Humahuaca

About an hour north of Pumamarca, further up the Quebrada de Humahuaca, lies the town of Humahuaca with a population of about 8,000. It is quite beautiful with adobe buildings, cobbled streets, and plenty of color. Unfortunately, we only had a few hours to spend, which was just enough time to have a lunch of quinoa stew, visit a true artist/artisan cooperative, and gasp to climb the steps of the Monumento a la Independencia. I guess the altitude (3000m — 800m higher than Purmamarca) is still affecting us.

An artist's wool and loom at the artisan coop we visited.

The view of Humahuaca and its surroundings from the Monumento a la Independencia.

Salinas Grandes

Although we had previously visited a larger salt flat (the Salar de Atacama in 2004), we took a fascinating tour to the Salinas Grandes in the Salta province. The blinding white expanse of salt was similar, but here we got a chance to see how the salt is mined. Locals — who use hats, scarves and ski masks to limit their sun exposure — dig 3ft deep tubs which naturally fill with ground water. The salt that is dissolved in the water slowly crystallizes and sinks. When the pools are about half full of crystallized salt, the workers shovel it out and begin the process anew.

Posing with one of the many lines of pools of salt.

Tom practices his salt mining technique.

The workers from the salt cooperative supplement their income by making and selling salt statues, ashtrays, etc during the midday hours when it is too hot to work. Notice how the guy's skin is almost totally covered.