Date

Site

30-Jul
Night #1

Miami / In flight

Leave from Miami on an overnight flight to Buenos Aires' Ezeiza International Airport on Aerolineas Argentinas.

After arriving in Buenos Aires, we will have a bus transfer to the Hotel Octubre 3 in the city center. We'll then walk a few blocks (7, I think) and cross Av. 9 de Julio, the world's widest (or second widest) avenue to get to the Restaurant La Estancia and an excellent meal. In the afternoon, we'll take a city bus tour. When that's over, you can shop in the centro or take a siesta. We will have a very late night at La Ventana, one of the city's premier tango clubs but dinner won't start until 8:30 at the earliest. While we dine we will be entertained by tango music and dance as well as other tratitional types of Argentine music.

1-Aug

Night #3

2-Aug

Night #4

Mendoza to Mendoza

4-Aug

Night #6

In the morning, we'll head north, toward Bahía Inglesa, following the Cordillera de la Costa. After lunch, we'll continue the long drive northward , along the Pacific coast where we'll stay at the Hotel Blanco Encalada. Dinner will be in the town. Instead, we continued north up the east side of the Andes to Fiambalá where we enjoyed an evening in the hot springs.

5-Aug

Night #7

6-Aug

Night #8

After breakfast, we'll visit the Valle de la Luna park. If we are lucky, we might see a distant volcano erupting (if we are unlucky, we might see a nearby one erupting!). Next, we'll drive to Calama where we'll eat lunch. in the afternoon, we'll visit the Chuquicamata open pit copper mine, one of the world's largest. This used to be the Anaconda Mine until it was nationalized in the 1960's. We'll return to Atacama in the evening. Because we were delayed, we had breakfast in Antofagasta and then drove toward San Pedro Atacama, stopping in Calama for dinner and a native festival. Unfortunately, we did not visit the mine.

7-Aug

Night #9

In the morning, we'll visit the Tatio Geyser and then return to Atacama for lunch. In the afternoon, we'll make our highest ascent of the trip as we cross the Cordillera Occidental back into Argentina and onto the Puna, a narrow southern extension of the Bolivian Altiplano. This is one of the driest places on Earth. We'll see thick salt deposits in dried up lakebeds. Night will be spent at the Hotel de las Nubes on the Puna in the town of San Antonio de los Cobres at about 14,000' elevation. This will be the highest (and coldest) night of the trip. The town is in Salta Province which has one of the most diverse sets of climates and environments of any place on Earth. We arrived at our hotel around 3 AM so we slept late and then headed eastward to the Argentine Puna. We spent the night at a roadhouse on the Puna.

8-Aug

Night #10

In the morning, we'll descend to lower elevation through the magnificent Quebrada del Toro and then head southward through the Valle de Lerma and the scenic Quebrada de las Conchas, stopping at numerous points of both scenic and geological interest. Lunch will be in one of the small towns en route. We'll spend the night in the really nice town of Cafayate in the Hotel Astúrias. We finally got back on schedule!!!

9-Aug

Night #11

In the morning, we'll head northward up the Valles Calchaquíes in the Cordillera Oriental, accompanied by Argentine geologist, Dra. Claudia Galli. We'll make a brief stop in the scenic village of Angastaco before continuing up the valley. We'll make a brief visit in the town of Cachi and then head eastward through the cactus forest and on to the Cuesta del Obispo and Valle Encantado overlook. Then, we'll descend to the Valle de Lerma and continue into the provincial capital of Salta. We'll stay at the Hostería Los Ceibos for three nights in San Lorenzo, one of the eastern suburbs.

10-Aug

Night #12

In t he morning we'll have a city tour. Then, lunch will be at a friend's restaurant with a group of faculty and students from the Universidad Nacional de Salta, people I have been working with since 1989. When that is over, you'll have the afternoon and evening free to shop, hang out with Argentine students, or explore.

11-Aug

Night #13

This will be a free day.

12-Aug

Night #14

We'll head northward to Tartagal, a town near the Bolivian border . On the way, we'll stop to see the 100 m-deep canyon carved by the Río Iruya since it was accidentally diverted in 1898. Night will be spent in the Hotel Presidente in Tartagal. We didn't make it to the Río Iruya. It was farther than I remembered!

13-Aug

Night #15

Drive eastward across the Argentine Chaco savanna to Filadelfia, Paraguay. A stop will be made to visit an aboriginal community. We'll stay at the Hotel Florida.

14-Aug

Night #16

We'll make the drive to the capital, Asunción, in the morning and check into the Asunción Palace Hotel. In the afternoon, we'll have a tour of Asunción and then the rest of the day will be free.

15-Aug

Night #17

After driving eastward across Paraguay, and possibly visiting a forestry operation, we'll visit the Itiapú hydrolelectric project, the largest in South America. Then, we'll cross into Brazil drive to Foz do Iguazu where we'll spend the night. We'll visit the Brazilian side of the Foz do Iguazu, walking along the trail above the river. Night will be spent at the Hotel Alexander.