Sport, Sandwiches, Sun and Shopping
Trip Start
Jan 20, 2004
1
62
88
Trip End
Feb 01, 2005
Salta,
Northern Argentina,
Argentina
Sunday, October 17, 2004
Terra Oculta Hostel
After having flyers thrust into my hands as I collected my bag, I finally got one for Terra Oculta which Kat and Stu had also recommended to me. The guy even paid for my taxi there, which was nice!!!
I was met at the door by the very enthusiastic Diego, who showed me what seemed to be every nook and cranny of the hostel. Hot water again!! Finally I managed to have a well needed shower.
Shopping
Being in Salta was like waving a red flag at a bull. There were so many shops that I just couldn`t help myself, especially considering how cheap everything is. I found a mall that was open until very late in the nights (things happen late here) and it was lined with clothes shops, shoe shops and accessories to die for. No more market stands, no more handicrafts. Dinky di here!
So I found my way back to the hostel with an armful of bags in tow, feeling a little guilty and wondering exactly how I was going to fit everything in my backpack.
Sun
Hot weather, what a novelty!! I went up the Cerro San Bernardo in a cable car with Pippa and Jude and got a nice view of Salta. It is very flat and set in a valley. The top of the hill was great and we relaxed with a juice and brunch. We decided to walk down the hill. There were many steps and it was very hot, so we were glad that we were only walking down!!
It is also nice to be able to sleep under just a sheet again! I really really missed the hot weather!
Sandwiches
Sandwiches are very popular in Salta. Everywhere was selling sandwiches, all sorts of yummy looking things. Also, they go very well with cold drinks. Ah yes, cold drinks again, drinks that have been lingering in the back of the fridge waiting for me, not hanging around at room temperature. I must say, I rather gorged myself on sandwiches and hot drinks in Salta.
Sport
I found out via Lio that there was a rugby match between the NSW Waratahs and Salta on Saturday. Despite never having been to a rugby match and knowing nothing about the sport, I decided to go. So Pippa, Jude, Lio and Stu (from Tassie) and I piled into a taxi and went to the game. Stu had prepurchased our tickets which was lucky as there didn´t seem to be anywhere to buy them at the ground.
We had seats in the stand opposite the benches. The Waratahs were on the field warming up, and we joked about the Salta team being a few stray looking kids kicking the ball around the other end.
We were quite lucky to have Jude with us. She and Pippa are both physios, but Jude works for a rugby team in Sheffield and her boyfriend plays, so she explained all the rules and got het up at bad umpiring decisions.
The Waratahs won, 51 - 25, and after the game we wandered around and found some Aussies who live in Túcuman. They had come up for the game and we had seen them waving an Australian flag, the only other Aussies in the crowd.
Jude and Pippa scored massage jobs on the boys for their next game in Túcuman after Stu told one of the managers that they were rugby physios and the team physio and doctor came over and signed them up. They were very excited about adding this little bit of work in their holiday plans!!!
After a fabulous barbie in the hostel with steak to die for, we headed out to where we had been told that the boys would be going out. The bar was quite full and as it was Mother´s Day, all the women were given roses. It wasn´t hard to tell when the team walked in, they were so much taller and bigger than everyone else, and they couldn´t speak Spanish.
Ended up talking to a few of them, nice, genuine guys. They were all quite impressed with my ability to speak Spanish and were interested in my travels. I was talking to a couple of players from Salta when one of the Aussie guys came up and said ¿Comó estas? so I replied in Spanish, but he had no idea what I´d said, so I repeated myself and he was surprised at my English until I told him that I was Australian. Talked to him for ages and ended up kissing him. It was so nice to be with a tall guy again, and he was a great kisser! At one point I was talking to 3 guys all over 6 foot, and it was a very bizarre feeling! It was strange not to be able to see the entire pub from what is normally my birdseye view (and at 170cm I only ever have a birdseye view in South America)
Things I Learned
* They don´t like crusts in Argentina
* Rugby isn´t so terrible after all
* My Spanish isn´t cut out for Argentina, I need to "sh" it up more
