Salta

Day 3 (Continued):  We arrived in Salta in the evening and I was stunned by the natural beauty of this tiny little city hidden within the mountains.

 I kept wondering impatiently when I would see the city and when we would be there, and then suddenly this just appeared amidst the mountains.

I just thought the sky looked really pretty.

The rest of the night was spent eating empanadas, drinking Salta's famous beer, and meeting cool travelers at the hostel.  This hostel was absolutely amazing, had an awesome community vibe, and the employees were so helpful.

Day 4:  On this day, we woke up and had a lazy morning that didn't include doing much of anything.  We all slept in, went for a walk to the verduleria to by veggies for lunch, and then we made lunch.  It was awesome being able to use the kitchen, so we took advantage a made a big salad.

 The patio area in the center of the hostel.

 Lunch.  Salad, grapefruit, tea, and bread.  Because no Argentine meal is complete without bread.

After we ate, we went exploring through the city.  This city seemed like more of a little town than a city and I just loved it. Here are some of the pictures I took in Salta:

 

 This was a super huge, BLUE church that was just absolutely beautiful!

 Stands like these are where we bought most of the food we ate during the trip.  It was so cheap and they were everywhere!

 Look at those strawberries.

 There's a story behind this one.  We went to a mummy museum that basically told the story of some indigenous people and the three bodies of their "offerings" that were found in recent years.  This museum has what is left of the bodies.  I, not paying attention to the hundreds of signs that said you were not allowed to take pictures, took a picture...with my flash on...and everyone noticed....and I got yelled at by some crazy woman who clearly just loved this museum.  But regardless, here's a horrible picture of the remains of the little girl that were found in the mountains of Argentina.

Another pretty building.

 All of the architecture in Salta had a very European feel, especially surrounding the main plaza.

 The plaza.

 I thought this was a mosque at first, but it's actually a Catholic church that is being rebuilt to look like the front of that huge piece of fabric!

When we got back to the hostel after lots of walking, we were all tired and hungry.  After talking with one of the employees a the hostel, he said he would make an asado (like a bbq but so much better) for us.  All we had to do was by the meat and veggies and he said he'd do all the work.  Without hesitation, we went to the meat store and vegetable store and bought lots of meat and veggies for barely any money. 

 

 La parilla...AKA the grill that turns meat into something wonderful.

 El asador preparing the meat.

 SO. MUCH. MEAT.

Every vegetarian's worst nightmare.

 And it just sat like that for about two hours, cooking slowly.  Asados take patience.  I think we ate at about 11pm.

And this is what a traditional plate of asado looks like: meat, grilled veggies, and salad.  I wish I could put into words how good this was.  I just can't, though.  Sorry.

Day 5: We slept in, ate breakfast, and got ready for a longer (5 hour) trip to Tucuman.  I'll get that adventure posted soon!  Thanks for bearing with me!