From Cafayate, I traveled to a small town in the Tucuman providence called Tafi del Valle. It was the perfect place for me to end my trip. I didn’t want to go to a large city and this town was absolutely charming. Apparently, it is a popular weekend destination for Argentinians that live in the capital of Tucuman. I decided to put my camping gear to use while I was there and I camped at the city camping called Camping Municipal Los Sauzales. It was an okay camping spot but, overall, I felt like it was pretty expensive ($120 pesos a night) for what you got. Also, the hot water only worked from 6pm-10pm which was a little challenging considering it was winter. The first night, I just walked around town and cooked dinner with Laura. On our first and really only day there, we walked along the lake to another small town called El Mollar. The walk turned into a 3hr trek and it was a great way to enjoy the scenery and hang out with the cows, horses, and dogs that were everywhere along the way. As someone who grew up in the country, there was something very relaxing about being surrounded by hundreds of horses and roaming the countryside. Once we arrived in El Mollar, we spent an hour soaking up the sun and then caught the bus back to Tafi del Valle. In town, we went for a coffee and alfajores (the most divine sweet treat in Argentina that consists of cookies, dulche de leche, and coconut) at the cutest place called Casa de Te Flor de Sauco. After our afternoon break, we hiked up to Cerro de la Cruz which was the town’s hilltop cross. We enjoyed the beautiful view of the countryside and had a little siesta at the top. That evening, Laura left to continue her travels onto Cordoba. I stayed another night in Tafi and then went the next morning to Casa de Te Flor de Sauco (again) for breakfast. Confession, I’m a little addicted to cute coffee shops and pastries. I then boarded a bus to Tucuman capital where I spend the day walking around the park, Parque 9 de Julio, and the main square called Plaza Independencia. It worked really well because I checked my backpack at the luggage storage at the bus terminal ($60 pesos) and was able to see all that I wanted to see in Tucuman city. Overall, I thought the city was okay but definitely not somewhere I would want to spent a lot of time. I thought the 8 hours I had there was the perfect amount of time. That evening, I boarded my 13 hour bus back to Mendoza ($75 USD). Overall, I thought the northwest part of Argentina was beautiful and largely unexplored by foreign tourists which is a shame because It is definitely worth the visit!
Jordan's Journeys 