Our first morning in Purmamarca was clear and sunny as usual and we got to see the mountains and the valley in all its glory. Purmamarca is a small tourist village but people come here mainly to see the Cerro de Siete Colores (mountain of seven colours). The region has many rock formations, composed of sedimentary layers containing different minerals which give them their distinct colour but in this valley, you could see all the colours lined up next to each ot...

Another overnight bus journey, another city. I was meeting another friend in Salta who happened to be travelling around South America also but I hadn't Antonia in years so was looking forward to her arrival in the evening. We were staying in the downtown area (again), which was a bit more chaotic and South American but still had a nicer feel to it than Cordoba. The plaza mayor was the classical colonial town square I had seen many times already but within th...

Before coming to Argentina I was enthusiastic about visiting Cordoba but a few reviews i had read just before coming here, didn't describe it in a positive light. Still, it was on my way up to the north of Argentina and would at least be a place to spend some time catching up on errands and planning my journey further north. I was staying very much in the commercial centre where the streets get blocked off during the day to accommodate all the hustle and b...

The closest town to Mendoza city where many of the vineyards are is called Maipu (yes that's right!) and after we were picked up from the hostel and taken to the bike shop, we were soon cycling away. For some reason I had visions of riding through lush country roads surrounded by vineyards but once again my imagination was way off (I think i left it somewhere in France). Mendoza and surrounds are basically in the middle of the desert but with innovative irrigati...

Arriving back in BA felt a little different than I expected. When I left the first time I was almost glad to leave but this time I was looking forward to coming back. Maybe because it would be familiar now or maybe it was because I was meeting up with a mate who finally made his long overdue visit to BA and I could share the experience with a familiar face. I think it was a bit of both. Finally got down to La Boca and immediately loved this place. It was more co...