks and wider streets than any other in Argentina. In its style, it is the role-model of an Argentinean city.

Being on the main route connecting Buenos Aires in Argentina with Santiago in Chile and nearby the Aconcagua Mountain – the highest in the Americas – ensure Mendoza a steady stream of tourists. Other industries like oil and uranium transform the city into the main urban area in Argentina’s central western side.

Mendoza was re-built around a central square, called Plaza Independencia in this case. A perfect grid of 8x8 blocks surrounds it and forms downtown Mendoza, in what is known as classical Spanish Colonial style. The four avenues delimiting the downtown are: Las Heras, San Martin, Colon and Belgrano, most of the commercial and cultural centers are within this square. A stylish Shopping Tranvia bus travels along them during the day. A walking street called Sarmiento runs through half of its center and is the focus of social life in the area.

A dangerous characteristic that must be kept in mind while touring the town is the deep and often wide open ditches running along the streets. Aimed at supplying water to the trees, they pose a real danger to innocent visitors; there was no reason to leave them uncovered. For other attractions in the downtown area, please see my Mendoza journal.

Seeing Aconcagua

In Nepal I have walked for three weeks among the highest mountains on earth and then got a breathtaking view of a Goliath. All the mountains around me were white with snow, except for the colossus. The Everest was so high that the wild winds prevented the snow to stick on its top; the last shone black amidst a sea of white peaks, a white plume of drifting snow crowned the mountain. I watched that from near the Pumari (a mountain that is higher than the Aconcagua and well over the 7000 meters), another giant which near the Everest looked as a small hill. In sharp contrast, the Aconcagua is just one of the many peaks in the Andes higher than 6500m but lower than 7000m. Without having been told it was the highest, I couldn’t have known that. Having traveled there by bus from a major city also took away part of the fun.

Moreover, the Nepali side of the Himalayas enjoys monsoon rains and thus is lush green and densely inhabited. It is a feast of life. However, the Andes are generally dry, with very few people living on them. The brown altitude desert is not an attractive place for trekking. Yet, I was there, trying to spot the summit. The Aconcagua was almost completely hidden behind its neighbors and at least from the Mirador’s area none of the glaciers could be seen. Moving around the place, I finally got a clear view of the snowed peak but the overall effect was a bit disappointing.

A small hut with a slanted roof marks the spot of the Mirador. It is located at the exact beginning of the road leading from the highway to the Aconcagua’s base camp.

After the bus disappeared, I entered the hut.

"Which peak is the Aconcagua?" I asked the couple keeping the place.

They showed me around, and I found the hut offers information regarding the mountain and how to climb it, but nothing else. Then, we went out and they show me the Aconcagua summit.

"How did you arrive here before the first bus?" the traveler in me wanted to ask. There were no cars in sight. Thinking twice, I said thank you and left for a walk in the area.

Puente del Inca

A couple of kilometers before the Mirador, the Puente del Inca (Inca’s Bridge) is a natural bridge of a sulfuric yellow color spanning the narrow Vacas (cows) River.

Apparently it was an official stop of Inca messengers connecting remote locations of that empire. Nowadays, it serves as a small commercial center catering for travelers and climbers; it offers snacks, souvenirs and a lodge.

This is the last opportunity for a coffee before visiting the Mirador; otherwise, it is possible to walk a couple of kilometers down the road from the Mirador to the Puente, drink a coffee there, and then catch the bus to Mendoza from there.

Transandine Railway

The Puente del Inca was one of the last stations of the Transandine Railway in Argentina, before the train reached Chile through a long tunnel under the Andes. As most of the passengers’ trains in the country, it does not work anymore, though eternally delayed reactivation plans do exist.

When active, a journey from Argentina to Chile involved two breaks-of-gauge and changes of train, one at Mendoza and the other at Santa Rosa de Los Andes in Chile. This is similar to what happens with several trains in China, especially in Yunnan, where three types of gauges are in use.

This meter gauge railway is an impressive sight, especially since it is partly covered by an artificial tunnel designed to protect the train from the harsh winter. Walking alongside the tunnel is possible and recommended since along it are awesome sights of the surrounding mountains and valleys, perhaps better than those at the Puente del Inca and the Mirador del Aconcagua.

Back to Buenos Aires

Was that all? Is that the way a trip crossing South America ends? Well, Argentina is vast. If having time, the trip back to Buenos Aires can be spiced up with two interesting stops: Tucuman and Cordoba; both can be reached by bus from Mendoza.

Few cities in Argentina have an historical importance comparable to that of Tucuman. Since its peak days during the early 19th century the city has been constantly declining in prominence; yet, with half a million denizens, it is the largest city in Northern Argentina. Moreover, the fertile plains surrounding it provide few touristy attractions. These have transformed Tucuman into a paradise for the tourist attempting to avoid crowds fighting for the best photograph’s angle while nearby they can purchase it as a postcard. Despite its mild latitude, Tucuman is very hot, maybe due to the lack of a moderating sea nearby; the result is that during the noon and early afternoon the denizens are busy with their siesta. There is no better time for the worldwide pilgrim for taking a look around. Downtown Tucuman is tidily arranged around the Plaza Independencia, the central plaza. This was the site of the city foundation in 1685, after being translated here from Ibatin; accordingly the plaza displays a colonial setup. Being the main travel hub in northern Argentina, most travelers in the area would reach it at some point or other.

Cordoba’s image transformation in my mind from an unknown to a riddle took years. I knew that together with Rosario it was considered to be the on the second line of importance amidst Argentinean cities after Buenos Aires. Both had over a million denizens and while Rosario was an industrial center, Cordoba was known for its universities. Once there, I found an agreeable town, not too different from other Argentinean major cities.

The End

Visiting Spanish-Speaking Southern South America in a month is not difficult, unless of course, the traveler falls in love with the sights along the way and the trip goes on until the end of time.
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Southwards from La Paz, things become rather simple from the traveler’s perspective. Oruro, maybe Sucre, Potosi and then back to Argentina.OruroCarnival is the main - and some say the only - attraction in Oruro. UNESCO recognized it as a Human Heritage event and since then…Read More

Southwards from La Paz, things become rather simple from the traveler’s perspective. Oruro, maybe Sucre, Potosi and then back to Argentina.

Oruro

Carnival is the main - and some say the only - attraction in Oruro. UNESCO recognized it as a Human Heritage event and since then the city is called the Folkloric Capital of Bolivia. La Diablada - (The Devilish) as the event is usually called - takes place on the Saturday before Ash Wednesday and is a huge parade of devils performed by dancers in elaborate masks and customs, which attracts crowds from the whole country.

Plaza 10 de Febrero is the town's focal point. It features less important buildings that its counterparts in La Paz or Sucre, but that creates a good opportunity for enjoying the stylish Spaniard plaza itself. Beyond that and the fact nowadays Oruro is the northernmost stop of the Altiplano railway, there is one more site worth visiting: Socavon. If the traveler has time to see only one attraction in Bolivia, then the Socavon should be it. In this small enclave, the visitor can get a pretty good view of the Bolivian society: an extraordinary church, a mine turned into a museum, a museum of local sacred art, a monument to Bolivian miners and comprehensive views of the downtown area. All in one; reviewing this demands an entire journal.

Sucre

Many sources on Bolivia claim the country has two capitals. Most Bolivians would be surprise to hear that. The city of Sucre is the constitutional and only capital of the country and the seat of the Supreme Court. For various reasons, the government moved to La Paz during the early 20th Century, since then, this city is called the "Sede de Govierno," the "Government Seat."

The White City - as it is known in Bolivia - was founded in 1538 as La Plata (The Silver); the city was the capital of the Charcas, an extensive territory stretching from the Rio de la Plata to Peru. In 1776, the Spaniards created new administrative divisions and the city name was changed to Chuquisaca. On August 6, 1825 the Bolivian independence was declared here and its name was changed to Sucre, honoring in such a way a general involved in the independence process. Its wide sidewalks and pleasantly empty streets allow a full appreciation of its colonial white houses with beautiful wood balconies. The colonial center of Sucre is apparently void of inhabitants; most houses have been transformed into hotels, internet kiosks or restaurants. Thus, booking places in advance is not necessary. See the dedicated journal for more details on its sights.

Potosi

Three hours by bus from Sucre is Potosi; this is the best option for traveling between these two cities. Literally sitting on a silver mountain, Potosi was the largest and richest city in the Americas; nowadays, it’s a memorial to the slaves who died mining. With the downtown at an altitude of 4070 meters above the seal level, Potosi is – amazingly – almost four hundred meters above Lhasa, Tibet’s capital, and thus probably is the highest city in the world (El Alto shares similar statistics); the miners’ neighborhoods climb Cerro Rico well above the 4200 meters line.

Yet, the position of the city is unclear. Is it on the Andean High Plateau, or high on the Andes mountains, just south of the plateau? Potosinos (people from Potosi) claim they are on the Andes; people from the Altiplano claim Potosi is the southern part of the plateau. Reality is tricky; yet it is safe to claim Potosi is on the southern border of the plateau. The terrain is too broken to give an exact definition.

Potosi was founded in 1545 following the discovery of silver in Cerro Rico by the Spaniards and by the end of the eighteenth century, more than a million people lived there; it was the largest and most glamorous city in the Americas. At the 19th century silver production waned and decline began. Nowadays, hardly 120 thousand Quechua people live in poverty, trying to scratch out enough minerals to live a miserable life. Little of the former splendor is left, since most of the old structures were made of adobe and melted back to earth once they were abandoned. However, over two thousand colonial buildings still exist in the city, including twenty-two artificial lakes constructed to make the mills used in the silver processing work.

The almost only visible hint to the former splendor is the churches; sixteen major churches survive in the downtown area. Mostly built in Baroque style with Mestizo influences, they provide the best views of Potosi at its peak. Around the city center, live the poor miners neighborhoods and beyond them are the huts belonging to farmers that run away from the countryside poverty, exchanging it by a worse fate.
Potosi’s main attractions are the silver mines and the Casa de la Moneda (The Coining House). The mines are operated nowadays by cooperatives and it is possible to visit them and see the miners in work; their idols – plastic representations of Satan, the ruler of the depths – and the daily offerings the miners give them, provide a fascinating view into their spiritual world. The Casa de la Moneda is the best museum in Bolivia, and maybe in the whole continent; it hosts a significant art collection beyond the obvious collection of coins and the machinery for their production. All these attractions make of Potosi a must destination not only while in Bolivia, but while in South America.

Potosi is surrounded by many attractions. The Uyuni’s Salt Lake is a major one and can be reached in two or three-day trips. A two days one costs forty dollars and includes little more than a drive over the salt plains. The three days trip includes the "Laguna Colorada" (Red Lake) and the "Laguna Verde" (Green Lake); two geothermic formations who offer strange landscapes and a colony of flamingos that arrived from the Pacific Ocean coast and got trapped here due to unfavorable air currents. The last option costs eighty-five dollars. See the dedicated Potosi journal for more details.

If leaving Potosi towards Argentina; it is worthwhile to plan a stop at Tupiza, halfway to the border. The little town is placed in a narrow alley amidst gorgeous red mountains. It offers a reasonable tourism infrastructure and local agents can help to arrange treks in the area. It is worth remembering that the Villazon-La Quiaca is the friendliest border cross between these two countries.

Northern Argentina

Back in Argentina, three main towns are along the way to the America’s highest mountain: La Quiaca – which is the border cross – Jujuy and Salta.

In the Argentinean mythology, La Quiaca is a synonym for the world’s end, rather than that, I found it to be a crossroads between that country and Bolivia. Interface points between cultures are of special interest for travelers; in no other place the essence of traveling is so distilled, nowhere else the little local nuisances are so mighty and bold. In these, La Quiaca excels.

Jujuy is the northernmost and one of the most beautiful provinces in Argentina, providing the local contact with Andean cultures. Beyond the beautiful town, the traveler can enjoy fabulous sights, like the Quebrada de Humahuaca.

Salta is the biggest city in northwestern Argentina and doubles as the area's travel hub. Beyond the obvious international airport, it is possible to reach three countries from here with the help of comfortable buses. Resembling other colonial Argentinean towns, Salta was built in a perfect rectangular grid of streets surrounding a central plaza; that plaza was bounded by the town's main buildings and churches. Still a small town, its colonial ambience is pretty much untouched. Cerro San Bernardo provides an unforgettable hiking experience and great views of the area.

From this town is possible to take a bus to Mendoza, where the highest mountain in the Americas awaits the eager traveler.

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