​​ARGENTINA
​I travelled to Argentina in 2011 with the intention of 
​visiting Iguazu Falls and the Jesuit Missions.

Iguazu Falls is considered one the planet's most awe-inspiring sights.  The falls lie split between Brazil and Argentina in a large expanse of national park, much of it rainforest teeming with unique flora and fauna.*

Argentina's northwest sits lofty, dry and tough beneath the mighty Andes.*


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Besides Carnaval, which is celebrated throughout the Quebrada de Humahuaca in February, Humahuaca observes February 2 as the day of its patron, the Virgen de Candelaria.*

Nature works its magic here with stone: weird, wonderful and tortured rockscapes are visible throughout...*​

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Crossing the Bolivian border at Villazon into Argentina, I noticed a small band practicing in an alley way in La Quiaca.

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...from the jagged ruggedness of the Valles Calchaquies to the palette of colors of the Quebrada de Humahuaca.  And always to the west is the brooding presence of magnificient peaks.*​

La Quiaca is 5171km north of Ushuaia, and a major crossing point to Bolivia.  It's a cold, windy place that has decent places to stay and eat, but little to detain you.  Once a bustling railroad terminus, La Quiaca's main sign of life these days is weary Bolivians trudging between the border and the bus terminal toting heavy bags.*

Graveyards in foreign countries always fascinated me.

For a century and a half from 1609, Jesuit priests set up missions where they established communities of Guarani whom they evangelized and educated, while at the same time protecting them from slavery and the evil influences of colonial society.*

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Argentina's northwest has an Andean feel with its traditional handicrafts, Quecha-speaking pockets, coca leaves, llamas, the indigenous heritage of the inhabitants, Inca ruins, and the high, arid puna (Andean highlands) stretching west to Chile and north to Bolivia.*

*These captions are from Argentina -- a Lonely Planet travel guide.



























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